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Dear friends,
Events at IMA
Allow me to expand on the recent business of the Association. In January, some members of the Executive Council met in Orlando to meet with ASCE APM and also to have a workshop among ourselves to set the foundations for the International Monorail Association in Switzerland.
During the meeting with ASCE APM, we discussed the reasoning behind our work crafting the Mass Transit Monorail Performance Specifications. Larry Smith, Chairman of the ASCE APM Standards Committee, and others present at the meeting, indicated their interest in learning more on how IMA could offer specific examples of what would need to be addressed on the ASCE 21 document so that it can represent our needs. It was at this meeting that Mr. Tom McGean, past Chairman of the committee, indicated that it took almost two decades of work from many people to get to what we now know and recognize as one of the leading comprehensive documents for Automated People Movers. We plan to call on the people that worked on the Performance Specifications to date to help us go over the ASCE 21 document and identify the language that would address our needs. Then we will submit to the committee for their consideration. The time-frame to do this will probably be the next six to nine months, as the committee is working of re-affirmation process for the next revision of the document.
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During the workshop, the first order of business was to work on administrative tasks related to Jaap’s retirement from the Association as it was agreed in our General Members Meeting in Wuppertal. I’m pleased to report that we are almost done with moving our organization from the Netherlands, where Jaap Ketel nurtured the organization for the last five years, to Switzerland, where Peter Wittwer and Peter Keller have volunteered to look after the financial and some administrative tasks. The remainder of the administrative and marketing tasks will come to me and some members of my staff. New Articles of Association were presented and modified as well as reworking the Charter Document. All of it will be presented to our membership in our next general meeting later this year for ratification.
The Association Executive Council then worked on issues related to the benefits offered by the Association for different markets; how to market our Association; how to improve our website; start a series of webinars, etc. We will be sharing more items related to this work in subsequent newsletters. Since we formed a new nonprofit in Switzerland, we will reach out to our present membership to join IMA again for the 2015 year, as a result of the decisions we took in Wuppertal.
We want to thank our member companies and friends that attend our events for the support given to the Association in the past, and encourage all of us to reach the full potential of this technology.
On behalf of the Executive Council,
Carlos Banchik, P.E.
President
International Monorail Association
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Istanbul is building a 47km monorail
Istanbul is building a 47km monorail network to deal with its crippling traffic congestion. Istanbul has tried to combat its notorious traffic levels with nearly every type of public transport - buses, metrobuses, suburban and subway trains, trams, funiculars, cable cars, ferries, sea taxis, etc., but all to little avail. Now, eight monorail lines will connect a number of neighborhoods on both the European and Asian sides of the city, carrying 200,000 passengers a day.
Read More
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Congratulations Bombardier!
IMA would like to congratulate Bombardier on their recent achievement. Rail technology leader Bombardier Transportation has won the Good Design Award from the Chicago Athenaem: Museum of Architecture and Design for its Bombardier Innovia Monorail 300. They are currently delivering two Innovia Monorail 300 systems to Saudi Arabia and Brazil.
Read More
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Monorail News
Send us your monorail news and information for the upcoming newsletter!
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Monorail Marketplace
Starneth is one of the latest companies to join IMA. Here you have the statement where they introduce themselves:
Starneth is an engineering company specialized in the design and construction of Giant Observation Wheels and Structures. The Starneth team is made up of the people behind the design and construction of the highly successful London Eye. Several members of the former London Eye engineering, construction and erection team are permanent members in the company; while others are long-term, strategic partners working with Starneth when required.
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With this experienced team Starneth possesses the unique capability to offer a Giant Observation Wheel on a lump sum, turnkey basis. We know of no other company able to offer this advantage and the expertise to minimize risk, cost and schedule resulting in a financeable project. Starneth offers standard designs (SN series) as shown in the website (www.starneth.com) or special purpose designs to suit the specific requirements of the client or location.
Since a large amount of features and technologies exist in both monorail technology and giant observation wheels Starneth is also interested to get involved in that market thus bringing in different experiences and hopefully learning from others as well. We anticipate in the end both markets may benefit. With a Starneth design your project will become iconic and offer guests an elegant, memorable experience. If your project will benefit from an Iconic Giant Observation Wheel, Structure or Monorail, Starneth is ready to become part of your team.
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Worth Considering
Many of us are familiar with Wikipedia and how it has become the clearing house of information for many facets in our lives. As most of you know, Wikipedia is supported and hosted by the non-profit Wikipedia Foundation. In our transportation world, the Monorail Society, an all-volunteer organization with its website www.monorails.org, has become our clearing house. New projects and ideas, facts about existing projects, construction photos and many more things, all get a place at the familiar website.
- How many times people have enquired you about things they have read at www.monorails.org?
- How many times have we referred people to look into the Monorail Society’s website www.monorails.org?
- How many times have you sent information to Mr. Kim Pedersen, the Society President, related to projects you have worked on, or projects you have seen?
- How many times have you been able to point with pride to colleagues, friends and family, projects you have been involved displayed at the website?
If you answered yes to any of the previous questions, this might be a good time to support the labor of the Society by becoming a member and better yet if you can, donate to it if you have not done that to date. It is through the support of all of us that this Society can continue to thrive and be there when we need it, it is only fair.
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Events
Monorailex 2015
More information to come soon!
Monorailex 2014 Images
Driverless Public Transport
Is your work related to Mass Transit Transportation?
Would you like to know many system types available in today's market?
Would you like to more about driverless trains?
Join us for the Driverless Fact Finding Tour to South Korea
June 5-9, 2015
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