Summary：The Xindu International Rail Transit Industry Summit 2018 was held in Chengdu, in southwestern China, on Friday t...

The Xindu International Rail Transit Industry Summit 2018 was held in Chengdu, in southwestern China, on Friday to great fanfare.

Organizers said the event was jointly organized by Southwest Jiaotong University, the National Business Daily, the Chengdu commission of economy and information technology and Xindu district in Chengdu.

The summit, themed "Quality and Security First", brought together nearly 300 guests at home and abroad. They were engaged in lively and productive discussions on development trends in the rail transit industry, showcasing its cutting-edge technologies.

The summit generated positive outcomes, according to organizers.

China's first rail transit big data research center was located in the Xindu district of Chengdu. In a newly released report on urban rail transit development potential, eight districts and counties, including Xindu, were evaluated as the areas blessed with the most development potential nationally in terms of the rail transit industry.

At the signing ceremony, it was announced that 25 rail transit projects with a total investment of 10.97 billion yuan ($1.58 billion) will cooperate with Xindu, further boosting the district's rail transit sector. Efforts will be made to shape the Xindu-featured rail transit industrial cluster, according to local officials.

The global rail transit industry is entering a golden period of fast-paced development, and Chengdu has achieved strong results in recent years in developing the sector. The participation of leading companies such as CRRC has greatly enhanced the overall strength and international influence of Chengdu's rail transit industry, said Matt Kelly, a strategic planner from the Canada Transportation Agency.

At the summit, it was announced that the China Rail Transit Big Data Research Center - built by Southwest Jiaotong University, the National Business Daily and Xindu district - will be located in the district. Officials said a big data base with comprehensive data types and rich content will be built, which is considered a breakthrough and will be of great significance to the development of China's rail transit industry.

The research center will also promote the rail transit industry's technological research and development, push intelligent manufacturing to a new high and offer technical support for foreign trade capacity to converge in Xindu, outlined Han Li, secretary-general at the center.

Developing regional rail transit and building a multilevel, multimodal and efficient regional rail transit network will expedite the movement of people, commodities and information within the region, improve the allocation of professionals and economic factors in related industries and promote sound regional economic development, said Xu Fei, president of Southwest Jiaotong University.

The report on the country's urban rail transit development potential, compiled by Southwest Jiaotong University and the National Business Daily, showcased the current position and prospects for the development of rail transit transportation in a comprehensive way.

In light of the current layout of CRRC Corp and the distribution of rail transit industrial parks and higher learning institutions and scientific research organizations, the report evaluated eight districts and counties including Xindu as the areas having the most development potential nationally in terms of the rail transit industry.

Industry insiders said Xindu was among the most dynamic regions for development in China, having achieved rapid development in its rail transit industry in recent years. They said that Xindu is seen as a rising star.

The contract to build the CRRC Chengdu rail transit industrial park project was signed in 2014 and the park in Xindu is an equipment manufacturing center. Since then, Xindu has developed into an industrial cluster comprising leading company CRRC Chengdu and more than 30 key supporting enterprises, with a total investment worth more than 13 billion yuan.

Projects such as a high-speed railway operation safety laboratory and a rail transit operation space safety technology laboratory have been launched in Xindu. Recently, a strategic cooperation agreement and an agreement on the national quality infrastructure innovation base were signed between Xindu district and Southwest Jiaotong University. The two sides will cooperate to build a rail transit innovation valley covering an area of 66.67 hectares.

Officials said a three-step strategy for the development of the rail transit industry was proposed by Xindu district "following the development of high-speed railway, competing in urban rail and taking the lead in maglev".

Centering on innovation, quality, safety, opening-up, business and talents, Xindu is actively building functional zones for the rail transit industry.

Xindu will make efforts to transform itself into a world-class rail transit innovation hub, a rail transit equipment manufacturing and maintenance center in western China and an export service center for rail transit equipment making and maintenance geared to the needs of the Belt and Road Initiative.