NEWS & EVENTS
NEWS & EVENTS
UCD Undertakes Compilation of the Hong Kong Railway Standards and Attends Collaboration Charter Signing Ceremony
On September 12, the Hong Kong Highways Department held a signing ceremony for the Collaboration Charter of the Hong Kong Railway Standards to demonstrate the firm commitment of the Hong Kong government and various sectors to jointly formulating and updating the Hong Kong Railway Standards. The ceremony was officiated by the Director of Highways, Mr Tony Yau. Chinese mainland and overseas railway experts, representatives from relevant Hong Kong government departments (namely the Buildings Department, the Civil Engineering and Development Department, Drainage Services Department, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, the Fire Services Department, the Hong Kong Police Force and the Transport Department), the Building Technology Research Institute, as well as the MTR Corporation Limited joined as signatories. Beijing Urban Construction Design & Development Group, as the chief compiler of the Hong Kong Railway Standards, was invited to attend and sign the Charter.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Yau remarked, “This Collaboration Charter has established a solid foundation for cross-sector collaboration. Through the formulation and updating of the Hong Kong Railway Standards, it would lead Hong Kong’s railway construction to create a new milestone.” He said that the nation’s railway standards not only attain international benchmarks, but also take a leading position internationally in various aspects. The formulation and updating of the Hong Kong Railway Standards would actively draw reference to world-class railway specifications including those of the nation, and extensively absorb the best practices of Chinese mainland and other countries and regions. By introducing the design standards, building materials, equipment and construction specifications of the Chinese mainland, a firm basis will be established for utilizing the construction methods, technologies and resources of the Chinese mainland in railway construction. This would not only help the local construction industry adopt innovative machinery and building technologies from the Chinese mainland, but also enhance efficiency, shorten the construction period and reduce costs. He added that Hong Kong’s standards have long aligned with international standards, and envisioned that the new Hong Kong Railway Standards would not only become the “Greater Bay Area Standards”, but also aim to become one of the new “World Standards”.
The standards will first be applicable to the ongoing Northern Link project and the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Rail Link (Hung Shui Kiu-Qianhai) project, and will be progressively adopted in other railway projects.
The three commitments of the Charter are: to support the formulation and launch of the new Hong Kong Railway Standards for application to railway projects; to drive the continuous enhancement and application of the Hong Kong Railway Standards; and to leverage the Hong Kong Railway Standards as a key pillar for pursuing excellence in building railway projects.
The Hong Kong Railway Standards cover various disciplines and areas of Hong Kong’s railway (rail transit) construction including survey, design, construction, supervision and operation. As a leading developer of China’s national standards and norms for urban rail transit and a key facilitator in bringing China’s industry standards to the global stage, UCD will leverage its comprehensive technical strength and full industry-chain advantages to advance the compilation of the Hong Kong Railway Standards with a global vision, international benchmarks, future-oriented goals and distinctive Hong Kong features.