As part of the continuously evolving collaboration between the Railway Systems Academy and the USTP – University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten, a two-day excursion for students of the Bachelor’s program Railway Technology and Mobility was organized for the second time.
The objective of this collaboration is to deliberately connect academic education with industrial practice and to support students in experiencing the real-world environment of the railway industry. While experts from voestalpine Railway Systems regularly contribute their know-how through lectures, the excursion complements these academic insights with direct on-site experience.
Over the course of the two days, students gained insights along the entire railway value chain: from raw materials to finished rail products. The locations are intentionally selected to highlight different perspectives within the railway industry and to make the interconnections between them clearly understandable.
Visits to vaErzberg and the Zentrum am Berg provided insights into the origin of materials as well as into realistic testing and tunnel environments. At the same time, voestalpine Railway Systems production sites demonstrated how these foundations are transformed into concrete applications such as rail, turnout, and signaling solutions.
This approach allowed students not only to observe individual processes but to understand the railway industry as an interconnected system.
Following its successful second edition, the excursion will now become a regular annual format and will remain a key element of the university collaboration, with the aim of preparing the next generation of professionals for the challenges of the railway industry.
Interested in similar formats or industry-academic collaboration? We are always open for new partnerships and exchange.
