[Hong Kong, June 14, 2023] The MTR Corporation is committed to making good use of technology to promote smart railway operations management and intelligent maintenance. MTR today (14 June 2023) signed a Memorandum of Understanding(“MoU”) with the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (“ASTRI”). Under this MoU, the Corporation will reserve an additional HK$20 million to deepen the collaboration between the two parties.
Witnessed by Dr Tony Lee, Operations Director of MTR Corporation and Dr Denis Yip, Chief Executive Officer of ASTRI, Mr Chan Hing-keung, Chief of Operations Engineering Service & Innovation of MTR Corporation and Mr David Chan, Chief Operating Officer of ASTRI signed the MoU, establishing a framework for further exploring innovative solutions and technology applications. With ASTRI’s rich research and development and application experience in communication technology, artificial intelligence technology, the Internet of Things and data analytics, the collaboration between the two parties will help further enhance the performance and efficiency of MTR’s railway operations and intelligent maintenance.
Since 2021, MTR has allocated approximately HK$50 million to embark on collaboration projects with ASTRI. Multiple contracts and projects have commenced, including the use of precise automatic optical inspection technology to monitor railway safety, joint research and development of a portable escalator gap clearance inspection tool and application of digital twin for enhancing the operation efficiency of maintenance centre in the future. In the future, MTR and ASTRI will continue to jointly research, develop and apply new technologies such as Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and data analysis to build a smarter railway system.
“MTR has always spared no effort in applying technology to improve operational and management performance and has been striving for excellence to provide safe and reliable railway services to passengers. ASTRI has been our close partner for many years, helping us improve our operational and management efficiency with innovative solutions. We look forward to working with ASTRI’s experts to contribute to `industry-academic-research’ collaboration and facilitate the development of Hong Kong’s smart railways.” said Dr Tony Lee, Operations Director of the MTR Corporation.
Dr Denis Yip, Chief Executive Officer of ASTRI, expressed great anticipation for working with MTR to promote the comprehensive application of intelligent railway technology. “MTR is closely related to the daily lives of the public. ASTRI is pleased to establish a close cooperative relationship with MTR to develop an intelligent railway using various advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, big data, Internet of Things, digital twin, optical inspections and more. Intelligent railway service is an important part of building an international smart city. We believe that this collaboration can bring epoch-making breakthroughs to smart mobility technology in Hong Kong, continuously providing passengers with better travel experience and services and empowering smart living with technology.” said Dr Yip.
Under the new corporate strategy “Transforming the Future”, the MTR Corporation actively cooperates with research institutions, universities and start-ups, hoping to continuously promote smart railway services and operations while also contributing to local scientific research to keep Hong Kong moving.
Committed to making Hong Kong an international smart city, ASTRI actively supports the improvement of the innovation and technology ecosystem, and promotes cooperation among government, industry, academia and research sectors to transform advanced technology into practical applications, providing the public with intelligent living and business environments.
Witnessed by Dr Tony Lee, Operations Director of MTR Corporation (from right) and Dr Denis Yip, Chief Executive Officer of ASTRI (from left), Mr Chan Hing-keung, Chief of Operations Engineering Service & Innovation of MTR Corporation (Second right) and Mr David Chan, Chief Operating Officer of ASTRI (second left) signed the MoU today.
The portable escalator gap clearance inspection tool co-developed by MTR and ASTRI recently won a Silver Medal in the Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions 2023.
Since 2021, MTR has allocated approximately HK$50 million to embark on collaboration projects with ASTRI. Multiple contracts and projects have commenced, including the use of precise automatic optical inspection technology (left), joint research and development of a portable escalator gap clearance inspection tool (right), and application of digital twin for enhancing the operation efficiency of maintenance centre in the future.
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