Andrew Lazala, Chair, Inver Engineering Pty Ltd.  

“I nominated so that I can continue to support and influence the Rail Industry in this country and to maintain links with other Industry professionals.” 

Andrew has 45 years’ experience in railway tendering, financing, operation and maintenance, as well as design and construction of rollingstock and infrastructure. He wants to see increased investment in Australian Rail projects and products, more support for local manufacturing and the practical application of hydrogen as a fuel for rail passenger and freight, including development links to local universities. Andrew is also focused on promoting the industry to young people and addressing our skills needs. 

Andrew’s previous roles include CEO Metro Trains Melbourne and Australia, President Bombardier Transportation Worldwide Services Division, President Adtranz Metro’s Worldwide. Andrew was also a member of the ARA Board for seven years. 

Bonnie Ryan, Director – Freight, Logistics & Industrial sectors, GS1 

“I nominated to bring digital supply chain expertise to the group as it relates to the adoption of the iTRACE program as well as bringing learnings and findings from the global industry network.” 

Bonnie brings a passion for lifting the digital supply chain capability of the industry and values the opportunity for insight into the major issues facing the sector through the RIEC discussions which enable a better understanding of how best GS1 can continue to support the rail industry. 

She has over 25 years’ experience working with many top 200 clients in different industry sectors including retail, manufacturing, and transport and has a deep knowledge of supply chain digitalisation. Bonnie is responsible for leading GS1 Australia’s engagement with our national Freight and Industrial (rail/construction) sectors to enhance the digital capability of industry, and with Government to support productivity and supply chain resilience agendas (eg. Dept Infrastructure’s National Freight & Supply Chain strategy) through the adoption of global data standards.  

She currently sits on the ALC Technology Policy Committee, the National Location Registry Steering Committee as co-chair with the Federal Government, the NSW Government Building Commissioner’s Digital transformation work group, and the GS1 Global Rail Centre of Excellence work group, as well as overseeing the Project iTRACE Steering Committee and Project iTRACE material master data work group. 

David Wynd, CEO, Australian Rail Technology 

“Our industry is a highly integrated one – we are all dependent upon each other’s successes.  Being part of RIEC enables us to contribute across the supply chain on initiatives that help the industry as a whole.  I’ve seen what SMEs can achieve in the industry and I’m thankful to be able to represent small and medium businesses.” David has worked in the industry since 2008 for both tier 2 and tier 3 organisations, with responsibilities across all fields of the industry including technical, operational and commercial roles.  He wants to represent SME businesses across the rail business to champion their role and capabilities in the industry. 

He has provided representation for SMEs in the establishment and operation of the Rail Manufacturing CRC, and was founding director and member of the company.  Outside of the rail industry, he has held executive representative roles for public benefit organisations for over seven years, chairing the Greater Sydney division of the Rural Fire Service Association, representing the interests of 14,000 registered members.   

A Chartered Engineer, David has worked in the rollingstock and infrastructure sectors of the industry.  With a demonstrated background in design engineering, project and programme management, he also has experience in operations, business development, supply chain and executive management.   

David Stuart-Smith, Principal, Arup 

“I have been in the rail industry for over 40 years and have a reasonable understanding of how things work, both technically and commercially… I see the RIEC as a way to pay that learning forward to make our industry better for the future, noting that rail doing a larger share of the transport task is generally a win for sustainability.” 

David is a Technical Director at Arup and Arup’s Rail Skills Leader, a Fellow of Engineers Australia, and former Chief Engineer, Electrical Systems at RailCorp NSW.  He is a recognised leader in electric traction infrastructure engineering and is passionate about good design leading to configurations which are safe, reliable, and maintainable. 

David’s extensive experience spans infrastructure for urban rail, light rail, and metros with a focus on all aspects of AC and DC electrification in Australia, Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, and the UK.  He has substantial experience in the planning and execution of railway infrastructure maintenance.  David is always interested in innovations that enhance safety, improve outcomes for customers and other stakeholders, are asset-efficient, and are a good fit with the available integrated logistic support organisation.   

His early experience in the NSW rail system included development of technology for the inspection of OLE from rail vehicles running at line speed and the design of a suite of new components for the NSW Mark II OLE cantilever, components that are still in use for new works almost 40 years later. Later as Chief Engineer for RailCorp, David introduced many innovations to engineer out safety risks and maintenance tasks, reduce substation footprints, and simplify the integration of equipment.  

He is currently working with the OEMs and RIMs on standards harmonisation for electrical infrastructure equipment and is keen to see improvements in this space. 

David is interested in the sustainability of the rail industry – something he believes is broadly important for the sustainable development of our cities and economy.