Save the date for the AARS 119th Annual Meeting, July 19-21, 2015 on the Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD.
Registration is now open! Click here to link to online registration.
Click here for a print version of the meeting program.
Hotel Information
Embassy Suites Inner Harbor
222 St. Paul Place
Baltimore, Maryland, USA 21202
1-410-727-2222
Please contact the hotel directly by June 21, 2015 to reserve your room at the special AARS rate of $155 - 179/night based upon availability.
Make an online hotel reservation by clicking here.
Or you may call the hotel directly to reserve your room by calling 410-727-2222.
To register for the AARS Annual Golf Outing to benefit the Frank J. Richter Scholarship Fund, click here.
Sunday, July 19
12:45 p.m. (Boarding begins at 12:30 at the Baltimore Penn Station)
Click here for a map from the Embassy Suites to the station
ACELA Rail Tour
Acela rail trip from Baltimore to Wilmington with tour of Amtrak's Consolidated National Operations Center (CNOC), the high-tech, 50,000 square foot facility from which Amtrak's national operations are controlled.
5:00 p.m.
Opening Reception
6:30 p.m.
Progressive Railroading Rising Stars Award Dinner
Click here to learn more about the Rising Stars Award and Award Recipients
Monday, July 20
Click here to learn more about Guest/Spouse Events on Monday, July 20
7:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast in the Technical Showcase
8:00 a.m.
Charge to Superintendents
Joe Boardman, President & CEO, Amtrak
9:00 a.m.
Break in the Technical Showcase
9:30 a.m.
Legislative Update from Capitol Hill
Joe McHugh, VP Governmental Affairs, Amtrak
10:30 a.m.
Security, Safety & Operations: Passenger & Freight
Tom Farmer, AVP Security, AAR
12:00 Noon
119th Annual Meeting Luncheon and Lantern Awards
1:15 p.m.
Service Challenges Facing the Rail Industry
Jason Kuehn, Director Rail Practice, Oliver Wyman; Ronnie Russell, Rail Operations Superintendent, Bombardier; Randy Hunt, Director Joint Facilities, Norfolk Southern; Shawn Gordon, Superintendent, Amtrak; and Kevin Page, Chief of Infrastructure Initiatives and Strategic Partnerships, Commonwealth of VA discuss the services challenges facing the rail industry.
3:00 p.m.
Break in the Technical Showcase
3:30 p.m.
Education Partnership for Optimal People Development
Donna DeDomenico, Human Capital, Amtrak; Jeremy Hammett, Manager Training II, BNSF and NARS; Dr. Richard Stewart, Ph.D., CTL, Chair Department of Business and Economics University of Wisconsin - Superior.
Tuesday, July 21
7:00 a.m.
Continental Breakfast in the Technical Showcase
and pre-check of golf bags (Embassy Suites bellman)for AARS Golf Outing
8:00 a.m.
Leadership & Safety: Sustained Attention Training, Strategies for Fighting Distraction
Panel including Ron Robusto, COO, TransDev; George Elsmore, Principal, GE Safety Associates; Don Fisher, Professor and Dept. Head, Dept. of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Massachusetts; and Don Saunders, President, DLS Consulting.
8:50 a.m.
Break in Technical Showcase
9:20 a.m.
Panel on New Management Challenges
Representatives of Norfolk Southern, CSX, Conrail, TransDev, and other railroads discuss the challenges faced by those new to management in the rail industry.
10:15 - 10:45 a.m.
Business Session
11:00 Bus loads for Greystone Golf Club
11:15 a.m.
Bus departs to Greystone Golf Club for the AARS Annual Golf Outing to benefit the Frank J. Richter Scholarship