This week, from June 13 to 15, the management and senior experts from Certifer, a globally recognized and independent certification and assessment body, gathered in Riga to participate in a workshop with the extended Rail Baltica team. This three-day visit marked a significant milestone in the ongoing collaboration between Rail Baltica and Certifer.
Rail Baltica and Certifer have established a partnership through the signing of two significant contracts. One contract focuses on Notified Body (NoBo) services, while the other contract focuses on Assessment Body (AsBo) services.
Certifer actively engaged with the Shadow Operator and Infrastructure Managers/Implementing bodies. Certifer’s valuable contributions were evident during discussions on the CoP (Code of Practice) for design and construction processes, as well as in the CCS concept design presentation, where Certifer provided insightful feedback and expertise. Additionally critical interoperability matters, such as scope of documentation for all stages of the project, as well as NoBo involvement in the construction and testing phase of various subsystems (INF, ENE, CCS, SRT, PRM subsystems), were discussed.
“Certifer specializes in the field of railways and ensures adherence to the highest international standards of safety, quality, and interoperability. As Rail Baltica’s partner, Certifer plays an important role in guaranteeing that the project meets these standards. The visit demonstrated the strong commitment of both organizations to advancing the Rail Baltica project and marked a significant step forward in our collaborative efforts. We were glad to meet our colleagues in Riga!” said Marko Kivila, interim CEO and Chairman of the Management Board at RB Rail AS.
“Rail Baltica is for Certifer a key ongoing project, a very challenging one notably due to many stakeholders involved such as multiple national safety authorities, designers, and engineering bodies. Besides our missions of safety and interoperability assessments, our role is to ensure the global coherence of the project and the proper consideration of the interfaces between the different design and build companies. To meet these challenges, we mobilize a large team of assessors with experience on different European railway lines (France, Denmark, Spain). I am particularly pleased with the level of commitment of Rail Baltica teams and management towards our mission, showing a high understanding and awareness of how a third part body contributes to the global safety of a project,” said Pierre Kadziola, Certifer Group Chief Executive Officer.
For background:
The first contract with Certifer was signed in June 2020, covering Notified Body (NoBo) services for Rail Baltica’s trackside infrastructure TSI conformity assessment. This collaborative agreement involves Certifer SA, RB Rail AS, and Network Rail Certification Body Limited, with Certifer SA serving as the primary supplier of NoBo assessment services for the entire Rail Baltica project. The Notified Body conducts conformity assessments according to Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSIs), which include documentary assessments, audits, and test witnessing. Ultimately, they deliver EC certificates of verification.
The second contract was concluded in August 2021, and it relates to Assessment Body (AsBo) services for the Rail Baltica global project. Under this agreement, Certifer SA assumes the role of the main supplier of AsBo assessment services, providing expertise to ensure the successful execution of the Rail Baltica project. The Assessment Body assesses the safety risk processes applied during the project, performs quality and safety related audits, ensuring compliance with CSM-RA regulations, and producing a comprehensive Safety Assessment Report.