STRMTG relationships with other countries

STRMTG relationships with other countries

STRMTG cooperates internationally on several levels, with supervisory authorities, institutional partners, the scientific community and professionals. In some cases, STRMTG also works at the request of manufacturers as part of calls for tenders and projects in countries where the industry is still emerging. The aim of these exchanges is to maintain doctrine consistent with French requirements, promote French engineering technologies, and disseminate the high level of scientific and technical expertise of STRMTG staff on a supra-national level.

Here is a sample of all the exchanges that have taken place between STRMTG and other countries around the world since 2006.

CHINA — 2006 & 2008

STRMTG went to China twice in 2006, and a Chinese delegation came to STRMTG for ITTAB (International Meeting of Technical Authorities for Cableways) that same year. An exchange was organised again in 2008.

PERU — 2013

Peru’s Minister of Housing, Construction and Sanitation asked STRMTG to train a team of twenty people in charge of cableway projects and their future oversight in the country. Over a five-day period at the Peruvian government office in Lima, two STRMTG employees provided training in cableway technology and drafting technical and administrative regulations.

COLOMBIA — 2013

As part of a technical cooperation mission, at the request of the Mayor of Bogota, Colombia, STRMTG went to Colombia in July 2013, in association with CEREMA (Centre for Studies and Expertise on Risks, the Environment, Mobility and Urban Planning) and SYSTRA (engineering and consulting group specialised in public transport and mobility solutions). The aim of the trip was to provide methodological support to the contracting authority, which is planning to launch significant cableway, tramway and metro projects.

RUSSIA — 2013

Russia’s Federal Service for Ecological, Technological and Nuclear Supervision (Rostechnadzor) and STRMTG met during the International Organization for Transportation by Rope (OITAF) seminar held in April 2013 in Innsbruck, Austria. The two departments took the opportunity to discuss their respective organisations. The French model was explained over three days of seminars. Rostechnadzor wished to continue these discussions and invited a delegation from STRMTG to visit Sochi, Russia in April 2014.

BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA — 2013

In 2013, Bosnia-Herzegovina, a Balkan country, was just a potential candidate for EU membership. With this in mind, the country, which was seeking to study the conditions for transposing European directives in the field of cableway transport into national law, received training from STRMTG employees at the request of the European Commission.

HONG KONG — 2014

The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) is a Hong Kong Government department responsible for safety regulations in various fields, including rail transport. EMSD is currently looking at ways to improve and better manage rail safety. They contacted the RATP Development department to organise a trip to Europe (Paris and Manchester), in September 2014. To their satisfaction, STRMTG presented an analysis of tramway accidents in France, taken from the annual report.

ARGENTINA — 2014

STRMTG seized the opportunity of the second conference organised by INTI (Argentina’s national institute of industrial technology), to travel to San Carlos de Bariloche and engage in targeted discussions on ropes and their inspection.

GEORGIA — 2015, 2017 and 2019

Several STRMTG employees took part in seminars organised in Georgia, at the request of the European Commission (TAIEX), to present European rules on cableway installations to multi-disciplinary teams including operators, contractors, inspection services and experts in the ropeway installation sector. These presentations covered European regulations and standards, as well as the inspection principles for these installations so that they could be transposed into national law.

DUBAI — 2015

Following an initial request from Dubai’s supervisory authorities on urban integration issues when their first tramway line went into service in November 2014, RTA (Roads and Transport Authority) invited STRMTG at the end of 2015 to discuss the two countries’ practices in terms of transport safety management.

SERBIA — 2017

The European Union implements various cooperation programmes between European regions. In particular, it has a pre-accession instrument. A cooperation programme has been set up with Serbia which focuses on the development of sustainable, low-carbon transport. The DGITM (French General Directorate for Infrastructure, Transport and the Sea) has been involved, presenting French experience and know-how in this field. STRMTG welcomed a Serbian delegation representing the Ministry of Transport and the railway safety authority.

INDIA — 2018

STRMTG met with a delegation of two people from the Indian Port Rail Corporation Ltd (IPRCL), responsible for establishing a national regulatory framework for ropeway transport on behalf of the Indian Ministry of Transport. STRMTG presented the French and European regulations applicable to the field, as well as the organisation of the industry and inspections.

ECUADOR - 2018 & 2019

At the request of French Development Agency, STRMTG took part in training for the Ecuadorian government. The service hosted a 4-person delegation from the Ecuadorian Ministry of Transport in 2018 and in 2019, two employees travelled to Ecuador.

DUBAI — 2019

A delegation of two STRMTG employees provided training for a team from the Roads and Transport Authority in charge of public transport in the Emirate of Dubai. They presented the European regulations on cableway installations and the principles for assessment and inspection before and after commissioning. This training followed up similar training carried out in 2015 on urban guided transport. These seminars should enable the Dubai authorities to define a regulatory framework for these transport systems currently under development.

JAPAN — 2019

Since 2016, STRMTG, together with CEREMA (Centre for Studies and Expertise on Risks, the Environment, Mobility and Urban Planning), has maintained close ties with the Japan Transport Planning Association (JTPA) as part of a study conducted by JTPA on European legislative and regulatory frameworks concerning tramways. In 2019, the two organisations further strengthened their relationship as STRMTG provided JTPA with technical details, particularly concerning the design of tramway tracks in France. This was also an opportunity for JTPA to meet with French project managers and learn more about them.

CHINA — 2019

In-depth discussions were held with Chinese counterparts from the National Center of Passenger Aerial Ropeway Safety Supervision and Inspection. At the beginning of July, two of its members came to France to observe the French government’s practices in authorising and monitoring cableway installations. The organisation of the sector with various partners was also discussed (manufacturers, approved contractors, maintenance companies, etc.). Then, two STRMTG employees went to Beijing in early September to observe the practices of the Chinese authorities.

ALGERIA - 2020

Entreprise du métro d’Alger (EMA) is the contracting authority delegated by the Algerian Ministry of Public Works and Transport to build and operate cableway installations in Algeria. EMA partnered with POMA (a French company specialising in the manufacture of cableway systems) through the Entreprise de Transport Algérien par Câble (ETAC). ETAC organised a seminar to discuss the life cycle of cableway installations, bringing together authorities and well-known professionals.
The aim was to provide the Algerian Ministry of Public Works and Transport with the information it needed to better define their cableway policy, particularly in urban areas, and to prepare investment decisions for the near future.
In this context, EMA and ETAC asked STRMTG to come and present the measures taken in France to manage the ropeway fleet and ensure its long-term safety.