The 2025 NRC Annual Conference & NRC-REMSA Exhibition in Marco Island, FL
The National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) held its 2025 Annual Conference January 5-8, 2025 in Marco Island, Florida.
The Conference featured a unique program agenda with chief engineers from the major freight railroads and other key speakers covering up-to-date topics of importance to the rail industry.
The main topics included: Class 1 and Regional Railroad Capital Spending Plans. Rail Projects of National Significance. Commuter Rail and Transit Contracting. Railroad Construction Safety. Panel Discussions on Signals & Communications, Rail Sustainability and Government Affairs.
Most of the presentations made by the NRC’s executive and engineering leaders covered these topics in their organization’s Capital Programs for 2025.
Presentations and Speakers included:
BNSF’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Craig Rasmussen, AVP Engineering Services & Structures
Watco’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Amie Proudfit, Director of Project Purchasing; Tom Holmes, Vice President – Purchasing & Materials
CSX’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Ed Sparks, Chief Engineer – Bridges, Design & Construction
Chicago Metra’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Janice R. Thomas, Deputy Executive Director, External Affairs
AREMA President Update – William “Bill” S. Riehl, III, PE, F.SAME, Chief Engineer Structures, Genesee & Wyoming Inc.
Union Pacific’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Russell Rohlfs, VP of Engineering, Union Pacific Rail
G&W’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Kristine Storm, Vice President, Procurement
Canadian National’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Brent Burton, Regional Chief Engineer; Jamie Lockwood, VP Engineering; Dan MacDonald, AVP Engineering.
CPKC’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Jeff Switzer, GM S&C, CPKC
Conrail’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Gregory Reiman, General Manager – Engineering
NS Engineering: ONE TEAM-ONE MISSION-ONE GOAL – Ed Boyle, VP of Engineering
Florida TriRail ‘s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors – David Dech, Executive Director, TriRail
OmniTRAX’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Zac Vallos, VP Engineering
Patriot Rail’s 2025 Capital Program and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Scott Bannwart, VP Engineering
MxV Rail’s Future State and Opportunities for Contractors and Suppliers – Kari Gonzales, President & CEO, MxV Rail
The NRC Keynote Session “Fireside Chat featuring: Joseph Hinrichs, CEO, CSX”
The Fireside Chat was moderated by:
NRC Chairman Joseph Daloisio, Track Division Manager, Railroad Construction Company, Inc.
NRC Vice Chairman Curtis Bilow, EVP, Ames Construction
Panels and Speakers included:
Rail Sustainability Panel
Moderator – Brett Urquhart, President, Martinus North America
Panelists: Francois Belanger, Senior Director Sustainability, CN; Rebecca Hensley, Senior Manager Sustainability, CSX; Laura McNichol, SVP, Chief Sustainability Officer, Watco; Andrea Oswald, General Director – Strategic Sourcing Supply Chain, UP; Josh Raglin, Chief Sustainability Officer, NS; John “JB” Bys, Business Development Manager, Industry Sector Initiatives, Ecovadis
Railroad Signals & Communication Panel
Moderator – Carl Walker, VP of Engineering, CSX
Panelists: Jay McAndrew, AVP Signal & Communications. UP; Tom Hilliard, Chief S&C, CN; Steven Vant, Chief Engineer – S&C, Conrail
Railroad Government Affairs Panel: Transportation Legislation and Policy Priorities
Moderator – Matt Ginsberg, President, TGA Association Management Solutions
Panelists: Adrian Arnakis, Senior VP of Government Affairs, Association of American Railroads; Arielle Giordano, Vice President, Government and Industry Affairs, GWRR; Andrea Waldock Niethold, Head of US Public and Government Affairs, CN; Wes Lujan, Government & Industry Affairs – Rail North America, GATX Corporation; Tony Hatch, Senior Transportation Analyst, ABH Consulting
Industrial Development Panel
Moderator – Alanna Strohecker, Senior Vice President – Global Market Sector Leader, Goods Movement, AECOM
Panelists: Bill Merritt, Director of Industrial Development at CSXT; Jennifer Tanner-Bostian, Director, Industrial Development, GWRR; Craig Morgan, Vice President, Industrial Development & Freight Rail, Ames Construction
Breakout Sessions included:
FRA Update: Deep Dive into Periodic Oversight as required by § 243.205 and overview of new Signal Certification Part 246.
Presenters: Jeremy Moats, Specialist – Safety Partnerships Division, FRA; Cory Johnson, Specialist, Signal, Train Control and Crossing Division, FRA; Lance Hawks, Specialist, Railroad Safety Partnerships, FRA
Better Together: Creating Connectivity in a Divided World of Humans.
The session’s goal was to equip the leaders with the knowledge necessary to ensure psychological security in the organization and to create a favorable psychological atmosphere in the teams to help the organization achieve greater success.
Presenter: Shae Birkey MS, CSP, Caterpillar Safety Services
Leading with Purpose: How to Attract, Retain, and Grow the Next Generation of Railroaders (presented by League of Railway Women)
The panel discussion analyzed current railroad workforce trends and provided valuable insights into effective strategies for attracting and retaining top talent, particularly during times of organizational change.
Moderator – Andrea Niethold, Head of U.S. Public and Government Affairs, CN
Panelists: Michele Malski, Founder and President of SPRING Recruiting and HERE 501(c)3 Educational Non-profit; Arielle Giordano, Vice President, Government and Industry Affairs, G&W Inc.; Jim Hansen, CCO Herzog
NRC Awards Ceremony
The award ceremony for the winners of various competitions was held as part of the NRC conference.
NRC Safety Award Winners
The NRC Safety Awards recognize NRC contractor members with exemplary workplace safety programs.
NRC Scholarship Awards for undergraduate and trade-school students.
1st-Place Winner ($12,000) – Margaret Konczak, St. Ambrose University. 2nd Place Winner ($6,000) – Eddie Hotzel, Kansas State University. 3rd-Place Winner ($3,000) – Zoee Robinson, University of Southern Mississippi. Trade-School Winner ($3,500) — Ashlyn Fry, Chippewa Valley Technical College
The NRC Award ceremony also included NRC 2024 Special Awards Presentation, NRC 2024 Small Project of the Year Award Presentation, NRC 2024 Field Employee of the Year Award Presentation, NRC 2024 Innovation in Technology and Process Award Presentation.
2025 NRC – REMSA Exhibition
About 140 companies of the industry participated in the 2025 NRC –REMSA Exhibition.
The latest developments and samples of innovative achievements of the companies presented at the Exhibition aroused great interest among the Conference participants.
For more information about the event and a complete list of presentations, panels, sessions and award winners, please visit: https://www.nrcma.org/events/nrc-remsa-annual-conference
By Alex Arlander, Gilbert Castro | ENC News
