In September, the DB E.C.O. Group presented its range of services at InnoTrans 2022 in Berlin. Here are the highlights of the four-day trade fair.
From September 20 to 23, representatives from the world of transport technology and mobility met at InnoTrans 2022 in the exhibition halls of Messe Berlin. A total of 2,834 exhibitors from 56 countries were present at the mobility industry’s premier trade fair, and some 140,000 visitors from more than 131 nations attended the trade fair over its four-day duration.
As a forward-looking full-service provider, the DB E.C.O. Group also presented its portfolio of engineering, consulting and operator solutions. “All four days of the fair were exciting and generally successful for us,” said Niko Warbanoff, CEO of the DB E.C.O. Group. “Thanks to our amazing crew on site, we were able to meet face-to-face with many customers and partners from different countries. This led to fruitful discussions promoting partnerships for improving rail transport around the world.”
Several partnerships launched
The DB E.C.O. Group used InnoTrans 2022 to launch several groundbreaking partnerships. For example, DB CEO Dr. Richard Lutz and Egyptian Minister of Transport Kamel Al Wazir attended the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the training of Egyptian specialists for future employment with DB. Two MoUs were signed with Saudi Railways Company, one of which was with the DB E.C.O. Group’s international training provider, DB Rail Academy, regarding training services. A second MoU was signed for consulting services in the area of “Mobility as a Service”.
Signing of the “Train Driver Exchange Program” MoU between DB E&C and the Egyptian National Railway: DB CEO Dr. Richard Lutz (2nd row, 2nd from left), Global Director of DB Rail Academy Heiko Scholz (2nd row, 4th from left), Niko Warbanoff and Egyptian Minister of Transport Kamel Al Wazir (1st row, right). 
Signing of the “Train Driver Exchange Program” MoU between DB E&C and the Egyptian National Railway 
Signing of the agreement with Saudi Arabia: Dr. Bashar AlMalik, CEO Saudi Railway Company (left), and Niko Warbanoff 
Group photo with DB CEO Dr. Richard Lutz (7th from left) and Niko Warbanoff with representatives of the DB E.C.O. Group and the Saudi Railway Company.
The DB E.C.O. Group signed an agreement with representatives from Romania to conclude a joint framework agreement on the development of transport infrastructure in the southeastern European country. The letter of intent for future collaboration was also signed with the Uzbek Ministry of Transport, Uzbek Railways and the German development bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW). This agreement aims to establish a financing structure for the procurement of electric trains.
InnoTrans 2022 was also the venue for the DB E.C.O. Group to announce its partnership with DROMOS GmbH, a Munich-based mobility start-up for autonomous public transport solutions.
After signing the agreement with Romania: Niko Warbanoff and Ionut-Cristian Savoie, State Secretary at the Romanian Ministry of Transport 
Signing ceremony with Uzbekistan (from left to right): Niko Warbanoff, Khusnutdin Khasilov, CEO of Uzbekistan Railways, and Dr. Carsten Wiebers of KfW IPEX-Bank 
Announcement of the partnership with DROMOS GmbH (from left to right): Jörg Marienhagen, Director Mobility Consulting DB E&C, Dr. Martin Dürr, CEO Dromos GmbH, Niko Warbanoff, Dr. Jan Hegner, SVP Sales Dromos GmbH, Dr. Axel Sondermann, Executive Director Consulting DB E&C
Highlights also include the signing of an agreement with Ukrzaliznytsia (UZ), Ukraine’s state-owned rail company, on the very first day of the show. The agreement will be the basis for UZ to receive assistance from DB in rebuilding the Ukrainian rail system and in many other areas.
Another highlight was the traditional client reception, where Niko Warbanoff spoke to around 350 clients from all over the world. “I was exceedingly pleased that I had another opportunity to personally greet everyone who visited us at the exhibition booth,” Warbanoff said.
