Thank you!
The 36th NETLIPSE Network meeting was a great succes! Over the course of two days, public professionals from 11+ countries gathered to delve into the latest developments in infrastructure delivery.
Our thanks go out to FS Sistemi Urbani, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana and Vitali SPA for hosting the Network Meeting in Bergamo. We also want to thank all presenters, workshop facilitators, contributors and participants that shared their insights, challenges, and best practices. It’s this exchange of ideas that inspires us to try new things and help shape the future of infrastructure delivery in Europe!
Below you will find a summary of the presentations that were given and the photos of the event.
Summary of presentations
1. Opening Network Meeting
Opening & Introduction NETLIPSE
- Hans Ruijter / Rijkswaterstaat (NL)
- Pau Lian Staal-Ong / NETLIPSE (NL)
Hans Ruijter welcomes all the delegates and opens the Network Meeting, followed by and introduction of NETLIPSE by Pau Lian Staal-Ong.
Pau Lian explains that NETLIPSE is a non-profit network consisting of public client organisations. NETLIPSE focusses on knowledge development and knowledge exchange on managing and organising large infrastructure projects in Europe.
NETLIPSE has 4 main activities:
- Organising bi-annual Network Meetings
- Conducting IPAT® Assessments
- Provide Expertise to Client and Project Delivery Organisations
- Support Research Initiatives
Introduction Porta Sud Project
- Alessio Parolari / Vitali S.p.A. (IT)
Alessio Parolari welcomes the NETLIPSE delegates to Bergamo and introduces the Bergamo Porta Sud Project:
Redeveloping the central train station area is a key project for the city of Bergamo. The train station will become an intermodal hub, with improved connections to the Linate and Malpensa Airports, to the cites of Milan and Brescia, to the Interporto freight terminal, and to the local communities surrounding Bergamo. It will also include the development of residential and commercial properties, and hospital facilities.
The Porta Sud project has benefited greatly from the institutional parties working together, such as the railways, the ministry, the region, and the municipality, By involving the parties representing the local residents, the Porta Sud project gained insight into the issues present in Bergamo and how the Porta Sud project can help to address these.
2. Creating effective cooperation in multi-client projects
Porta Sud Masterplan
- Omar De Ciuceis / CZA Architects (IT)
- Attilio Gobbi / Gobbi Architettura (IT)
Omar De Ciuceis and Attillio Gobbi describe the origin of the Porta Sud Masterplan. At present, the railway serves as a dividing line that divides Bergamo. Despite numerous attempts to rectify this division, none have been successful.
However, when a new mayor was elected, an innovative approach was adopted to initiate the project. This approach involved engaging a project developer before a design or masterplan was created. Omar de Ciuceis and Attilio Gobbi explain the design choices that were made in the Masterplan. In 2019, the masterplan was presented to the administration and local residents through a participatory process.
Mobility Masterplan
- Diego Deponte / Systematica (IT)
Diego Deponte introduces the Mobility Masterplan. The Mobility Masterplan aims to strategically transform the city along three trajectories, establishing Bergamo as the central hub in the network of the Province of Lombardy:
- Intelligent Infrastructure
- Energy Transformation
- Mobility Shift
Alliance Projects
- Mauri Mäkiaho / Väylä (FI)
Väylä is effectively using alliance contract models to manage high-risk, multi-party projects. This model fosters transparency and collaborative problem-solving, ensuring that all parties share in the project’s success or failure. Key to this approach is the development phase, which integrates contractors’ insights even after plans are finalised, further improving the delivery of the project.
Additionally, cooperation training and framework agreements further embed these collaborative practices across traditional contracts.
Mauri Mäkiaho illustrates the use of the alliance contract with examples from the Tampere Station project and the Hailuoto Causeway project.
3. Research Café
Introduction Research Café
- Martina Huemann / WU Wien & UCL (AT)
Martina Huemann introduces the research café and the participating researchers pitch their studies.
Policies and governance shaping the future transport and mobility system in metropolitan areas
- Katharina Burger / UCL (UK)
How do policies and governance shape the future transport and mobility systems, and steer towards safe, smart, and resilient transport and mobility systems? Katherina Burger presented key elements for a proposal for research and innovation on this question. Participants got to play devil’s advocate and identied what’s wrong with the proposal, why it cannot work and what should be proposed to do instead.
The Sustainable Project Performance
- Christine Unterhitzenberger / University of Leeds (UK)
The Leeds Centre for Projects, University of Leeds, is developing the Sustainable Project Performance Index (SPPI) to establish a scientifically tested assessment tool of sustainability performance of a project. Christine Unterhitzenberger presented the SPPI to share the results of the pilot survey, to obtain feedback from an international community of infrastructure clients for further enhancement of the survey and to invite the NETLIPSE members to participate in the full survey to be launched in summer/autumn 2024.
From Strategy to Action: Leveraging Projects for Effective Organisational Decarbonisation
- Marco Terenzi / Politecnico di Milano (IT)
As vectors of change, projects and programmes are essential for the Net-zero transition and decarbonising organisations’ business. However, the strategies employed at both national and organisational levels for achieving Net-zero targets often revolve around goals rather than actionable steps. This approach leads to the implementation of decarbonisation projects that target low-hanging fruit, follow disorganised backcasting methods and fail to tackle cross border and scope 3 emissions.
Marco Terenzi presented the implementation of decarbonisation strategies through practical and actionable projects and programmes focusing on the investigation of the key emission to be reduced, the key modality of decarbonisation and the key project to implement.
Imagining the Future: Narratives as Tools for Envisioning and Realising Infrastructure
- Giacomo Dei / Politecnico di Milano (IT)
Crafting effective narratives is crucial for securing stakeholder support and resources. Narratives serve as fundamental tools for sharing visions of a better future and generating expectations among stakeholders. Creating effective narratives that are coherent, plausible, and acceptable is challenging for the project organisation since they are hindered by counternarratives emerging from different stakeholders.
Giacomo Dei’s research presents an exploration of successful narratives that effectively communicate these visions and examines how such narratives create expectations among different stakeholders.
During the session participants played a serious game where they took the role of the project organisation and had to create narratives particularly suited for a specific
stakeholder, highlighting the challenges in creating a unique, shared, and coherent narrative supporting the project.
Primary and Secondary Stakeholder Classification by Unsupervised Machine Learning
- Francesco Cellerino / Politecnico di Milano (IT)
- Constanza Mariani / Politecnico di Milano (IT)
- Mauro Mancini / Politecnico di Milano (IT)
In the last decades, the growing attention to the themes of sustainability and transparency resulted in an increased awareness of a broader stakeholder environment. By getting a deeper understanding of the stakeholder environment, a contextspecific stakeholder management strategy can be developed.
During the the session, Francesco Cellerino, Constanza Mariani, and Mauro Mancini demonstrated the application of an unsupervised clustering algorithm (PAM algorithm) for project stakeholder classification. The results show that the use of unsupervised clustering leads to a more granular and detailed stakeholder grouping that enables the design of better refined and customised stakeholder management strategies.
4. NETLIPSE x StMB
Integrated Project Delivery
- Gilbert Peiker / The Bavarian State Ministry of Housing, Construction and Transport (DE)
- Bas Keuzenkamp / NETLIPSE (NL)
Gilbert Peiker explained that StMB faced challenges in infrastructure projects that might be solved by implementing parternship-based contract forms. StMB took the initiative to organise an international workshop together with the University of the Federal Armed Forces in Munich and the NETLIPSE Network to exchange experiences and develop an action plan on how partnership-based contract forms can be implemented in a German Context.
Bas Keuzenkamp presents a summary of the most interesting outcomes of the workshop. These relate to:
- Tender
- Team Assembly
- Collaboration
- Risk Sharing
- Critical Success Factors & Considerations
A detailed overview of the results can be found in the report of the workshop that will be made publicly available soon.
Site Visit Porta Sud
Site Visit Porta Sud
- Cristian Vitali / Vitali S.p.A. (IT)
Cristian Vitali took the delegates on a visit to the construction site of Porta Sud Project. The delegates were brought to the old railway yard which is the future site of the Bergamo train station, where a mock-up of the future city center could be viewed.
Network Dinner
Roof Garden Restaurant
The Porta Sud consortium invited NETLIPSE to join for a Network Dinner in the restaurant Roof Garden.
5. Impact of the Porta Sud Project
Opening Day 2
- Prof. Sergio Cavalieri / University of Bergamo (IT)
- Pekka Petäjäniemi / Väylä (FI)
Prof. Sergio Cavalieri, the Chancellor of the University of Bergamo, welcomes the delegates to the lecture hall of the University of Bergamo. Pekka Petäjäniemi opens the second day of the Network Meeting and thanks Prof. Cavalieri for hosting the second day.
Infrastructure Investments in Italy
- Claudia Maria Terzi / Regional Councilor for Infrastructure and Public Works for Lombardy (IT)
- Pasquale Gandolfi / President of Bergamo Province (IT)
- Francesco Valesini / Councillor for Urban Regeneration Municipality of Bergamo (IT)
Claudia Maria Terzi, regional councillor for infrastructure and public works in Lombardy, highlighted the region’s significant infrastructure advancements over the past 15 years, spurred by unprecedented investments, especially in response to COVID-19. Key initiatives include extensive railway, road, and intermodality projects in Bergamo, such as a new railway connection to Orio al Serio airport and an extended tramway line, transforming the station into a vibrant intermodal hub.
Pasquale Gandolfi, President of the Bergamo Province, emphasised the importance of long-term vision and proactive collaboration in planning infrastructure projects. Highlighting the 2030 Table initiative, he discussed ambitious goals like doubling railway tracks and improving airport connectivity to enhance regional mobility and positively impact society and the environment.
Francesco Valesini, Councillor for Urban Regeneration in Bergamo, stressed the city’s historical significance as a pivotal hub due to its railway system. He emphasised the need to improve the railway station and its surroundings to enhance urban mobility and the environment. Reflecting on past challenges, Valesini described a shift towards a more inclusive and proactive approach in urban development.
Panel Discussion on the Impact of the Porta Sud Project
- Moderator: Francesca Zirnstein / General Director – Scenari Immobiliari (IT)
- Prof. Fulvio Adobati / Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences – University of Bergamo (IT)
- Prof. Emanuele Garda – Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences – University of Bergamo (IT)
- Carlo Masseroli / CEO – Nhood (IT)
- Giuseppe Savoia / Director Real Estate Valuation and Development – FS Sistemi Urbani (IT)
- Susana Borelli / Investment Manager Northern Area Stations – RFI (IT)
- Gianni Scarfone / CEO – TEB (IT)
- Gianantonio Arnoldi / CEO – CAL Concessioni Autostradali Lombarde (IT)
- Liliana Donato / General Director – ATB Mobilita & ATB Servizi (IT)
- Massimo Marciani / President – Council of Freight Leaders (IT)
- Giovanni Sanga / Chairman – SACBO S.p.A. (IT)
- Francesca Zimmerman (IT)
Various representatives of the parties involved in the Bergamo Porta Sud Project showcased how they’re involved in the project and what benefits the project will bring to Bergamo and the region.
6. Experiences with changing project scopes
Railway and Project Implications to the North of England Programme as a result of the cancellation of the High Speed 2 Project
- Toby Macer / Department for Transport (UK)
Facing the cancellation of the HS2 North project, the Northern UK region risks enduring ongoing congestion, delays, and capacity limitations in its railway system. How can the implementing authority respond strategically to such a substantial shift in scope?
Toby Macer explained that in the wake of the HS2 Phase 2 cancellation, the immediate steps involve clarifying commitments and public expectations, assessing the current infrastructure’s capabilities, and determining the timeline for accessing the £40 billion in savings.
Additionally, it is crucial to identify the breaking point of the existing railway system under current and future demands. Collaboration with industry stakeholders is essential to develop effective new plans. Revisiting the initial options considered at the project’s inception will help identify the best path forward, reigniting discussions on optimal solutions and revising business cases.
The Transformation of Ostlänken – Managing Changes in Scope for Large Infrastructure Projects and its Difficulties
- Linda Abrahamsson / Trafikverket (SE)
The Ostlänken project, a 160km double-track railway 40km south of Stockholm, aims to connect several medium-sized cities. Linda Abrahamsson explained that the project was initially envisioned as a high-speed train connection. However, when the Swedish government decided to prioritise the maintenance of existing infrastructure over the development of new main lines, the project had to reduce costs and shift its emphasis to adressing capacity issues rather than travel times.
Implementing cost-reducing measures such as integrated stations, optimising and standardising tunnel and bridge designs, and simplifying track layouts, allowed for significant cost savings, while still obtaining the envisioned benefits of alleviating congestion, shorten travel times between Stockholm and Linköping, and increase commuter train services, enhancing the attractiveness of Linköping for commuters.
Currently, the project is in the procurement phase, divided into 11 contracts, with ongoing negotiations to finalise costs and contractor agreements. Despite some stakeholders’ concerns, particularly regarding reduced speeds, investments in Linköping remain strong, and the project is viewed as a substantial improvement over the current situation. The focus now is on maintaining strict cost control and ensuring timely completion.
Oosterweel Link – Infra for Good
- Luc Hellemans / Lantis (BE)
Luc Hellemans discussed the Oosterweel Link project, emphasising its journey to deliver societal benefits through infrastructure. Antwerp, a historic city with a robust export economy, faces modern challenges like traffic congestion, pollution, and regional development barriers due to an outdated ring road. The solution is an extensive infrastructure project focused on sustainable mobility and societal benefits rather than merely on time and cost.
Key aspects of the Oosterweel project include enhancing safety by reducing accidents, addressing environmental concerns by connecting and expanding green spaces, and promoting educational initiatives to increase interest in STEM fields among Belgian children. Additionally, the project creates jobs by training local young professionals and enforcing fair labor practices, aiming to reduce the need for overseas workers.
The project operates under a collaborative, alliance-based contract model, prioritising common goals and stakeholder engagement. Despite challenges like COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, and PFAS contamination, the project is ahead of schedule and within budget, garnering enthusiastic stakeholder support. Financing is managed internally, ensuring the project’s sustainability and alignment with its broader societal objectives.
Closing Network Meeting
Announcement Fall 2024 Network Meeting – Rovaniemi, Finland
- Pekka Petäjäniemi / Väylä (FI)
Pekka Petäjäniemi announces that Väylä will host the Fall 2024 Network Meeting in Rovaniemi, Finland in November 2024.
Closing Network Meeting
- Hans Ruijter / Rijkswaterstaat (NL)
Hans Ruijter thanks FS Sistemi Urbani, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana, and Vitali S.p.A. for hosting the Network meeting, and all the delegates for their contributions.
Photo´s
