Wyss&Lila – Pulse of the Alps "Shaping the world of tomorrow"

The name "Wyss&Lila" brings together two worlds — how is this connection reflected in the company's DNA and culture?

For me, the name Wyss&Lila already says a great deal about our company. "Wyss" stands for the Swiss interpretation of "white": clarity, precision, trust and responsibility. "Lila" (purple) has a deeper, emotional meaning for us. In Arabic and Hebrew linguistic and cultural worlds, it can be associated with the beauty of the night — with depth, elegance and something special that is not always visible at first glance.
This is exactly the connection we try to live every day at Wyss&Lila. We combine structure with creativity, discipline with intuition, and technical precision with human understanding. In the rail industry in particular, it is not enough to see only the perfect design. You also have to understand failures, wear, operational pressure, maintenance and the reality of day-to-day operations. That is why we think in lifecycles, not just in individual project phases.
Our Swiss DNA gives us precision, quality and responsibility. We call this the pulse of the Alps. With our international teams and 11 locations, we carry this pulse out into the world and connect it with different cultures, perspectives and approaches. This is precisely where our strength comes from: practical, resilient and creative all at once.

Wyss&Lila is active across the entire lifecycle of rolling stock and rail infrastructure. Where do your most important technical core competencies currently lie, and in which areas of the rail industry do you currently see the strongest growth for your company?

We see Wyss&Lila operating in rail technology on three clear levels: engineering, maintenance and infrastructure design. What matters to us is not to view these areas separately, but as one connected technical system.
In engineering, our focus is on complex modernisation and development projects for rolling stock. Here we want to act as a one-stop shop — from the initial idea through design, integration, technical planning and approval to subsequent maintainability. This applies to high-end luxury rail projects such as the New Orient Express just as much as to special vehicles with industrial, governmental or crisis-relevant applications.
In maintenance, we are building an open European maintenance network, from Northern Europe to the Bosphorus. Our goal is to offer operators, manufacturers, leasing companies and owners an independent partner for maintenance, mobile teams, engineering support and technical care.
In infrastructure design, we continue to grow together with our partners, particularly in depot planning, infrastructure design and BIM-based coordination.
Our growth lies precisely in this connection: bringing engineering, maintenance and infrastructure together in such a way that it creates more availability, better planning and long-term added value for the rail system.

What obstacles do you encounter in internationalising engineering services — and how do you overcome them?

The biggest obstacle in internationalising engineering services is not just the technology, but the interplay of different standards, approval processes, cultures, working methods and customer expectations. We overcome this by setting clear standards, quality and responsibility from Switzerland and implementing them operationally through our engineering centres in Italy and Serbia. In this way, we combine Swiss precision and reliability with international engineering capacity and local market understanding. The support of the Swiss representations abroad in the respective regions is particularly important here. We are very grateful for this, especially where the Swiss representations strongly support us in our development and networking. It is precisely this combination of Swiss leadership, regional presence and institutional support that helps us grow internationally while staying close to the projects, customers and technical realities.

Are there target markets you are particularly focused on over the coming years — whether geographically or sector-specific?

We think about our target markets in clear stages. In the short term, our focus is on Europe. Here we are continuing to build our network for engineering, maintenance and infrastructure design, and we want to grow as an independent, open partner for operators, manufacturers, leasing companies and public-sector clients. In the medium and long term, we see great potential in Africa, the Middle East and India, because there is strong investment there in rail, infrastructure, depots and new mobility concepts. For us, this is not about winning individual projects in the short term, but about building long-term structures together with local partners. Our approach remains the same: Swiss quality, regional proximity and technical responsibility across the entire lifecycle.

What would you recommend to other Swiss SMEs that are considering expanding internationally?

I would recommend that Swiss SMEs not underestimate internationalisation. It is not enough to have a good product or a good service. You have to build trust on the ground, find local partners, understand the culture and be willing to think long-term. Switzerland has a very good reputation internationally. Quality, precision, reliability and neutrality are strong values that can open doors. But these values also have to be actively represented. At the same time, I would like to see Switzerland support its companies even more strongly in major international infrastructure and mobility projects. Our embassies and representations abroad already do very valuable work, for which we are very grateful. But other countries such as Germany or France often proceed in a more structured way on such matters through government-to-government channels, helping their industry very concretely with market entry. Switzerland has incredibly strong SMEs, a great deal of know-how and high technical credibility. My wish would be for us to deploy this advantage internationally with even more confidence, better coordination and stronger political backing.

The rail sector faces major changes. Digitalisation, AI, the skills shortage, rising availability requirements and the pressure for sustainable mobility are transforming vehicles, infrastructure and maintenance. Which of these challenges currently occupies you most as CEO?

What occupies me most is the question of how we turn big buzzwords into real performance. Digitalisation, AI and net zero are important, but they only benefit the railway if they make vehicles more reliable, improve maintenance and allow infrastructure to be operated more stably. The rail sector needs less theory and more implementation. That requires good engineers, strong technicians, clear responsibility and the will to consistently modernise existing systems as well. The skills shortage is a very real challenge in this regard. Technology can help, but it cannot replace experience, discipline or technical understanding. In the end, what counts is whether a train runs, whether a depot works and whether a system delivers performance in everyday operations. That is precisely what the industry needs to focus on more strongly.

Wyss&Lila describes itself as a company that puts a passion for engineering at its core. How do you live this culture day to day, and how do you attract and retain the best talent in a competitive market?

For me, engineering is not merely a service but a passion that has to be shared. I started in the rail industry at the age of 15 and have now been in this industry for 22 years. This closeness to vehicles, workshops, projects and people shapes me to this day. At Wyss&Lila, engineering means responsibility from the first idea to the final delivery. It is not just about concepts or drawings, but about seeing technical solutions through to the end and ensuring that they work in reality. This is exactly the mindset we want to pass on to our teams. You don't win and keep good talent with salary alone, but with trust, responsibility and genuine development. We bring young people into real projects early, share knowledge and give them room to grow. Anyone who truly loves rail and is willing to take responsibility should find a place at Wyss&Lila where they can develop and make a difference with us.

Your company is a member of Switzerland Global Enterprise. What motivated you to take up this membership, and what concrete added value do you draw from it for your international business?

For us, membership of Switzerland Global Enterprise was a logical step, because internationalisation requires structure, trust and the right access to markets. The added value lies above all in access to programmes, market intelligence, local contacts and Swiss representations in the regions where we want to grow. This is especially valuable for an SME, because you understand more quickly which markets are a good fit, which partners are reputable and how to position yourself correctly. For Wyss&Lila, S-GE is therefore an important bridge between Swiss quality and international growth.