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Cristian Popa

@cristianpopa

Message

Senior Data Engineer specializing in safety‑critical railway signalling systems and data delivery automation.

Romania

Message

What I'm looking for

I seek hands‑on roles delivering reliable data/software for safety‑critical systems, with mentoring opportunities, DevOps practices, and collaborative, improvement‑focused teams.

I am a Senior Data Engineer with over six years of experience delivering software and data for safety‑critical railway signalling systems, including interlocking, RBC and TMS. I design and verify site‑specific data, build application images, manage baselines and releases, and mentor junior engineers to raise delivery quality and consistency.

My work blends rigorous requirements engineering, verification/validation, defect analysis, and configuration management with hands‑on scripting and DevOps practices (Linux, Bash, Docker, CI/CD). I have delivered multiple baseline releases with zero vital defects on projects, driven process improvements, and collaborate across multidisciplinary teams to meet CENELEC and customer requirements.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Senior Data Engineer

Current

Hitachi Rail

Jun 2024 - Present (1 year 9 months)

Delivered 20+ baseline software releases for signalling systems, leading design-to-release workflows and mentoring junior engineers to improve data quality and delivery efficiency.

Data Preparation Requirements Engineering BASH Linux Python SQL DOORS Jira ClearCase

CAE Data Engineer

Thales Romania

Oct 2019 - Jun 2024 (4 years 8 months)

Owned end-to-end site-specific data deliveries for railway projects, delivering 5+ baselines with zero vital defects and performing verification, defect root-cause analysis and release management.

Data Management Verification DOORS Jira ClearCase BASH Linux SQL XML

Transport Engineer Intern

Coca-Cola HBC Romania

Apr 2018 - Aug 2018 (4 months)

Monitored and validated EDI (SAP) data flows during a full-time internship to ensure accurate transport and logistics data exchange.

EDI SAP Data Validation Monitoring Excel Communication Problem Solving

Education

Degrees, certifications, and relevant coursework

ITSchool

Professional Certificate, DevOps / Cloud Fundamentals

2026 -

Practical DevOps program covering Linux, Bash scripting, Git, CI/CD, Docker, basic Kubernetes, automation and cloud fundamentals.

Politehnica University of Bucharest

Master's Degree, Transport Engineering

2019 - 2021

Master's degree in Transport Engineering combining theoretical coursework and practical lab work focused on traffic engineering, vehicle dynamics, railway and aviation systems.

Politehnica University of Bucharest

Bachelor's Degree, Transport Engineering

2015 - 2019

Grade: 9.30

Bachelor's degree in Transport Engineering emphasizing analytical skills and hands-on experience with modern transport infrastructures; thesis grade 9.30.