Press Release
Bombardier Celebrates 50 Years in the UK Signalling Industry
Derby, March 04, 2010 – Bombardier Transportation will celebrate 50 years in the UK
Signalling Industry. The signalling division of Bombardier, with a UK workforce of approximately 200 employees based in Reading, Plymouth, Derby and London, will celebrate its anniversary on March 23rd with a celebration at its Rail Control Solutions ] (RCS) site in Plymouth. The site is Bombardier UK’s international engineering centre of excellence and largest hub for rail control product engineering, project management, quality and safety, and manufacturing.
As part of the event, Bombardier will demonstrate its record of development and delivery of its leading edge signalling technology to prominent projects in the UK market and world-wide. This has included Bombardier's CITYFLO mass transit solutions operating in key transport hubs in Nottingham and at Heathrow’s new Terminal 5 as well as EBI Screen systems installed on the London Underground (Waterloo and City line) and the Glasgow subway in Scotland. Bombardier was also involved in the remodelling of Leeds stations and the tilting EBI Light fibre optic signalling system, the first of its kind to be installed in the UK, and which can be seen on the Eurostar line at St Pancras International.
At the forefront of technology, Bombardier is a market leader in EBI Track train detection equipment with the IRIS certified Plymouth centre having produced in excess 24,000 track circuit systems delivered worldwide of which over 8,000 have been installed within the UK. In 2008, the latest generation, innovative EBI Track 400 jointless coded track circuit was developed as part of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project with the University of Plymouth and is currently pending a patent being granted. The Plymouth site also provides the antennae and balise transmission modules (BTMs) for Bombardier’s EBI Cab European Train Control Systems (ETCS) worldwide.
The UK business manufactures and delivers products for global key projects, including
ETCS equipment for the record breaking Wuhan to Guangzhou line in China and signaling equipment for the Gautrain Rapid Rail System in South Africa. Most recently, the UK has been the location of the first tests of Bombardier’s sustainable EBI Drive 50 driver assistance system which has successfully proven to be able to make significant cost and energy savings.
Bombardier has also been successfully working in the offshore telemetry systems business, working with the North Sea oil exploration and production industry since 1978. Since its inception it has supplied equipment tor 57 international production field locations in the North Sea, as well as to oil fields off the coast of Canada and South Africa and 62 special purpose oil tankers to facilitate the safe loading of cargoes at these fields.
Colin S. Walton, Chairman, Bombardier Transportation UK commented: ”We are very proud to celebrate this milestone anniversary in the UK. Bombardier continues to contribute to the UK’s signalling industry with innovative and market leading technology.”
Bombardier Transportation’s Rail Control Solutions portfolio covers the whole range of
BOMBARDIER CITYFLO mass transit solutions, from manual to fully automatic systems as well as communication-based systems. It also provides INTERFLO mainline solutions, from conventional systems to ERTMS level 2 systems. Bombardier solutions encompass a complete palette of wayside and on-board products.
About Bombardier Transportation in the UK
In the UK’s rail transportation industry, Bombardier is the leader in the manufacture and maintenance of rolling stock and is the only remaining train builder in the country.
Bombardier Transportation employs around 4,500 people at production facilities in Derby and Plymouth and 15 maintenance and overhaul centres across the UK. Bombardier is contracted to service 5,200 vehicles in Great Britain.
About Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation, the global leader in rail technology, offers the broadest portfolio in the rail industry and delivers innovative products and services that set new standards in sustainable mobility. BOMBARDIER ECO4 technologies – built on the four cornerstones of energy, efficiency, economy and ecology – conserve energy, protect the environment and help to improve total train performance. Bombardier Transportation is headquartered in Berlin, Germany and has a presence in over 60 countries. It has an installed base of over 100,000 vehicles worldwide.
About Bombardier
A world-leading manufacturer of innovative transportation solutions, from commercial aircraft and business jets to rail transportation equipment, systems and services, Bombardier Inc. is a global corporation headquartered in Canada. Its revenues for the fiscal year ended Jan. 31, 2009, were $19.7 billion US, and its shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD). Bombardier is listed as an index component to the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America indexes. News and information are available at www.bombardier.com.
BOMBARDIER, CITYFLO, EBI, INTERFLO and ECO4 are trademarks of Bombardier Inc. or its subsidiaries.
For information: +44 1332 266470
Neil Harvey, neil.harvey@uk.transport.bombardier.com