The regional voice of the rail supply industry has welcomed the go-ahead for the new engineering research centre at Goole.
As reported, the University of Birmingham - supported by Siemens Mobility - has secured £15 million for a centre of excellence to be developed alongside the emerging train manufacturing plant in the port town. It is part of a £106 million package that also includes substantial industry funding.
Rail Industry Association North said the Centre of Excellence for Railway Through-Life Engineering will encourage innovation across the wider supply chain.
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The enabling funding for the East Yorkshire project, part of the vision for the creation of the wider rail village, has been secured from UK Research Partnership Investment Fund. It will see a
Richard Carr, RIA North’s business engagement manager, said: “This investment news is fantastic news not just for the North, but the rail industry as a whole. It represents a huge step forward in being able to support both the building and maintaining of rolling stock with a focus on robotics, sensing, and automation.
“UKRPIF’s investment enables this exciting collaboration between the University of Birmingham and the University of Huddersfield which is positive news for RIA members and the wider supply chain, including SMEs, and will encourage new ideas and ways of working to meet the future needs of the rail sector.
“RIA and our members look forward to working with the University of Birmingham, the University of Huddersfield and Siemens Mobility on this project.”
It is expected to launch in 2025, with the train building to start next year. A components plant is already operating on the site, so too the industry-focused business centre RaisE.
RIA has 350 company members, with 60 per cent classed as SMEs.
