Hitachi Rail

Hitachi Rail
Company typeDivision
IndustryRail transport
Founded1924
HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom[1]
Key people
Giuseppe Marino
(Group CEO)
Mitsuo Iwasaki
(Head of Japan Business)[2]
Katsumi Ihara
(Chairman of the board)[3]
ProductsRailway systems and Railway signals
Number of employees
24,000
ParentHitachi
Websitewww.hitachirail.com Edit this at Wikidata

Hitachi, Ltd. Railway Systems Business Unit, trading as Hitachi Rail, is the rolling stock and railway signalling manufacturing division of Hitachi outside Japan.[4][5][6]

History

Hitachi's rail rivision before global expansion

EF55 1, built by Hitachi in 1936

After the demand for ships decreased following the end of the First World War, Hitachi, under its founder Namihei Odaira, acquired the Kasado Factory in Kudamatsu, Yamaguchi from a nearly bankrupt shipbuilder.[7] This factory was converted into a locomotive manufacturing facility. In the 1920s, Hitachi's railway products included the JNR Class ED15 locomotives, the first electric mainline locomotives built in Japan,[8] and steam locomotives such as the Class 8620 and Class D50.[7] As mainline electrification progressed, Hitachi developed and produced much larger and more powerful electric locomotives, such as the Class EF55 streamliners (1936), the Class EF56 (1937), and the Class EF57 (1940). During this time, Hitachi also supplied locomotives to colonies in Taiwan, Korea, and the South Manchuria Railway.

Hitachi was involved in the development and manufacturing of the 0 Series Shinkansen, the world’s first high-speed rail rolling stock.

After the Second World War, Hitachi primarily manufactured locomotives and other railway equipment for two decades. During this period, the company built the Class C62 locomotives, the largest and fastest steam locomotives in Japanese rail history.[7] One of these, C62 17, still holds the world steam speed record for narrow-gauge tracks at 129 km/h. Another notable Hitachi-built locomotive was the EF58, which operated on the Tokaido Main Line express trains alongside the C62. In the 1950s, diesel locomotives were introduced on non-electrified lines in remote parts of Japan. Japanese National Railways adopted two types of mainline diesel locomotives: the diesel-electric DF50 and the diesel-hydraulic DD51. Hitachi was involved in the development and manufacturing of both.[9]

In the 1950s, Hitachi began building electric multiple units (EMUs). Early examples include the Class 1000 Shinkansen prototypes (1962), the 0 Series Shinkansen (1964), and the Series 485 dual-voltage express train (1964).[7] Hitachi has been involved in the development of nearly all types of Shinkansen rolling stock, as well as their operating systems, including automatic train control. Hitachi also licensed the straddle-beam type of monorail from the German company Alweg, which it used for the Tokyo Monorail in 1964, the world's first commercial monorail service and one of the world's busiest monorail lines.[10][11] This product line still exists today as Hitachi Monorail, which is used in ten monorail systems as of 2024.

Global expansion

A British Rail Class 395 train produced by Hitachi

Hitachi's rail division delivered 120 CQ311 series railcars to MARTA from 1984 to 1988.

Hitachi Rail Europe (legally Hitachi Rail Limited) was established in London as the European headquarters of the company in 1999.[12] Other subsidiaries have been established globally.[13]

Hitachi markets a general-purpose train known as the "A-train", which uses double-skin, friction-stir-welded aluminium body construction.[14] Hitachi's products have included the designing and manufacturing of many Shinkansen models, including the N700 Series Shinkansen.[14]

On February 24, 2015, Hitachi agreed to purchase the Italian rolling stock manufacturer Ansaldo Breda and acquire Finmeccanica's stake in Ansaldo STS, the railway signaling division of Finmeccanica[15] The purchase was completed later that year,[16] at which point the company was renamed as Hitachi Rail Italy. Since then, Hitachi has obtained a majority stake in Ansaldo STS.[17]

In July 2020, Hitachi signed an exclusive agreement with Hyperdrive, a UK-based lithium-ion battery company, to bring battery-powered trains to the country.[18]

Late in 2021, Alstom announced the transfer of business relating to Bombardier Zefiro 300 to Hitachi Rail, as a condition of Alstom's acquisition of Bombardier put in place by the European Commission in order to remain compliant with EU competition law.[19][20] The transaction was completed on 1 July 2022.[21]

In late 2022, Hitachi Rail won the contract to supply train sets for the Ontario Line being planned in Toronto, Canada.[22]

In 2024, Hitachi Rail and MERMEC signed a put option agreement for the sale of Hitachi Rail’s main line signalling business in France and its signalling business units in Germany and the UK.[23]

In May 2024, Hitachi Rail completed the acquisition of Thales Group's Ground Transportation Systems for €1.66 billion. This move will help expand its global presence in the rail sector to 51 countries.[24]

In July 2024, Hitachi Rail won the contract to supply new M-5 trainsets for the SEPTA Market–Frankford Line in Philadelphia (PA), USA.[25]

References

  1. ^ "Our Locations". www.hitachi.com. Archived from the original on 2024-11-23. Retrieved 2024-10-24.
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2024-11-19. Retrieved 2024-11-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ https://www.hitachi.com/corporate/about/directors/index.html
  4. ^ "Hitachi-Rail.com : Hitachi Railway Systems Website". www.hitachi-rail.com. Archived from the original on 2017-11-05. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
  5. ^ "Organisation". www.hitachi.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  6. ^ "Group subsidiaries". www.hitachi.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  7. ^ a b c d Ltd, Hitachi. "受け継がれる技術で拓く鉄道の未来". 日立評論 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  8. ^ "純国産第一号の電気機関車が日本機械学会により「機械遺産」に認定：日立". www.hitachi.co.jp. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  9. ^ Watanabe, Junkichi (April 1963). "Class DD51 Diesel Hydrautic Locomotive Delivered to the Japanese National Railways" (PDF). Hitachi Hyoron. 6 (22): 47.
  10. ^ "Tokyo Monorial Service Opened". Railway Gazette: 793. October 2, 1964.
  11. ^ "Tokyo monorail opened". The Railway Magazine. No. 763. November 1964. p. 862.
  12. ^ "About Hitachi Rail Europe". Railway Technology. Retrieved 2022-11-29.
  13. ^ "Group Companies". Hitachi. Archived from the original on 2022-11-29. Retrieved 2022-11-29.
  14. ^ a b "Hitachi Transportation Systems website". Archived from the original on 5 November 2017. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  15. ^ "Hitachi agrees to buy Ansaldo STS and AnsaldoBreda". Railway Gazette. 24 February 2015. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  16. ^ "Hitachi completes Ansaldo deal". Railway Gazette. 2 November 2015. Archived from the original on 9 May 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  17. ^ "Hitachi buys shares in Ansaldo STS to raise stake to over 50 percent". Reuters. 24 March 2016. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  18. ^ "Hitachi drives fast low carbon train travel with new battery partnership". Energy Live News. 2020-07-15. Archived from the original on 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  19. ^ "ALSTOM SA : Alstom to transfer Bombardier Transportation's contribution to the V300 ZEFIRO very high-speed train to Hitachi Rail". December 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  20. ^ "Hitachi to acquire Bombardier Transportation's contribution to the V300 ZEFIRO very high-speed train from Alstom". www.hitachirail.com. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  21. ^ "Alstom completes sale of V300 Zefiro high-speed train to Hitachi Rail". July 2022. Archived from the original on 2024-07-25. Retrieved 2024-10-24.
  22. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-12-18. Retrieved 2023-03-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. ^ "Hitachi Rail to sell signalling businesses to MerMec". Railway Gazette International. 2024-01-26.
  24. ^ "Hitachi completes €1.7 bn Thales GTS acquisition". Railway Gazette International. Archived from the original on 2024-05-31. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  25. ^ "Hitachi Rail to build 200 new cars for SEPTA's Market-Frankford Line". Trains. 25 July 2024. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
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