Annual Report 2012 - Knorr-Bremse AG.
Annual Report 2012 - Knorr-Bremse AG.
Annual Report 2012 - Knorr-Bremse AG.
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48<br />
<strong>Report</strong><br />
Site-specific projects // Rail vehicle systems<br />
Rail Vehicle Systems<br />
Microelettrica moves to new headquarters<br />
<strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> subsidiary Microelettrica Scientifica is a global market leader in the field of electronic<br />
and electro-mechanical control components for rail vehicle applications. The company’s product<br />
portfolio includes switches and breakers, resistors, high-voltage transducers and fans. In the past<br />
these products were manufactured at four facilities around Milan in northern Italy. To consolidate the<br />
production shops and bring the approximately 300 employees under one roof, Microelettrica decided<br />
to build a new facility in Milan’s Buccinasco district. The new plant was officially opened in August<br />
of the year under review.<br />
The various components are now manufactured in “lean flow” operations. Each block has its own logistics<br />
and warehouse. In addition, the planning process allowed for expansion areas for each block,<br />
giving the company the capacity to respond quickly to changes in the business environment. The<br />
numerous integrated test facilities document the strength of the in-house development capability at<br />
the new Microelettrica headquarters.<br />
<strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> further<br />
expands its market<br />
position in Russia and<br />
the CIS states.<br />
RZD Supervisory Board approves joint venture in Russia<br />
After more than four decades in the Russian rail market, <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> is set to further expand its<br />
position. In June of the year in question, the supervisory board of the Russian railway company RZD<br />
approved the formation of a joint venture between its subsidiary Federal Cargo Company FGK and<br />
<strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong>. The board of the company, which was officially set up on February 12, 2013, consists<br />
of representatives of the Russian government and ministries as well as other sectors of Russian<br />
industry.<br />
The name of the new company – “<strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> 1520” – is derived from the Russian track gauge of<br />
1,520 millimeters. The joint venture is based in the city of Tver, roughly 170 kilometers north of Moscow.<br />
Manufacturing activities will initially take place at the existing <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> plant in Voronezh.<br />
Construction work on a new factory in Tver with almost 16,000 m² of production space began in <strong>2012</strong>,<br />
and the joint venture will transfer its entire production operations to Tver in 2014, creating some 400<br />
jobs at the new plant. <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> already commands an extensive product portfolio specifically<br />
geared to the needs of the CIS market and which from now on will increasingly be manufactured<br />
locally. In addition, the existing portfolio will be extended in the medium term to include further<br />
products that are also adapted to local requirements and will be manufactured in Tver. One new core<br />
product of the joint venture company will be control valves for the CIS market, destined for use in the<br />
various rail vehicles operating in the cargo sector. Another focus will be on the production of disc<br />
brakes and oil-free compressors.<br />
For <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong>, this new joint venture offers numerous opportunities to win a more extensive share<br />
of the railway market in the CIS states. In the medium to long term there will be many new-building<br />
and modernization projects in this market. And operators are increasingly focusing on vehicle life cycle<br />
costs and component reliability as rail vehicle speeds rise. As a result of its long years of experience in<br />
the Russian and CIS markets, <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> can draw upon a deep pool of experience and expertise<br />
that the company will be able to translate into customer benefits in the course of future projects.<br />
In the Russian railway company and its subsidiary, <strong>Knorr</strong>-<strong>Bremse</strong> also has two partners who bring with<br />
them an extremely broad field of possible applications for technical rail products in the fields of passenger<br />
and freight transportation.