GAUTRAIN COACH INTERIORS MADE IN WALES

Gautrain rolling stock incorporates material supplied by Precision Cast Components (PCC), a company based in Newport, Wales. In its factory, PCC has fabricated the interior panelling for all 96 coaches. The contract has meant expansion, which has been funded to the tune of £160,000 by the Corus group subsidiary UK Steel Enterprise.

Managing director of PCC Mark Isaac, pleased to have won such a prestigious contract, was quoted saying: “Bombardier has the contract for the whole railway, and we have worked closely with them for many years on projects around the world”.

PCC is now the biggest supplier of rail interiors in the UK. It has supplied the Kowloon and Canton Railway in Hong Kong, and in the UK the Southern Rail and Virgin companies have placed substantial orders with the firm.

Mr Isaac said: “Bombardier knows that we will provide high quality products, and that our manufacturing techniques are constantly being improved and updated. “They also know we will deliver on time, bearing in mind that Gautrain faces a tight timetable to be ready for the World Cup.”

The Welsh press reported excitedly: “Fans at next year’s World Cup in South Africa will be transported on ultra-modern trains built with the help of Precision Cast Components (PCC), a company based in Newport, Wales.”

[ In fact, Gautrain’s main-line to Pretoria will not be open until mid-2011 and even the line to the airport is not scheduled for completion until several weeks after the games start in early June 2010. - via