Goole rail village expansion plan could create 250 new jobs
A total of 250 more jobs could be coming to Goole’s rail village as Siemens Mobility looks to further expand operations in the town.
Rail Minister Huw Merriman has praised the “endless opportunity” now emerging, having been briefed on the plans during his summer tour of UK infrastructure.
He heard how the company is finalising proposals to bring additional train component assembly and refurbishment work to the sprawling site, with a multi-million pound 13,500 sq m bogie and wheelset centre at the fore.
An application has been lodged with East Riding of Yorkshire Council for the centre, dedicated to the structures that sit beneath the carriages.
It would build on a recently opened components facility, as additional elements over and above the original plans. That could also be significantly expanded as a wider range of work is attracted, while bosses look to capitalise on freeport status and provide an international service.
Mr Merriman visited on Friday, with wider proposals for a hotel and 1.2km test track highlighted. Explaining the latest move, project director Finbarr Dowling, – alongside Siemens Mobility joint chief executive Sambit Banerjee – told how the work on the bogies and wheelsets is currently done in a space-restrained 170-year-old factory 50 miles away. He said: “The business is currently in Lincoln and growing so fast, that we’re looking to lift it up and drop it here.
“It involves 250 jobs, with 150 existing and 100 new. Plans and the business case are still going through, but we’re looking to have it open by 2025/26.
“We want to stay here for the next 50 years, we want to set something up that stands the test of time.”
Keen to press the button: Finbarr Dowling, project director at Siemens Mobility, shows plans for the bogie and wheelset centre, seen on the screen closest to him, to Rail Minister Huw Merriman, with joint chief executive Sambit Banerjee looking on (Image: Reach Plc)
The strategy is to have a mix of new build and service work for the rail industry, with a “blended workforce” able to move between, to maximise job creation and reduce agency need, while smoothing out peaks and troughs between orders. In a similar move, the components facility – opened by Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove in April as the first operational element – was also transferred across from Leeds to allow for significant expansion. Initially employing 30, it is now at 60, and will be 80 by December.
Office staff are now preparing to move onto the site in the new administration building for the start of September, with a similar ramping up as recruitment continues.
Assembly of the Piccadilly Line tube trains is due to start in March, with two a month to be completed initially. Next summer should see a workforce of 250 off Tom Pudding Way, with further capacity to follow as orders are won.
“Clearly we want to win more train orders, but we’re building other business units as well – it allows us to flex with demand,” Mr Dowling said.
Mr Merriman, who met apprentices across the site during his tour, said: “I’m really impressed, it is really exciting. It is great to come to a place where there is so much energy, vision and such investment in talent. It has been great to meet all of the young apprentices who are a credit to what is being built here, and it will be really interesting to come back and see all the progress.
“It is brilliant for the rail industry. Siemens is always at the cutting edge when it comes to innovation, which we need right now in terms of delivering decarbonisation, and it is brilliant that they are investing.”
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Asked about the government’s role, Mr Merriman said: “It is really important for us to support the rail industry, and the order book, supporting all the investment that is going in, not just in Goole but across the industry.
“Our rolling stock is relatively modern, the average age is 17 years and it can go 30 years and beyond, but they need replacing, refurbishing, and constantly need to be maintained.
“We hope there is not just a pipeline in the UK, but importantly we need to look at how we can support the likes of Siemens in terms of having an order book there for the export market as well, and that’s something I’m really keen to do, to get out on the road abroad, and see how I can help with those sales.”
And he was enthused by the concept now being realised.
“The vision that Sambit and Finbarr have given me is incredibly exciting,” Mr Merriman said. “They see a whole village in terms of ideas, innovation and manufacturing, and I’m sure the whole local community is incredibly excited by this. All of a sudden we will also see lots of other rail entities springing up on the back of Siemens too, because they will be such a big customer. It seems endless in terms of opportunity here.”