New railway testing centre for Wales welcomed by RIA Wales and Western
06 July 2023
The Railway Industry Association (RIA) Wales & Western has welcomed today's news that a consortium of universities, including Cardiff and Swansea, has been awarded £15 million by the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF) to establish a new world-leading railway research and innovation centre in South Wales.
UKRPIF investment will enable Cardiff, Swansea and Birmingham universities to establish a new Centre of Excellence for Railway Testing, Validation and Customer Experience at the Global Centre of Rail Excellence (GCRE) site, currently under construction near Onllwyn in the Neath Valley.
Industry partners include: Siemens, Atkins, Unipart, RSSB, GCRE, Knorr Bremse, Aegis, Angel Trains, Eversholt Rail, Furrer+Frey, Razor Secure, SLC Rail, EnServe, TRL, BBA, Vanguard, MoniRail and EneRail, many of whom are RIA members. The facilities are currently being planned with building work expected to commence later this year.
Robert Cook, RIA Wales & Western Lead said: “This investment is a vote of confidence in research and innovation in South Wales and will help secure the future development of the rail industry right across the UK. The funding and the partnership between these three universities is good news for RIA members and the supply sector, and will help the governments in Cardiff and Westminster to build a more effective integrated public transport network.
"We and our members look forward to working on this with Cardiff, Swansea and Birmingham universities in the months and years ahead".
Notes to Editors
1. RIA Wales & Western represents members across Wales and the South West of England. Rail in this part of the country supports some 74,500 jobs and £3.6bn GVA (22,800 jobs and £1bn GVA in Wales; and 51,700 jobs and £2.6bn GVA in the South West) – see the Oxford Economics report, Economic Contribution of UK Rail,
here, pages 60-61.
2. The UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF) supports investment in higher education facilities across the UK. Universities must attract a further £2 from non-public sources for every £1 invested by the fund. The funding is part of £30m announced through the UKRPIF to establish two new world-leading railway research and innovation facilities in the UK – one in South Wales and the other being a new Centre of Excellence for Railway Through-Life Engineering in Goole near Leeds.
About RIA: The Railway Industry Association (RIA) is the voice of the UK rail supply community. We help to grow a sustainable, high-performing, railway supply industry, and to export UK rail expertise and products. RIA has 350 companies in membership in a sector that contributes £43 billion in economic growth and £14 billion in tax revenue each year, as well as employing 710,000 people. It is also a vital industry for the UK’s economic recovery, supporting green investment and jobs in towns and communities across the UK; for every £1 spent in rail, £2.50 is generated in the wider economy. RIA’s membership is active across the whole of railway supply, covering a diverse range of products and services and including both multi-national companies and SMEs (60% by number).
www.riagb.org.uk