ROLLING AHEAD
The Polish company NEWAG SA specialises in the manufacture and repair of electric locomotives, electric multiple units and components for rail vehicles. With a long tradition in rolling stock going back over a century, the company is able to apply that know-how to today’s market, as Victoria Hattersley finds out.
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EWAG’s history goes back to the year 1876 when it was formed as the Imperial Royal Railway Workshops. At this time, and for many decades the company focused solely on the heavy maintenance of locomotives from its headquarters in Nowy Sacz. It was in the early 21st century that NEWAG began the process of transformation into the leading rolling stock manufacturer we recognise today. In 2003 the company was privatised but perhaps the most significant year was 2008 when it manufactured its first rail car in-house, the electric multiple unit 19WE. Since then its activity ratio has shifted radically until today the majority of its income is derived from manufacturing. The company now designs and builds many kinds of vehicles, of which more presently. The company’s production facilities are more than enough to help it maintain its steady growth trajectory. Its main plant in Nowy Sacz employs approx.1500 people and is responsible for 90 per cent of production, focused on EMUs, DMUs and diesel locomotives. It also
has another plant in Gliwice in southern Poland, responsible for maintenance and some electrical locomotive manufacturing; and finally there is a smaller facility in Warsaw that is mainly for the production of smaller components. A spokesperson for the company tells us: “For the past 10 years we have been investing a significant amount in infrastructure and machinery to ensure our plants are state-of-the-art. The result is that our new, modernised workshop is the equal of any of our competitors’ sites throughout Europe. It shows that Polish rail manufacturers can produce to the same high standards as anywhere else. Our clients have all expressed appreciation of our quality and reliability.”
Production profile NEWAG specialises in the development and manufacture of electric locomotives, electric multiple units and related components for rail vehicles. Its electric multiple units (EMUs) include the latest generaIndustry Europe 143
