Sitting comfortably Growag

SITTING COMFORTABLy

Polish company Growag, based in Grodzisk Wielkopolski, is a manufacturer of railway passenger seats and shock absorbers. In 2017, it celebrated its 45th anniversary. Mr Marek Stein, Growag’s president of the board, talks to Dariusz Balcerzyk about how the company has developed during these years, where it is now and where it will be in the future.

Growag was founded in 1972. From the very outset, it has been manufacturing passenger seats for railway cars and shock absorbers for railway car bogies, and special appliances, as well as providing a wide range of services for the railway and other industries. The company has seen dynamic development in the last few years.

“Nowadays we are proud to be a respected player in the railway market in Poland and abroad. Our efforts and even sacrifices contributed to creating a modern enterprise that has earned the trust of its customers, to whom we can offer products of highest quality,” says Mr Stein.

Today, Growag employs more than 120 people. All production is carried out in its Grodzisk Wielkopolski factory, which is in western Poland, some 20 minutes away by car from the A2 highway to Germany. In recent years, the company has experienced significant annual growth: production volumes were up by 29 per cent in 2017 compared to 2016. Exports are a very important part of Growag’s total sales, with the Czech Republic, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Hungary, Romania, Italy and Ukraine its main foreign markets.

“Actually, we are just building our strong position on foreign markets, especially in western Europe. The main problem we face with exports does not lie in the quality of our products, which is very high, but in how to convince customers from western Europe to establish cooperation with a company from Poland, since they are used to cooperating with large, global companies. Therefore, we must work much harder than our competition – and we do. Our plan is to increase the share of the exports in the next few years by up to 50 per cent of our total sales; by 2021–2023 we intend to be one of the leading European producers of railway seats,” points out Mr Stein.

“Growag is a leading supplier of passenger seats and shock absorbers, meeting the strictest quality standards for high technology products and services. We hold an ISO 9001:2015 certificate and successfully implemented the requirements of PN-EN 15085-2:2007 standard, level CL1, which is an excellent proof of the skills and unique performance of our specialists. In 2015 we also received the Quality of the Year award in the product category for our Xeon seats. In 2013 Growag was certified by IRIS.”

Growag delivers its products to all major rolling stock manufacturers, including Stadler, Siemens, Newag, Pesa, FPS, Hyundai Rotem, CAF, Solaris, Grivita and many others, as well as its own customers.

Classy seats

Growag specialises in manufacturing upholstered passenger seats for both 1st and 2nd class rail cars for long-distance travel, including sleeping cars. It has around 48 per cent of Poland’s railway passenger seats market and is an undisputed leader in the regional transport segment. Regional transport is the fastest growing segment of the railway market. As a complement to its IC compartment car furnishing, Growag manufactures seating solutions for business class compartments, ensuring perfect travelling conditions for business clients and facilitating business meetings or work on the move. For its products, Growag guarantees high durability, perfect ergonomics and compliance with the strictest fire safety standards.

“Our seats offer the highest travelling comfort with additional features such as seat cushion and backrest adjustment (horizontal and angle). All our products follow the latest trends and are based on customers’ requirements. We also offer special versions for carriages with or without compartments. In addition, we propose light and ergonomic passenger seats dedicated to electric multiple units, rail buses or metro carriages. Our innovative product line comprises beds and couches for sleeping cars on long-distance trains,” adds Mr Stein.

The XEON line of seats, used for regional railways, represents one of the company’s flagship products. It’s Growag’s bestseller. The main advantages of this type of seat are its high quality and wide variety, meeting all clients’ expectations.

Geo Globe Polska

Geo Globe Polska are one of the leaders in the international market using the technology of vacuum thermoforming. We use for the production material ABS, Pe, PS, PP, PmmA, PC. The thermoforming technology used in our company enables the production of high quality details and repeatable shape. We produce different types of packaging solutions and separators for transportation, medical and building equipment covers, complete car bodies and internal fittings vehicles. Special products are parts of internal linings and seats for public transport produced in thermoforming technology. These parts are made of special materials.

Shock absorbers

Growag is also one of Poland’s leading manufacturers of shock absorbers, which comply with the highest quality standards. These are designed for use in passenger rail carriages, electric and diesel multiple units, locomotives, metro trains and tramways. In addition, Growag provides maintenance services for nearly all types of shock absorbers. The majority of passenger rail cars, locomotives and tramways used in Poland feature Growag products. The company’s hydraulic shock absorbers are available in single- and double-action versions. The orientation on rail car trucks can range from vertical to any angle up to 70° from the vertical. The additional shock absorber dome enables horizontal installation.

Mr Stein concludes: “Railway seats are very complicated constructions, as ergonomics and strength and are subject to very restrictive regulations – for example in terms of fire regulations. Thanks to their innovative design, our sets allow us to mount more seats in the units and reduce the total weight of the vehicle at the same time. Each seat is manufactured with special attention to all those details that make traveling so much more comfortable and enjoyable. Moreover, XEON seats can be customised according to customers’ specific requirements. We are working on a project for modern premium segment seats, which is co-financed by EU funds. The new seats will be launched at the end of 2018. Our additional advantages are flexibility and customer-oriented approach, rapid model-based prototyping and development, competitive price/quality ratio and timely implementation of projects.” n

http://www.growag.pl