Railway and urban transport infrastructure ZUE Group

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ZUE, a capital group from Krakow, is one of Poland’s leaders in public transport infrastructure construction. It is focused on the railway and urban rail and energy sectors, bringing together companies with design, trade, production and implementation capabilities.

ZUE Group is a general contractor whose main scope of activity is focused on designing and delivering comprehensive tram line and railway construction systems. It also executes the whole accompanying infrastructure including the earth works, railway beds, drainage systems, as well as engineering and building stations. The group provides complete services in terms of the construction and modernisation of power systems for the entire tram line infrastructure, as well as the construction and modernisation of the tram and train catenary network. The scope of the ZUE Group’s business also includes the provision of services for the maintenance of city infrastructure systems (tracks, catenary, powering systems, lighting).

A story of success

ZUE Group is a private business which was founded in 1991. Initially, the company operated in the electronics and radio communication industry. The extension of its activities into the field of power electronics, energy and traction works took place in 1994. Two years later, ZUE established a cooperation agreement with SIEMENS AG, based in Vienna.

As a result, new technologies (such as modern WS90E tram driver switches) have been introduced into the Polish market. In 1997, ZUE saw its first major success with the design and construction of a catenary section made entirely using Western technology. ZUE was the first company in Poland to accomplish such a task. Following this, the company built Poland’s first underground power supply substation for tramways. In 2000–2001, it acquired shares in a track and road maintenance company. In 2014 it entered a new business segment: the design and construction of power transmission lines. Together with its Croatian partner, ZUE carried out the construction of a 400 kV line with a total contract value of PLN 469 million (more than €100 million). In the same year, ZUE and its Slovakian partner acquired a contract in Kosice, Slovakia, worth more than €33 million.

Today, ZUE Group consists of five companies: ZUE SA, the parent company; Biuro Projektow Komunikacyjnych (Communication Design Office) in Poznan; Railway Technology International; Railway Technology International Germany GmbH, and Railway gft Polska. In 2017 the group’s revenues exceeded PLN 465 million (€110

million), with a net profit PLN 233 million (€55 million). Currently, the group employs 800 people and carries out projects throughout the entire country.

For years ZUE Group has cooperated with both large international corporations and small, local companies. This strategy has translated into successes and business opportunities for all partners. A good example of this successful cooperation is the long and fruitful partnership with Sika Poland, a part of the the international concern Sika – one of the world leaders in specialised chemical products for the construction industry.

Wide range of services

Comprehensive deliveries, starting from design to construction of tram catenary networks, have been offered by the company since the beginning of its operations. The group’s services include solutions based on Polish and Western European technologies, together with the supply of all necessary materials. Within the services associated with the construction and modernisation of catenary networks, the group offers the comprehensive delivery and maintenance of tram catenary networks; construction, modernisation and ongoing maintenance of catenary substations; and related design services.

The catenary power network is inseparably associated with the catenary network itself. In this field, the group offers construction services for catenary substations with components produced both by domestic and foreign manufacturers, including the latest globally available solutions.

For the construction and comprehensive modernisation of tram tracks, the group offers complex solutions based on diverse technologies available for all kinds of track gauges. Track design and construction technologies include, among others: tracks on so-called Hungarian slab, tracks on pre-stressed concrete sleepers, tracks with reduced noise levels (noise absorption by vibration-isolating mats or a sublayer made of epoxide resin) and green tracks.

The track infrastructure elements delivered and assembled by the group include, among others: track partings, track crossings, safelocked switch drives, modern trailing switch drives, track drainage systems and rail greasing systems.

Possessing the necessary specialist equipment and communication technology for the maintenance of lighting fixtures, ZUE Group performs both construction works (from design to delivery) as well as on-going maintenance of entire lighting sections. In the field of communication wiring, the group offers the construction of communication networks for traditional wiring (cable piping installed via trench or jacking) as well as fibre optic wiring (in special ductwork or cable suspension on posts, such as catenary). The ZUE Group also offers the complete construction of street traffic lights from design to delivery and the commissioning of entire traffic light systems. n

Visit: www.grupazue.pl