Information contained in this news release is current as of the date of the press announcement, but may be subject to change without prior notice.
December 26, 2013
LONDON, December 26, 2013 - Hitachi Ltd. today announced that its On-board ETCS (European Train Control System) solution has been successfully certified by a Notified Body in accordance with the Control Command and Signalling TSI (Technical Specification for Interoperability) 2012/88/EU and 2012/696/EU.
ETCS is a common signalling system which has been developed throughout Europe to enable train services to cross frontiers and boundaries between different countries without the need to change signalling systems or locomotives. ETCS is part of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) and many systems have already been implemented in non-EU countries such as China and India.
Hitachi On-board ETCS has been formally endorsed through the rigorous assessment process demonstrating compliance with relevant TSI and EN norms at the highest Safety Integrity Level 4.
The breakthrough came as part of Hitachi Rail Europe's 'Verification-Train 3' project to trial ETCS on-board equipment in the UK. During this project, a Network Rail Class 97301 locomotive has been successfully retro-fitted with the Hitachi on-board system to test interoperability with a separate supplier's groundside system currently in use on the Cambrian Line.
Following the successful certification, Hitachi is now embarking on train fitment implementation for IEP: Intercity Express Programme and other programmes around the world, in order to realise the benefits of a radio-based cab signalling system with a reduced trackside infrastructure.
Hitachi Rail Europe Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi Europe, Ltd. and is headquartered in London, UK.
Hitachi Rail Europe is a total railway system supplier offering rolling stock, traction equipment, signalling, traffic management systems, and maintenance depots.
Hitachi draws on many years of experience as a leading supplier of high-speed trains such as the Shinkansen (bullet train) for the Japanese and international markets. In Europe, Hitachi Rail Europe's first rolling stock contract was to deliver a fleet of 29 Class 395 trains, the first domestic high-speed train in the UK, which are maintained at Hitachi's state of the art depot in Ashford, Kent. As part of the British Department for Transport's Intercity Express Programme, Hitachi Rail Europe will replace the UK's ageing fleet of Intercity trains, and will establish a new rolling stock manufacturing facility in the UK for this purpose. The trains will be maintained and services in a number of new maintenance depots along the Great Western Main Line and the East Coast Main Line.
For more information about the company, please visit: www.Hitachirail-eu.com.
Hitachi, Ltd., (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 320,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2011 (ended March 31, 2012) consolidated revenues totaled 9,665 billion yen ($117.8 billion). Hitachi is focusing more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes information and telecommunication systems, power systems, environmental, industrial and transportation systems, and social and urban systems, as well as the sophisticated materials and key devices that support them. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com.
