The company

Hitachi Rail Europe Ltd (HRE) is the European headquarters of the Transportation Division of Industrial & Social Infrastructure Systems Company of Hitachi Ltd. HRE is responsible for the business operation of the transportation division's products and systems in Europe and makes use of the most up-to-date, modern and energy efficient engineering technology developed in Japan.

The challenge

HRE were seeking a specialist partner to provide fire testing to support their programme to provide rolling stock for the UK Government’s £5.7b Intercity Express Programme (IEP).

The solution

Warringtonfire’sfacility in Warrington provided fire testing of structural materials including coated steel and coated Glass Reinforced Plastic, and interior upholstery and flooring materials. In addition to fire resistance tests for doors and floors, the comprehensive range of reaction to fire tests being conducted also includes spread of flame, heat release, smoke density and smoke and toxicity.

The testing was conducted on the next generation Class 800/801 trains as part of the programme to upgrade Great Western Main Line and East Coast Main Line rolling stock.

Tetsuro Okamoto, Hitachi mechanical engineer for the Intercity Express Program, commented: “Safety is our primary consideration when designing new rolling stock and fire testing is a critical element in our design program. Our previous experience working withWarringtonfireon the Class 395 Javelin™ trains project for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link was impressive and we are confident that they are the right partner to deliver the exacting fire testing services for this prestigious project.”