Bombardier’s Vice President, UK Projects ANDY DERBYSHIRE talks to PHILIP SHERRATT about prospects for the company’s Derby manufacturing facility
For Bombardier and its Litchurch Lane factory, the next 18 months are crucial. Having accumulated orders for over 2,600 Aventra vehicles to be delivered over a five-year period, the company needs to complete 25 vehicles a week at the height of production. Bombardier delivered a similar total number of Electrostar vehicles, its previous product platform, but over a period of some 20 years.
But while business is booming for Bombardier, its Aventra order book is set to run out come the end of 2021. So while delivering on current orders is crucial, the company must also look further ahead to safeguard the future of its factory and those who work there.
Of course, this is in the context of an increasingly crowded market. The current boom in new train orders has seen both new entrants to the rolling stock market and promises of new UK-based manufacturing facilities.
