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Along with its programme for modernisation of the economy, China is also pursuing policies for modernisation of its industries, and the rail and urban transport industry is no exception. In support of these policies, contracts with foreign companies include requirements for local content and transfer of technology.
This was the case with ALSTOM's first major order for urban rolling stock in the country, building metro trains for Shanghai, China's largest and most urbanised city.
The contract, signed in May 1999, to supply 28 six-car METROPOLISTM trainsets for Shanghai's Pearl Line (Line 3) included a requirement of 70 percent local content for the last trainsets. This first contract was followed by a similar order for a future metro line in Nanjing and further orders for Shanghai.
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METROPOLIS which is developed to combine the reliability and cost-effectiveness of modular, standardised components with options for customisation. In short, the "hidden" parts of the trains are standardised components, and the "visible" parts allow customer to adapt the look and services of the trains to their specific requirements. The hidden parts, significantly, are those that are essential for assuring reliable operation - the bogies, the propulsion equipment, and so on. Customers benefit from a range of choices for the visible parts - the front end, the interior arrangement and fixtures, passenger information systems, etc.
Several aspects of this standardisation-with-options concept facilitated local production. Perhaps the most significant was the body shell. Here, the METROPOLIS design allows for choice in material, method of assembly and dimensions. METROPOLIS cars have an aluminium or stainless-steel shell, which is either welded or mechanically fastened. Car length may be between 16 m and 25 m, and the width between 2.6 m and 3.2 m.
"To achieve 70 percent local content while respecting the contractual commitments for quality, cost and delivery times, we set up a program of technology transfers to the local partners," said Loïc Mahé, head of ALSTOM Transport in China. The localisation process was a progressive one, and this was reflected in the schedule for production of METROPOLIS cars for Shanghai's Pearl Line and Nanjing. This process of localisation by phases used in the project is similar to that for all other technology transfers performed by ALSTOM Transport in China.
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In setting up the project during contract negotiations, ALSTOM representatives visited more than 40 factories in the region, finally settling on the Puzhen Rolling Stock Works, a state-owned rolling-stock factory in Nanjing. The main activities at Puzhen were maintenance and renovation of Chinese-produced railway passenger coaches and the production of bogies.
ALSTOM also entered into two joint ventures with a locally based industrial group, Shanghai Electric Corp.: Shanghai ALSTOM Transport Co. Ltd. (SATCO), for the manufacture and servicing of rolling stock, and Shanghai ALSTOM Transport Electric Equipment Co. Ltd. (SATEE), for traction equipment and onboard signalling for metro trains.
The Pearl Line project included assembly work by the Puzhen factory and supply of the traction system by SATEE, under leadership from ALSTOM's main metro plant in France at La Petite-Forêt near Valenciennes.
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Xinmin and Yangpu Projects
The industrial scheme for the production of the Xinmin and Yangpu projects are similar to those for the Pearl Line and Nanjing. For the Xinmin order for 38 four-car trains, awarded in September 2000, ALSTOM's plant in Santa Perpetua near Barcelona built the first two trains. SATCO is responsible for the Chinese portion of the work - which includes the supply of electrical equipment from SATEE and mechanical equipment from Puzhen. Of the 28 four-car sets for the Yangpu Line, ordered in February 2003, the Barcelona plant will build the first complete train, with SATCO being in charge of the rest.
"This kind of localisation is a win-win proposition," said Mahé. "China is a key market for us, and the local capacity we're building there with our industrial partners will serve us and them down the line. What's more, our experience here will be a good reference for us in competing for future projects with requirements for local content and technology transfer."
Thierry Best, who was Mahé's predecessor as the head of ALSTOM Transport China and who is now his counterpart for ALSTOM Transport France, added: "As long as ALSTOM keeps innovating as we have in the past, this type of co-operation can only be positive for us."
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