On Track to Bolster India’s Growth

Ever since India’s first railway track became operational in 1837 as a way for the erstwhile British Empire to transport materials for road building, railways have played a pivotal role in shaping the country’s journey. Fast forward to today and Indian Railways is the world’s fourth largest railway network in the world, with $17.2 billion in revenue from freight traffic. By 2031, its revenue from passenger service is projected to reach around $12 billion, with freight traffic expected to exceed 8 billion tons.

As India's largest rail technology provider, Wabtec is set to play a critical role in driving this growth. Wabtec has supplied more than 600 locomotives to Indian Railways and has an installed base of brake systems in over 18,000 coaches and locomotives. Our presence in India extends across freight car components, locomotives, transit products, digital solutions, and other businesses. Almost all major metro rail networks across India have at least one product from Wabtec.

Wabtec set up shop in India in the early 1990’s as part of a joint venture, working to facilitate innovative solutions for transportation and building world-class maintenance facilities. In 1996, Wabtec acquired full ownership of the joint venture company, solidifying its foothold in the Indian freight components market. The company continued to grow, executing its first order of 5,000 brake blocks in 1997 and expanding its operations to a new facility in 2002. Wabtec further expanded its product portfolio in 2019 by securing approval from Indian Railways for manufacturing upgraded high-capacity draft gears and initiating the reconditioning of wheel chocks.

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“The key success factor for Wabtec’s growth has been recognizing that India is unique and requires its own solutions,” says Sujatha Narayan, Senior Vice President and India Region Leader. “This has necessitated investment in technology and products designed particularly for the subcontinent while bringing the learnings and technology strength of the global organization. Localization and local manufacturing have been instrumental in building competitive advantage in this price-sensitive market, along with proximity to the customer and meeting dynamic requirements.”

In November 2015, Wabtec’s Freight business secured an order to supply 1,000 new fuel-efficient Evolution series locomotives, delivered in phases over 10 years. Wabtec’s freight business has an end-to-end contract with Indian Railways - from construction of factory and shed, manufacturing the locomotive, maintenance, to delivering on key performance indicators (KPIs).

Regarding Wabtec’s impact on India’s rail ecosystem, Sandeep Selot, Managing Director and Vice President, Wabtec Freight Business, says, “I believe what we have brought to the table are best practices in terms of lean manufacturing, warehouse management, health and safety, and predictive maintenance. We can helm large-scale modernization projects, carry out performance upgrades, supply parts, and enter long-term maintenance contracts. Our aim is also to bring in greater safety, efficiency and high reliability with digital solutions such as real-time monitoring and diagnostics.”

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Wabtec’s Transit business (formerly Faiveley Transport) has been associated with India’s growth story going back to the 1980s. “We are investing, developing and deploying brake systems for Indian railways through their transition from ICF to LHB coaches and diesel to electric locomotives. We transitioned from a 90% brake-focused portfolio to a more diversified and comprehensive suite of products and services. Today, our backwards-integrated range includes brake electronics, HVAC systems, doors, couplers, pantographs, friction pads, brake blocks, brake pads, and the aftermarket business to support these products for metro rails and locomotives,” says Ajay Mani, Managing Director of Wabtec’s Transit business in India.

The engineering nerve center and service hub for Wabtec’s operations in India and worldwide is in Bengaluru, the IT city known as the Silicon Valley of India. Wabtec India Technology & Engineering Center (WITEC) opened in 2019 as a world-class facility designed to support growth and innovation. WITEC complements the other Wabtec sites in operations across India supporting the freight and transit industries.

Innovation that revolutionizes the way India moves

Given the diversity in terrain and the sheer number of passengers and goods, India presents some unique challenges that require localized innovation. The high-reach pantograph is an interesting case in point. In early 2022, the Indian Government announced its National Rail Plan vision with an intent to move more freight by rail than road, targeting to nearly double rail’s share from the existing 25%. One of its strategies to increase capacity was to use double-stack containers hauled by a single train through dedicated freight corridors. This required overhead electrification at a height of 3.8 meters from the top of the train to pull the massive load, which would require a high-reach pantograph. Wabtec India co-developed this new product with the centre of competence in Europe, which also needed to address challenges such as the significant wind effect due to increased height and speed.  

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On the locomotive design front, Wabtec developed the first ergonomic cab layout for Indian Railways with enhanced operator amenities. “With inclusions such as completely air-conditioned operator cabs with heated windshields to multi-layer acoustics to avoid noise and distraction, our locomotives are equipped with better ergonomics,” says Sandeep.

“Our locomotives have also enabled an 8-10% best-in-class fuel efficiency by moving from a 16-cylinder to a 12-cylinder engine delivering 4,500 horsepower. The compliance with UIC-1, a standard defined by the International Union of Railways is a first for Indian Railways,” he adds. “We train locomotive pilots end-to-end on safety, mechanical and technical functionalities. So far, we’ve trained close to 7,600 locomotive pilots and extend 24/7 support to address on-ground challenges.”

“We’ve grown from 15 people to around 1,000 now with a 4,000-strong supplier base, already achieving over 60% localization. Our delivery timeline is 100 locomotives every year, or building one locomotive every three days. We've not missed a beat ever in the last seven years of our journey,” Sandeep shares.

Freight Services is another big opportunity for Wabtec in India. The two existing maintenance sheds in Roza and Gandhidham, along with the recently inaugurated Gooty shed serviced close to 700 locomotives this year. The upcoming maintenance shed in Eastern India will further strengthen the Services offering. The maintenance cycle for Wabtec locomotives has expanded from 45 to 60 days to between 90 to 110 days – a big win.

Given that the lifecycle of a locomotive spans almost 30 years, there is tremendous opportunity to grow Wabtec’s Services business given that the company has demonstrated its ability to interoperate seamlessly in the railway's ecosystem. Wabtec expects revenue from the Services business to double over the next 2-3 years.

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Eye on the horizon

With close to $550 million in business, a workforce of 3,000, along with Great Place to Work® certifications, Wabtec India has some big plans in the offing.

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“At WITEC, we are working on hydrogen-based internal combustion engines and hydrogen-based fuel cell-based technology. At some point, the Indian Railways will want this hydrogen solution and we’re planning to be there for them at that point,” says Sujatha.

Both the Freight and Transit businesses are set to see considerable traction in the coming years.

In May 2024, Wabtec opened a new manufacturing facility in Rohtak in the north Indian state of Haryana. With an investment of $18 million, the factory’s initial focus is on manufacturing transit rail components and subsystems followed by other Wabtec product lines in the coming years. The current production line-up includes axle-mounted disc brake systems, distributor valves, brake calipers, and actuators, as well as friction material for freight cars, metro coaches, and locomotives for Indian Railways and metros.

“The success of our first public-private partnership with the government has laid the foundation to build similar models for upcoming projects,” adds Sandeep.

“Regarding Transit, priority number one is to introduce several new products, grow the platform, and deliver with highest reliability. Second, we want to grow friction products not only for India but also for global markets. Third, we want to support the overall global transit business to be cost-competitive,” says Ajay.

Going forward too, Wabtec will continue to partner closely with Indian Railways, particularly in areas such as sustainability and digitalization. We are committed to developing new technologies for the country and the world, manufacturing in the country, and creating jobs.