A trip to the Siemens factory

Talk is afoot of the Prague Metro system expanding. Siemens is currently supplying Prague metro with its latest installment of trains. With Skoda Holdings also interested in making trains for the Prague metro, Siemens is going to have to battle for the next commission. Metro passengers praise the quality of the new trains, but complain that their interiors are ill designed and uncomfortable. Rosie Johnston went to see how they were made.

I'm here in the Siemens factory in Zlicin, which is at the end of Prague metro's yellow line. Siemens are supplying the Prague underground system with 48 new trains, and entirely overhauling the operation of its red line, line C. They bought this factory two years ago from a bankrupt Czech company who were already making the trains. Company spokesman, Petr Sedlacek tells me just how they found it.

"This factory was designed in the olden days, which meant that it built tram cars for the whole of Central and Eastern Europe in times of peace, and SS20 rockets in times of war. We have found a lot of interesting machinery which we couldn't use. We also found a lot of interesting rooms and spaces under the ground. This was actually one of the most difficult things about this factory, reconstructing the parts that were made for SS20 production."

And what did Siemens then do with the SS20 rocket making equipment, or is that a secret?

"No, no, definitely not. We just sold it for the price of the iron. You cannot use these things for anything else; cranes and other special equipment which was definitely not useful."

Siemens didn't just redesign the factory, they also redesigned the trains it produced. Mr. Sedlacek talked me through the differences between the new metro cars, and those of yore.

"The cars are not made out of steel, but aluminium instead, which makes them very light and means that the cars don't destroy the railway surface that much. They are made solely from non flammable and non toxic materials which means that should there be any problem in a tunnel, the passengers are not in any danger. One of the most important things is that this new train can never break down. And if it breaks down in a tunnel then it will always come to a station. It is impossible for it to get stuck in a tunnel."

And how does that work?

"It's a Siemens secret, we just know how to do that. But really, the trains have a lot of security systems, so if something goes wrong and the train stops it always reaches a station, always."

Despite train tracks leading from the station right to the start of the metro, it's not as simple as just trundling a new train onto the tracks.

"When the cars and trains are produced they go to a testing circle, and the final test is an eight hour non-stop drive, where everything has to work absolutely perfectly, without a single hitch. And then the train can get the certificate from the railway authority, and can be used to transport people."