The UK operation of Wabtec,at Doncaster, is to close. The shock news came this morning in an address to all staff at the historic facility in the town. Doncaster is synonymous with railway engineering, but now Wabtec, which operates out of a swathe of works buildings, has said it will quit its base in the Hexthorpe neighbourhood.
The shattering news was given to all staff this morning (7 February) by Tim Bentley, UK Group Managing Director & Regional Vice President. Local reports suggest that around 400 engineering jobs will be lost. Doncaster’s railway heritage is so profound, that the engineering facility in the town, established in 1853, is known simply as “The Works”.
Site could be lost to housing development
It has been the launching place of many of the icons of British railway design and operation. None more so than the rollout in 1923 of the world’s most famous steam locomotive, Flying Scotsman – an engineering marvel of its age. Although still contested, it was claimed to be the first steam locomotive to record a 100 miles per hour (160kph) turn of speed.
However, the brakes have been permanently applied to the long history of “The Plant”. The news that American multinational engineering company Wabtec is to pull out of Doncaster, will see the loss of around 400 skilled jobs. Speculation is already rife that the site will be lost under a residential redevelopment. Ironically, Doncaster had bid for a future part of railway industry heritage, seeking to be the headquarters of Great British Railways, the new body set up by the UK government to oversee renationalisation of much of the industry.
Withdrawal from vehicle maintenance market
In a statement, Wabtec admitted their concerns over the future of the site. “We have made the difficult decision to enter a period of consultation with regards to the future of our Doncaster facility,” said a spokesperson. “Following a comprehensive review of the product lines and cost challenges at the Doncaster plant, our proposal is to complete our current projects, then withdraw from the vehicle maintenance market in the UK and close the site.”
Wabtec says it will enter into a formal statutory consultation period within the next few weeks. “We will actively engage with colleagues,” their spokesperson told RailFreight.com. “We are currently evaluating several options, including the potential consolidation of remaining component production at another UK location, or relocation to a nearby site. Our top priority is the wellbeing of our impacted colleagues, and we are committed to offering them full support throughout this process. Work will continue on all current projects at the Doncaster site and we remain focused on delivering our customer commitments.”
Uncertainty over order book
The Plant is a shadow of its former self. At its pre-war peak, around 4,600 engineers were employed, building and maintaining motive power and rolling stock. Flying Scotsman was just one of well over 2,000 locomotives built on the site, along with tens of thousands of pieces of freight and passenger rolling stock.
Orders at The Plant are said to be thin on the ground. Insiders who have spoken to RailFreight.com, claim that minimal maintenance contracts, including wheel turning, are among those that remain active. It’s also understood that staff were sent home at the start of today’s shift, and that the closure of Wabtec operations will be complete by 2026. Wabtec (previously known as Westinghouse Air Brake Company) has been on the site for 25 years.
Health of the railways in Doncaster
Wabtec also occupies the former locomotive building works of Andrew Barclay and Son in Kilmarnock, Scotland, and has a modern railway plant in Derby, in the English East Midlands, and has several satellite sites around the UK, and around fifty major facilities worldwide.
Doncaster remains a healthy centre of railway operations. The city is home to the headquarters of DB Cargo UK, and their new training facility (as reported by our sister service, RailTech.com. The city is directly served by the busy East Coast Main Line, and has strong freight handling capacity at iPort Rail among other facilities.