Diamond Rail Services have recently been awarded a contract by Alstom to support the interior upgrades for the Class 376 fleet for Southeastern.
There are 36 x 5car trains to complete in an impressive programme of 3 weeks per unit. Diamond Rail Services are delivering the turnkey seat refurbishment to Alstom which includes logistics management of all seat materials to and from site. This involved bespoke stillage design and protective covers to support the LEAN programme. All the work can therefore take place at Diamond’s site in Sheffield.
Once transported, the seats are stripped and the frame processed into parts for powder coating. Traceability is maintained through this process through to Diamond re-building the seat frames and installing the newly upholstered cushions.
The stillage and identification system ensures each seat is placed back into the original location, and all works are completed to the highest quality and inspected in Sheffield to allow fitment straight into the train on the customers site.
The upgrade of the Cl376 fleet is taking place at Grove Park Depot and is part of the continued investment from Southeastern into their depots, fleets and people.
Contracting Sheffield based Diamond is an example of Alstom’s commitment to prioritise UK supply chains.
Sara Pierrepont, Head of Projects at Diamond Rail Services said: “This is a valued opportunity off the back of the Cl395 project success, and it is great to be working with the same stakeholders again. Our customers have confidence in our project delivery capabilities, and this is great validation for the hard work by all the team at Diamond”.
The refurbishments are underway and set to complete in May 2027. The first unit is complete so be sure to look out for 376027 in service!
Find out more about our recent news and our service offer at our website www.DiamondRail.co.uk