Bombardier Celebrates Opening of New Depot in Contiship’s Italian Rail Hub in Melzo

Bombardier Transportation is celebrating the official opening of its new 300,000 square meter rail maintenance depot in Melzo, Italy in the Rail Hub Milano (RHM) logistics district. The state-of-the-art depot will support locomotives and rolling stock with rapid assistance and further enhance the growth of the Milan Logistical Business District. The event was attended by railway operators, customers and public institutions and organised with the partnership of the owners of Rail Hub Milano, Italian logistics company Contship Italia.

Pierre Cicion, Head of Services Middle East, Africa and Italy, Bombardier Transportation said, “The Melzo depot will enable Bombardier to strengthen its services offering by providing rapid response to locomotives that need urgent support. The workshop is engineered to offer “pit-stops”, high-turnover, brief and frequent on-site operations. Bombardier estimates the site will be able to manage around 400 locomotive maintenance operations per year. This number can be further increased by taking over international operators which use in-house assistance abroad.”

Sebastiano Grasso, Group Managing Director, Business Services, Contship Italia described the facility’s importance, saying, “The Melzo, Liscate and Vignate areas near Milan are developing into a powerful logistics region able to support and add value to the nation’s manufacturing industry. The shared investment in Melzo depot with Bombardier has enhanced this intra-European and intercontinental crossroads with a powerful, rapid-reaction maintenance capability. This not only keeps trains rolling, but also lowers environmental impact by limiting the logistical reliance on freight trucking.”

The depot will offer standard services with preventive and corrective maintenance activities and the goal of guaranteeing 24/7 service. Melzo’s new 300,000 square meter intermodal terminal features 12km of rail track with four tracks matching international standards and measuring 750m, another three tracks measuring 550m and 12 tracks used as junctions and for external parking.