ASHFORD - HITACHI’S CORE ASSET
Hitachi’s success in the UK is built from Ashford. RICHARD CLINNICK talks to some of the people who make it tick
Ashford depot is where it all began for Hitachi. Back when it was Hitachi Rail UK, the company’s Kent depot was officially opened on October 2 2007 by the then Secretary of State for Transport Ruth Kelly.
At the time, four of the 29 Class 395s had been delivered from Kasado, Japan, and these pre-series trains were being used for testing and training. Ten years on, the trains are still operating from the site, while key members of staff who were there on the first day are still working at the depot, albeit in different roles.
Facilities Manager Dane Blackman says of the Train Maintenance Centre (its new official title): “it feels like my second home. There are a lot of guys here who have grown with the company.” He reels off some names of colleagues and what they now do; they seem a close-knit group. “Ashford creates a sense of loyalty,” he agrees.
When he joined Hitachi, the depot had yet to open. “I think we were based on the second floor of Ashford International Hotel at the time. I started on September 7 2007, and I was working in depot services initially. One of the first main tasks was the handover of the depot and commissioning.”
Before he joined the railway, he worked for a building maintenance company. Quietly spoken, Blackman freely admits: “To be honest, I wasn’t aware of the depot until I saw the advert. I don’t regret applying for a job here.”
When the depot opened, he says: “I went on to work on testing the equipment - then capacity, with things like the train wash. There were four of those at the time.” Hitachi actually took over part of the depot on his first day, and it’s certainly grown since: “When I started we had 15 staff. Now we have 180. There are also quite a few contractors.” He’s learned a lot too: “I now have a better insight into risks to our operations. And that gives you a wider appreciation of things like service delivery.”
His most challenging time during a decade of employment was the Olympic Games in 2012: “The pressure was constant. We had to work extra hard to meet the demand.”
Changes in his time there include depot modifications and the installation of various pieces of equipment.
“Hitachi winning the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) contract was a big thing.” It meant an expansion, and rapid deployment to premises in Holborn.
“The new premises were needed fast, and I was the only facilities manager at the time.”
Blackman says his success in managing that was his proudest moment. He has also been involved in specifying Hitachi’s IEP depots across the UK: “I tried to make them all have the same feeling.”
For the future, he says: “We need a three to five-year plan for depot maintenance. I intend to be here for that because I want to see it through.
“No two days are the same. As I’ve progressed here, the team spirit has always been strong, and I know that our culture will spread to the other sites.”
When visiting Ashford depot, receptionist/ administrator Karel Bailey (aka ‘Welly’), is the cheerful face that will likely greet you. “I have been here for ten years. I worked for Grant Rail before, which was on the same site.”
Known throughout the UK team, Bailey notes one particular change: “At first we just guided ourselves in our roles. Since the IEP deal we are now part of a much bigger family. The transition was difficult, but it’s all change for the good.”
One of the perks of the job is meeting various people who visit the site. “My favourite visitor was John Craven - I kept the signing-in page,” she giggles. “I like all the celebs!”
She says she has developed with the role, and the fact that she is “nosey” (her own selfappraisal) means she chats with staff at other sites too.
“I have been to other Train Maintenance Centres. They feel similar in a really good way and are developing their ‘Hitachi character’. I feel proud of this place and I love being here.”
She explains how staff visiting from Japan get a warm welcome from the Ashford team: “The guys from Japan bring things like food, so I bring in things for them. We open our homes to them when they’re here as they are away from their own homes for ages. Getting involved and getting stuck in like that is part of working here.”
Ashford’s TMC Manager Mark Hughes
If it wasn’t for Ash ford, Hitachi in the UK wouldnot be a success. Mark Hughes, TMC Manager, Hitachi Rail Europe
left the firm for a while before returning, and eventually taking over the management of the site. He says of Ashford: “It was the key to IEP. If it wasn’t for Ashford, Hitachi in the UK would not be a success.”
The Olympics was a crucial time, according to Hughes. “We had no technical casualty; no failures. Everyone stepped up. It was teamwork, it has always been about that here.”
Lessons from the development of Ashford have been shared with other TMCs, he says: “It’s in all our interests for us to pass on any experience we can.
“The biggest change has been the exams and structure here. Another big positive thing is the change in shift roster, which was done to improve the work/life balance of staff. It used to be three shifts, but we moved that to days and nights.”
Now the daytime shift focuses on maintenance, while night-time staff work on defects. Planned maintenance is done during the day.
He says Ashford has hosted visitors from other depots: “Bounds Green staff have visited here. The staff building and setting up Doncaster have been here. We have hosted visits for Swindon ROC and Kent Integrated Control Centre.” They’re all keen to learn about how his depot has kept this bespoke fleet running.
“Ashford has been key for vital accreditation. It’s a prerequisite for the bidding process. Without that, we couldn’t have bid,” he adds.
Chris Lawes is a Principal Logistics Operative. Like Blackman, he was working for Hitachi when it was based at Ashford International Hotel, where it had a staff of about 12 people.
“I worked in procurement for a soft drinks company before I came here. When I joined, my role involved getting the depot up and running.
“Coming here was a massive challenge. I was building the site while Japan secured everything. A lot was still arriving when we moved in. We had to catalogue everything. That was a massive task in itself.”
He says his team’s responsibility is to get the trains out into traffic by supplying the correct parts. “We run the stores and the day-to-day stuff. It works well. I enjoy it.” All this was a learning curve because the company had not done this type of maintenance before, he says.
For the future: “We’ve got to find more suppliers who can understand our urgent need for parts and work at the pace we need. In this job you don’t always know what’ll happen so you have to be ready. But I like the challenge, it’s so varied.”
He says the biggest change in the past decade has been the people. “Staff here can move up into some good roles. Hitachi is really developing its workforce.”
He says of the TMC and the way it works now: “I’m really proud of this place. I’m here for as long as I enjoy it.”
Lawes was also involved in the open day, held for families on September 15, to mark the depot’s tenth anniversary. In his procurement role he was able to acquire items that could be donated for charity raffles. One particular deal, he explains with a perfectly straight face, is sure to save the company quite a bit of cash, and go down well with the team: “I got us 40,000 biscuits for the open day. Why? Because I could!” It’s that camaraderie and ingenuity that has served the depot so well. It’s the people that make Ashford.