Train manufacturer CAF has opened a new maintenance facility at Lowry Park in Manchester.

The new facility covers 5,000 m² and required an investment of £10 million.

Initially, work at the site will concentrate on the maintenance and overhaul of various key components such as wheels and bogies, but will eventually expand to other activities to support future generations of trains.

With these new facilities providing CAF with greater capacity, it will enable turnaround times to be increased, as well as drive greater fleet reliability.

Maintenance will be completed more safely and efficiently, resulting in better long-term performance of the fleets of trains it looks after.

CAF has been supplying trains to the UK from its factory in Spain since the 1990s, including Class 195s, Class 331s, and Class 333s for Northern, Class 196s for West Midlands Trains, Class 197s for Transport for Wales, and Class 332s for Heathrow Express, and Class 397s for Transport for Wales, as well as Mk. 5 carriages for TransPennine Express and the Caledonian Sleeper.

In 2018, the company opened a new factory at Celtic Business Park in Llanwern near Newport, South Wales, where assembly continued of Class 195, 196, and 197 units, and Class 897 electric/diesel/battery tri-mode units for London North Eastern Railway. As well as train construction, the factory at Newport carries out maintenance for 14 companies.