Innoway, the future of European rail logistics in Trieste
The Austrian Innofreight group in a joint venture with Msc has invested in the area to create a state-of-the-art production site. When fully operational, over 3,000 freight wagons and up to 3,000 trolleys per year will be produced to modernise the network, reduce emissions and shift transport from road to rail
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(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Trieste is set to lead the transformation of road freight transport in Europe. By 2027, the city will be home to Europe's most advanced freight wagon production site: the Innoway plant. Here, more than 1,000 wagons and up to 3,000 bogies per year will be produced at full capacity, technologically advanced, contributing to the modernisation of Europe's rail freight network, reducing emissions and shifting freight from road to rail. This year, at the beginning of July, the first two 80-foot freight wagons ('InnoWaggon') were delivered to the companies Medway Belgium and Papierholz Austria, at a ceremony attended by more than 300 guests including employees, international customers, political representatives and industry leaders.
Located in the heart of Trieste's industrial area, in Bagnoli della Rosandra, the plant is involved in a company reorganisation programme at the end of which, in addition to the 50 or so employees already in operation, a further 200 people currently on extraordinary redundancy pay will be reabsorbed, deriving from the sale of the Wartsila production activities branch, offering further employment opportunities within the Firuli Venezia Giulia region. Employees benefit from targeted training programmes supported by the EU-funded GOL project, which focuses on advanced welding techniques, quality management, production and soft skills development.
The industrial partnership
.Innofreight, a leading Austrian group for innovative rail logistics in a joint venture with Msc Mediterranean Shipping Company has invested in the region and wanted a state-of-the-art production site for rail freight transport in Europe, transforming the historic Wartsila ship engine plant into a modern rolling stock production site. Underlying this is a common vision for modern and sustainable transport solutions that meet the growing demand for efficient and low-emission logistics. "Together we are not only building wagons, but the sustainable future of Europe. Trieste strengthens Europe's industrial base and accelerates the transition to green logistics,' said Innoway Trieste's managing directors Andrea Castino and Johann Gruber. 'The traditional plant,' the group emphasised, 'is being transformed into a future-proof production facility with a high degree of automation in the final expansion, under the banner of sustainability, safety and quality. The conditions could hardly be better: the plant covers an area of over 50,000 square metres, with spans up to 365 metres long and 28 metres high'. This is the 'first step on an exciting journey towards full operation in 2027, when Trieste will supply optimised freight wagons made in Italy to the whole of Europe',
A driver for further investment in the region
."The establishment of Innoway in Trieste is a concrete sign of our region's ability to attract innovative and international companies, says Alessia Rosolen, Regional Councillor for Employment, Training, Education, Research, University and Family of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region. "Innoway's choice of Trieste is not by chance, but is the result of a regional strategy oriented towards enhancing human capital and public-private synergies," emphasises Rosolen. Moreover, this initiative "has already created the positions for further developments as demonstrated by the concomitant visit of a delegation of a further fifty operators in the sector, accompanied by our Select Friuli Venezia Giulia Agency to discover the opportunities for collaboration and settlement that our territory offers". Innoway's arrival 'reinforces our vision of a dynamic, open and globally competitive innovation ecosystem,' adds the councillor, assuring that the regional administration will continue to 'actively support the establishment of high-tech companies, fostering sustainable economic development and skilled employment.
With the occasion of the official inauguration of the plant and the presentation of the new wagons, Innoway invited a further 50 foreign entrepreneurs, potential new investors in the sector, who had the opportunity to explore the sites of the Port, Interporto and the economic system of Friuli Venezia Giulia with the support of Agenzia Select Friuli Venezia Giulia.
