£6m train centre a 'step forward' for industry

Lucy Rigby, MP for Northampton North, performed the official opening

A purpose-built £6m centre where train modifications and upgrades will take place is a "step forward for the rail industry", a technology company has said.

Siemens Mobility (SM) has opened the maintenance facility - creating 30 jobs - at its Kings Heath Depot in Northampton.

SM said work carried out there would include improvements to seats, toilets, luggage stacks and charging ports.

Sambit Banerjee, the company's joint CEO, said the centre expanded its "capacity to deliver vital upgrades for passenger trains".

The first trains to be refurbished are from East Midlands Railway

SM said the first project would focus on East Midland Railway's Class 360 trains.

It claimed the construction of the centre had "achieved a commendable 17% net gain for biodiversity" through the planting of a wildflower garden on site.

There plans are to plant more trees "in the early winter".

SM said it had invested more than £340m in the UK in recent years, including up to £240m in its Rail Village in Goole, Yorkshire.

It has also invested in new distribution and logistics centres in Kettering.

Lucy Rigby KC, Labour MP for Northampton North, who performed the official opening, said: "It's fantastic to see how Siemens Mobility's local investment is fostering economic growth, creating new jobs and developing skills right here in Northampton."