Hitachi Rail to Adopt Additive Manufacturing in Factories in the U.S. and Italy

One of the sectors where we see the increasing use of 3D printing is the railroad industry. This is due to the fact that it faces the constant challenge of needing to supply parts with advanced properties in a short time. For this reason, additive manufacturing is proving to be the right choice for large players in the industry. Proof of this is the recent news of the partnership between Hitachi Rail, a pioneer in the rail industry, and Roboze, an Italian-American manufacturer of high-performance 3D printers. Hitachi Rail will install the ROBOZE ARGO 500 3D printer at its high-tech plant in Naples and its new facility in Washington County, Maryland.

With sales of more than $7 billion and 24,000 employees in more than 50 countries, Hitachi Rail is a company with global reach, but one that focuses on local operations through investment in people and communities.  Famous for Japan’s iconic high-speed bullet train, the company aims to achieve top results in each of the countries where it operates, focusing in this case on Italy and the United States.

Hitachi Rail has signed a contract with the City of Naples to supply 22 trains by 2025 for the city’s new Metro Line 6 (photo credits: City of Naples)

The partnership between Hitachi Rail and Roboze was created primarily to address the problem of the limited availability of spare parts in the rail industry and the associated costs. By implementing the Roboze ARGO 500 solution, Hitachi Rail plans to replace metal parts, traditionally machined by chip removal, with 3D printed parts made of high-performance materials such as ULTEM™ 9085 and Carbon PEEK. This will enable the company to significantly reduce costs and lead times for parts destined for trains.

In addition to the supply of machines, Hitachi Rail will also benefit from the engineering services and advice of ROBOZE’s teams of experts, operating in both the United States and Italy.

3D Printing for Protoypes and Parts for Hitachi Rail

In 2021, Hitachi Rail was awarded a contract with Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, with a value of up to $2.2 billion, to supply carriages for the Washington Metro. The company is now set to open a $70 million state-of-the-art train factory in Maryland. The factory, set to deliver the new fleet of 8000-series subway cars, will draw on the technological expertise of the entire Hitachi Group with the aim of becoming the company’s most advanced digital site. 3D printing will be used to produce prototypes and parts on-site.

As for Hitachi Rail’s Italian plants, mainly the one in Naples, one of the major ongoing projects is the delivery of 22 trains by 2025 for the Naples Metro Line 6, with a higher capacity than those currently in use. From summer 2025 to December 2026, an additional 6 new trains are scheduled to be delivered to make the line faster and more state-of-the-art.

The Roboze ARGO 500 3D printer (photo credits: Hitachi Rail)

“Our partnership with ROBOZE underlines our commitment to delivering advanced, high-quality manufacturing for our customers. The partnership will enable us to harness 3D printing to improve operational efficiency and reduce costs for producing prototypes and railway spare parts,” commented Luca D’Aquila, COO Hitachi Rail Group and CEO Hitachi Rail Italy.

Hitachi Rail’s decision to adopt 3D printing underscores the growing importance of the technology in the rail industry. By enabling a more agile and focused production of parts, additive manufacturing not only allows for improved production efficiency, but also for a move toward more digital and sustainable production, optimizing costs, time and materials with a view to innovation and constant technological advancement.

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*Cover Photo Credits: Hitachi Rail