Strukton Rail realised a good result in the Netherlands despite the difficult market conditions. These days, a substantial proportion of the revenue and results is realised outside the Netherlands. The contribution to result by Strukton’s rail operations in Sweden rose substantially while results in Italy and Belgium remained also at a high level. There was also a big increase for all the product market combinations of Strukton Systems. On the other hand, the results for Norway and Germany remained negative. Strukton Rail made changes to the size and structure of the organisation in the Netherlands in 2010. Unfortunately this was at the expense of 250 jobs, for which a provision had already been made in 2009. This reorganisation was necessary because of the sharp fall in volumes and considerable pressure on prices in the Dutch rail market. The changes to the organisation will ensure a secure future.

In 2010, Strukton Rail concluded two major contracts in the Netherlands for performance-based maintenance (PBM contracts): Drenthe and Rijn & Gouwe. Furthermore, the existing contract for the Betuwe Route was renewed. Several of Strukton Rail’s business units worked on the new Hanseatic rail line between Zwolle and Lelystad. The plan is for the Hanseatic rail line to be ready for use in December 2012. Strukton Rail is also working on the Merwede-Linge line, upgrading part of the track, the points and the overpasses, and building a number of new stations.

Strukton Rail was also hard at work in other European countries. In Sweden, the company not only maintains 1,800 km of track (heavy rail, light rail and metro), it also laid new track between Fiskeby and Långsele. Moreover, Strukton Rail (in partnership with Balfour Beatty) won the five-year maintenance contract for 726 km of track in the north of the country. A major project in Norway was the renovation of the Holmenkollen Line. This light railway link in Oslo underwent thorough renovations as part of the preparations for the Nordic skiing world championships in February and March 2011.
Projects worked on by Clf, in which Strukton Rail has a participating interest, included the renovation of Genua Brignole and Bologna stations. Both projects will be continuing in 2011. Clf also carried out work in the vicinity of Turin.
In Belgium, Strukton Rail worked on the construction of 14 km of double track alongside the motorway between Brussels and Mechelen. This double track will improve access to Brussels’ Zaventem airport. One of Strukton Rail’s projects in Germany was to upgrade the track near Mönchengladbach.

Strukton Rail also took various initiatives related to sustainable energy, such as the development of traction electronics, which reduce the amount of energy needed to run a train, and the ‘Rollende Landstrasse’ concept along the A15 motorway. The pressure on this motorway, which is already extremely busy, will only increase when the Maasvlakte 2 expansion of the Rotterdam port is completed. The Rollende Landstrasse involves heavy goods vehicles being put on the train in Rotterdam and taken by shuttle service to Valburg or Duisburg, where they disembark. The advantage of this is:

• fewer traffic jams
• less need for transfer facilities
• less air pollution 
• lower CO2 emissions

Click here for the results of Strukton Groep.