An unveiling ceremony was held on Nov 3 in Qingdao to officially mark the establishment of the Joint Research Centre for Rail Transportation Manufacturing Technologies sponsored by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co and Imperial College London.

The Joint Research Centre for Rail Transportation Manufacturing Technologies sponsored by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co and Imperial College London opens on Nov 3 in Qingdao. [Photo/dailyqd.com]

Both parties will intensify international communications and cooperation, as well as personnel training, in the field of railway technology research and development. An open innovation platform will be set up for pooling talent, as well as accelerating the development and application of advanced rail transit technologies.

Imperial College of London professors, Lin Jianguo (FREng and head of Mechanics of Materials) and Roderick Smith (FREng and Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty), were appointed as experts at the unveiling ceremony of the CRRC Sifang-Imperial railway research center.

Professor Lin Jianguo, head of Mechanics of Materials, and Roderick Smith, Faculty of Engineering for the Department of Mechanical Engineering Division at Imperial College London, visit CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co on Nov 3. [Photo/dailyqd.com]

CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co is China's leading high-speed train manufacturer. Its US subsidiary secured a $1.3 billion order in March to supply up to 846 railcars to the Chicago Transit Authority. The company is headquartered in Jihongtan, in the north of Qingdao's Chenyang district, has made Jihongtan a "home of high-speed trains" in China.

Last May, CRRC signed framework agreements with Imperial College London, the University of Birmingham, and the University of Southampton to build joint research centers for railway technologies.

According to the framework agreements, the joint research centers are set to open at Imperial College London, the University of Birmingham, and the University of Southampton.