Springfield Railcar Assembly Facility Design-Build

When the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) awarded the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC) a $566 million contract to build 284 railcars, the Beijing-based corporation envisioned a modern facility to assemble the subway cars. CRRC selected an abandoned 40-acre manufacturing site in Springfield, Massachusetts, to build the 204,000-square-foot state-of-the-art building. A project of national significance, the facility is CRRC’s North American operations hub and represents China’s first venture into the high-end railway transportation equipment industry in the U.S. The project created 150 permanent new jobs, jumpstarting economic development on a blighted brownfield site.

Serving as the lead engineer and architect of record, GFT provided planning, design, permitting, bid assistance, construction administration, and commissioning services for the design-build project, which represents a $95 million global investment in the U.S. economy. The firm worked hand-in-hand with design builder Plaza Construction LLC to deliver eight construction work packages during a seven-month design schedule without missing a deadline. Creative solutions to on-site challenges allowed the project to be completed on time so that CRRC could begin operations as planned.

The Springfield Railcar Facility project transformed an abandoned brownfield along Interstate 291 into the home of a modern manufacturing facility. Rapid impact compaction, an innovative in-situ ground improvement technique, increased the weight-bearing capacity of inadequate soil over a 322,000-square-foot area at the site, preventing construction delay and enabling the on-time delivery of railcars to MBTA. The facility’s open floor plan features one fixed and six portable platforms that offer access to all sides of a railcar during assembly, improving worker efficiency. An overhead crane system positions railcars as they are assembled. To enhance safety, the team designed and programmed two cranes to work in tandem, preventing collisions and allowing one operator to control both cranes.

Recognizing the facility’s role as CRRC’s North American hub, the team ensured the shop’s traction power system accommodates a variety of voltages for cars from different transit authorities. An oblique and curved outdoor test track was expertly designed to fit the site’s irregular boundaries. To make certain that construction proceeded smoothly, the team held monthly meetings with CRRC officials. With its U.S. base established, CRRC is pursuing railcar contracts from transit agencies across the country.