-
A determined band of men
For over a century now, the Federation has been led by men, by company managers who, through their strategic vision and their determination, have brought progress to the railway system. Some of them in particular, through their leadership qualities, have left indelible memories.
• Robert Pinot dared say « No »!
First General Secretary of the Federation in 1899, he is renowned for his firmness of purpose and tenacity. He is the first leader to tackle the incumbent Government head-on and win the day defending the interests of sector professionals. Former graduate from the Open Political Science University, one-time Director of the Social Museum, he instilled in railway industry professionals respect, trust, determination and faith in a common defender. In 1901 he was named first General Secretary of UIMM.
• Pierre Sudreau and the birth of the FIF
In October 1962, Pierre Sudreau resigned from his post of Minister in the government led by General de Gaulle. Over lunch one day with his friend Louis Armand, then Chairman of the International Union of Railways (UIC), the latter said this to him 'You Pierre took an active part in the battle of the railways during the last war: just remember that the battle is not over yet…', and in the same breath urged him to become « ambassador for French railway technology”, a role which Sudreau readily assumed for three years. As Sudreau recounted later : 'I accepted the presidency of a gathering of all the stakeholders - industrial leaders, SNCF and others – with the ambition of working to conquer Europe and open-up fresh prospects for the future…And being an inveterate enthusiast, I stayed 30 years in the job...'. Soon afterwards, the French railway industry, then regrouped solely within federations, laid the foundations for restructuring the representativeness structures of the industries concerned, culminating in the birth of the French Railway Industries Association on 1 October 1963.
• Louis Nègre and the will to go further forward
The arrival of Louis NEGRE at the helm of the Association in November 2009 heralded the dawn of a new era marked by the deepening of Franco-German railway cooperation, the necessary coalition of all Sector energies in Europe so as more effectively to tackle growing extra-European competition. 'How to cross the railway Maginot line ', is the new slogan that underpins FIF strategic thinking.
-
A network
A robusta network
A shared focus, a force to be reckoned with.
The Federation of railway and tramway manufacturers, subsequently the Federation of railway industries, can pride themselves on having spearheaded the creation of the union of railway industry professionals. For over one hundred years now, equipment manufacturers, integrators, signaling & track equipment and rolling-stock manufacturers have stood side-by-side to promote progress and ensure a better future for the sector, so vindicating the old adage “unity is strength”.
An expanding network
This was a far-from-isolated association: indeed, with the emergence of other stakeholders at national and European level in the Nineties, the association necessarily had to broaden its membership base. Until then, its action was conditioned by the presence of a relatively monolithic railway environment dominated by the verticality of relations, plus the existence of a small nucleus of “strategic” stakeholders (Transport Ministry, SNCF and RATP).
These « traditional » stakeholders have since been joined at national level by RFF, the Regions, Local Communities plus a Transport Directorate adequately-structured and vested with real powers, CERTIFER (1st third-party notified body to be set-up in Europe), the BNF and ESPF (Safety issues). At European level, the FIF has successfully developed strong and close cooperation links with its German counterpart VBD, not forgetting the partnership forged with the Union of European Railway Industries (UNIFE). -
The approaches
Practical approaches evolved over more than a century
Standardization via normalization: an old approach as relevant as ever.
As early as the 1890s, « various circulars issued revealed the efficient lobbying of Public Works Ministries by the newly-created Federation, particularly to promote the cause of normalization”... »In May 1901, a Commission was actually set-up « tasked with codifying the catalogue of railway rolling stock and unifying the different types of equipment”, and even though old habits die hard as the saying goes, the Federation persevered all the same.
In February 1919, with the national reconstruction program well on course, the Federation and railway companies signed an agreement intended to eliminate the irregular pattern of contract adjudication timings, with « the management of railway companies agreeing to award their contracts simultaneously, as much as possible at the start of each year”.
The creation of a Central Office for rolling stock research (OCEM) marked a further step towards rolling-stock standardization.
The SNCF, set-up in 1937 as a Public Commercial and Industrial Entity (EPIC), contributed massively to the success of this initiative by committing itself to a voluntary policy of unification of the different types of rolling stock and of valorization of sector innovations.
The Railway Standardization Bureau (BNF) set up in 1994 at the instigation of SNCF, and within which the role of industrialists has gained in stature over the years, is now fully involved in the work of drafting European standards for the sector.
Showcasing the expertise of railway industries at international level
As from the Sixties onward, the Association embarked on a campaign to promote the expertise of Sector industries, backed in particular by a strong and frequent corporate presence at national and overseas railway expos. With the Europeanization, not to say globalization of the Sector, this form of action has had to be radically rethought and redefined in order for the Association to play a supporting role for its members at international level through the organization of bilateral seminars.
The legal framework of the rail sector experienced profound change during the Nineties with, at international level, the emergence of several European Directives and the adoption of many railway packages, at national level, the creation of RFF (1997), the redefinition of the role of Regions as Transport Sponsoring Authorities since 2002, the increased role for conurbations with the strong comeback of tramways, all contributing to the solidity of the foundations laid for the railway system as it now exists.
The tasks and actions of the FIF have considerably expanded and diversified with the adjunction of the following roles:- A benchmarking and steering role for members in the field of European technical harmonization, including in the R&D field, with correlatively an interfacing remit with the European institutions and particularly UNIFE, plus the development of essential cooperation with other national associations,
- A supporting role for deepening dialogue within the railway sector to help improve its competitiveness (contractual philosophy, definition of new benchmarks, experience feedback and management of know-how…). -
The values
The values
As early as 1899, the Federation set about the task of defining a number of shared values which have withstood the test of time over the years, and now underpin the foundations of the FIF Association as it exists today.
SolidarityFor French Railway Industries, the years 1860-1880 were a period marked by cut-throat foreign, and particularly US competition. At that time too, little interest was shown by Public Authorities for this sector of activities, hence the decision by the industrialists concerned to join forces in May 1899, and this for two reasons:
- Firstly, the renegotiation of a commercial agreement between France and the United States of America because its terms needed re-balancing.
- Next, the determination of the powers-that-be to relegate rail sector participation in the Paris World Fair to a venue at Porte de Vincennes, away from the Champ-de-Mars site chosen for the other exhibitors.
Thus was born on 4 May 1899 the Federation of Railway and Tramway Equipment Manufacturers.
Defence of trade interests
The Federation from the outset took resolute steps to defend the interests of the Sector.
In 1899, Robert Pinot, the Federation’s General Secretary won the right for railway industrialists to participate in the World Fair at the Champ de Mars. He fought tooth-and-nail with the Trade and Industry Minister to try and secure integration of social clauses in all contracts signed between public communities and private industry.Although his lobbying efforts were unsuccessful, the obstinacy he displayed on this occasion was to prove a defining moment in that the Federation had thereby showed its readiness to say “No!”. Defence through action: a leitmotiv.
Cohesion
During the ensuing period, the Federation worked on improving the organization and cohesion of the Sector.
- In February 1919, an agreement was signed between the railway companies and the federation to ensure greater regularity in the timing of contract adjudication.
- August 1919 was to mark the setting-up of a joint consultancy agency for the sector (OCEM – Central Office for Rolling Stock Research), tasked with developing forms of standardization for rolling stock through normalization.
- The creation of SNCF in 1937 heralded the emergence of a conscious policy designed to unify the different rolling-stock categories.
The Federation also prioritized efforts aimed at improving Sector cohesion.