Half of the funding for the purpose-built facility will come from Siemens, with the remainder coming from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Transport, and NSARE. The 50:50 funding split means Siemens will use half of the centre's training capacity, with the remainder being allocated to the wider industry.
The academy will welcome its first students in Spring 2015 and will offer around 20,000 hours of training per year. It will act as a national hub supporting regional centres at other depots around the country.
According to NSARE around 13,500 people are currently employed in specialist traction and rolling stock engineering roles across Britain, but an ageing workforce, technological advancement of rolling stock, and the growth of the industry means the sector faces a shortfall of around 4500 people over the next five years.
