Jump to content

Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, S.A.
Company typeSociedad Anónima
BMAD: CAF
ISINES0121975009 Edit this on Wikidata
IndustryManufacturing
Founded1917 (Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles)
HeadquartersBeasain, Basque Country (autonomous community), Spain
Number of locations
11 factories, including: Beasain (Basque Country)
Zaragoza (Aragon)
Irún (Basque Country)
Linares (Andalusia)
Hortolandia (Brazil)
Huehuetoca (Mexico)
Elmira, New York (US)
Bagnères-de-Bigorre (France)
Newport, South Wales (UK)
Key people
Jose María Baztarrica Garijo, Andrés Arizkorreta (Chief Executive Officer and Chairman)
ProductsDesign, manufacture, maintenance and supply of equipment and components for railway systems
RevenueIncrease €2.943 billion (2021)[1]
Increase €165 million (2021)[1]
Increase €89 million (2021)[1]
Total assetsIncrease €4.269 billion (2021)[1]
Total equityIncrease €740.4 million (2021)[1]
OwnerPublic; Employees via Cartera Social S.A. (25%); Kutxabank (14%)[2]
Number of employees
13,284[1] (2021)
Websitecafmobility.com
Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway Adtranz–CAF EMU built by CAF and Adtranz

Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (Grupo CAF, lit. 'Construction and Other Railway Services') is a Spanish publicly listed company which manufactures railway vehicles and equipment and buses through its Solaris Bus & Coach subsidiary. It is based in Beasain, Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. Equipment manufactured by Grupo CAF includes light rail vehicles, rapid transit trains, railroad cars and locomotives, as well as variable gauge axles that can be fitted on any[citation needed] existing truck or bogie.

Over the 20 years from the early 1990s, CAF benefited from the rail investment boom in its home market in Spain to become a world player with a broad technical capability, able to manufacture almost any type of rail vehicle.[3] CAF has supplied railway rolling stock to a number of major urban transit operators around Europe, the US, South America, East Asia, India, Australia and North Africa.

History

[edit]
Bucharest Metro trains, built between 2013 and 2014

CAF was an acronym for the earlier name of Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, as well as for Construcciones y Auxiliar de Feres.

Fábrica de Hierros San Martín

[edit]

In 1860, Domingo Goitia, Martín Usabiaga and José Francisco Arana established in the city of Besain, next to the Northern railway, the company Fábrica de Hierros San Martín, whose main activity was puddling furnaces and cylinder rolling.[4][5][6]

La Maquinista Guipuzcoana

[edit]

In 1892, Francisco de Goitia (Domingo Goitia's son and heir) joined the Marquess of Urquijo to set up La Maquinista Guipuzcoana, whose main activity was the operation of machinery and the forging and construction of railway rolling stock for other companies in the area like Compañía del Tranvía de San Sebastián.[5][7]

In 1898, it set up its plant in Beasain, Gipuzkoa.[7] In 1901, Maquinista Guipuzcoana was taken over by the Sociedad Española de Construcciones Metálicas (SECM), which already owned 5 factories.[5][7] In 1901, the SECM secured a contract to manufacture 50 ore transport wagons for the railway line from Bilbao to Portugalete, followed by others sold to the Castro-Alen mining railway and the La Reunión mines, in Seville.[6]

Each of the factories of the SECM, located in cities like Bilbao, Gijón or Linares among others, plus the new facilities in Madrid, were dedicated to the manufacture of a specific component, being the Besain factory was dedicated to the manufacture of railcars.[6] To do so, they demolised all the manufacturing facilities inherited from La Maquinista Guipuzcoana in Beasin in order to build a new factory designed by the German engineer Franz Melaun and the architect Luis Landecho.[6] The new facilities had a capacity for the full construction of up to 3,000 railcars per year.[6] The production of railcars started in the new instalations on Novemeber 1st, 1904, just 27 months after the cornerstone was settled.[6]

This factory had a workforce of 469 employees, of whom almost 200 were foreigners, mainly of German origin.[6] On March 13, 1905, its first order of fifteen hopper cars was delivered to the Sociedad de Gasificación Industrial (in English, Industrial Gasification Society) in Madrid.[6]

In 1905 the company changed its name to Fábrica de Vagones de Beasain (FVB).[7] The consolidation of the company took place during the years of the World War I thanks to the demand from the Belgian and French railways.[7]

Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles

[edit]

Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) was founded on March 4, 1917 for the construction, purchase, sale, or rental of railcars and other related items intended for the transportation and operation of railroads and trams,[8][9][10] and specializing in freight car production and with a total of 1,600 employees. By 1925, once the war was ended, CAF bought back the Beasain plant.[9]

In the 1940s, after the Spanish Civil War, a period during which the facilities were militarized, CAF began to expand by leasing workshops in Irún and Madrid. In 1947 it acquired part of the Sociedad de Material Móvil y Construcciones de Zaragoza.[9]

Since 1958, the company has modernized and enlarged its Beasain plant and expanded its activity to include all kinds of rolling stock. In line with this, in 1969 CAF created its Research and Development Unit, which increased the company's competitiveness and intensified the focus on in-house technology.

Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles

[edit]

In 1971, the existing Compañía Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) merged with Material Móvil y Construcciones (MMC) and the company adopted its current name Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles.

Since the early 1990s, CAF has also been active internationally. In the early 2000s, CAF supplied high-speed trains to the Spanish RENFE and in 2005, high-speed trains were exported for the first time (to Türkiye).[11]

In 2018, CAF took over the Polish bus manufacturer Solaris.[12] The company also acquired the Talent 3 platform from competitor Bombardier Transportation in 2022, as well as the Coradia Polyvalent platform and the plant in Reichshoffen from train manufacturer Alstom. This was a condition imposed by the European Commission's competition authority for the approval of the 2021 takeover of Bombardier Transportation by Alstom.

Subsidiaries

[edit]

CAF U.S.A., a wholly owned subsidiary of CAF, was incorporated in 1998[13] and is based in Elmira, New York. It manufactures rolling stock for the North American market at a plant in Elmira that the company acquired from ADtranz in 2000.[14] The company from Beasain continued its expansion during the third millennium.

On 24 May 2019, it announced the acquisition of the Swedish company Euromaint at a cost of circa €80 million, following other international contracts to supply Flemish and English railway and underground networks in 2017.[15][16]

CAF Rolling Stock U.K. Ltd.[17] is the CAF subsidiary in the United Kingdom. Its factory is based at Celtic Springs Business Park, at Llanwern steelworks near Newport, Wales as a result of an agreement made between CAF and the Welsh Government.[18] The Newport factory has built stock for Transport for Wales, Arriva Rail North, the Docklands Light Railway, and potentially High Speed 2 if CAF win the bid process. They also donated £150,000 to the Conservative Party.[19]

CAF Signalling was fined in 2021 with 1.7 million euros by the Spanish commission on markets and competition because of its participation in a cartel with other 7 international companies which colluded in tenders over Spanish rail infrastructure.[20]

Political activity

[edit]

During the 2019 United Kingdom general election, CAF Rail UK Limited made a donation of £50,000 to the Conservative Party.[21]

United Nations blacklisting

[edit]

In 2019, CAF was referred to Spain's OECD National Contact Point for a violation of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct.[22] As part of the 'TransJerusalem J-Net' consortium with Israeli company Shapir Engineering and Industry, who are on the United Nations Human Rights Council list of companies that benefit from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories,[23] CAF won a tender by the Israeli Ministry of Transport and Road Safety to supply railway equipment and to build, extend and operate light rail lines from Jerusalem to nearby Israeli settlements within the West Bank.[24]

In 2025, reports by Amnesty International and United Nations rapporteur Francesca Albanese condemned CAF's involvement in the Jerusalem Light Rail project.[25][26] In October 2025, CAF was formally listed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights as being a company conducting business in Israeli settlements within the occupied Palestinian territories.[27]

Rolling stock

[edit]

Carriages

[edit]

EMU and DMU

[edit]
Renfe Operadora Class 121

Locomotives

[edit]

For FEVE, now part of Renfe Operadora:

For Euskotren:

For Serveis Ferroviaris de Mallorca:

  • DMU Class 61
  • EMU Class 71
  • EMU Class 81

For other operators:

Metros in Spain

[edit]

For Madrid:

  • Class 300
  • Class 1000
  • Class 2000
  • Class 3000
  • Class 5000
  • Class 6000
  • Class 8000
  • Class 8400

For Barcelona:

Barcelona Metro Class 5000 train.
  • Class 1000
  • Class 2000
  • Class 3000
  • Class 4000
  • Class 5000
  • Class 6000
  • Class S/2100
  • Class S/300

Trams in Spain

[edit]
  • Urbos 1 (Tranvía de Bilbao)
  • Urbos 2 (Tranvía de Vélez-Málaga, Tranvía de Vitoria and Metro de Sevilla).
  • Urbos 3 (Metrocentro de Sevilla, Tranvía de Zaragoza, Metropolitano de Granada, Tranvía de Vitoria, Metro de Málaga and Tranvía Metropolitano de la Bahía de Cádiz).

Trains outside Spain

[edit]
Algiers Metro
Heathrow Express Class 332
Tren de la Costa unit acquired in 1995

Newport factory, South Wales, UK

[edit]
Main article: CAF Newport
British Rail Class 195 Civity, one of the prospective units to be manufactured at the CAF production line in Newport, Wales

CAF Rolling Stock U.K. Ltd announced in 2017 its UK factory location was selected as Celtic Business Park at Llanwern steelworks in Newport, Wales.[35] It has at least five confirmed UK projects from 2019 onwards and would have been the construction site for their unsuccessful bid to deliver stock for High Speed 2. The site was funded with support from the Welsh Government Inward Investment Programme.[18]

Metros and trams outside Spain

[edit]
Brussels Metro M6 unit built by CAF
Rome metro MA300 train (built by CAF) on Line A.
Caracas metro
Budapest tram Line 1, the longest passenger tram in the world
São Paulo commuter rail
CAF 5000 on Line B of the Buenos Aires Underground

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f "CONSTRUCCIONES Y AUXILIAR DE FERROCARRILES, S.A. AND SUBSIDIARIES. Consolidated Financial Statements and Consolidated Management Report for the year ended December 31, 2021" (PDF). CAF. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  2. ^ Significant Shareholdings and Treasury Shares, caf.net
  3. ^ Hondius, Dr Harry. "IN FOCUS: CAF, A versatile enterprise that keeps expanding". Railway Gazette International. 168, No. 4 (April 2012).
  4. ^ Sanz, Elena (2014-10-29). "Arconada, el portero que cogió el tren empresarial tras colgar los guantes". El Confidencial. Retrieved 2023-11-27.
  5. ^ a b c PPLL (2017-04-27). "La historia del ferrocarril en imágenes". El Diario Vasco (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h OLAIZOLA ELORDI, Juanjo. "La fábrica de vagones y su influencia en Beasain y Ordizia (1901-1925)". www.euskonews.eus (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-02-02.
  7. ^ a b c d e "CAF: La Fábrica española de material rodante (I)". vialibre-ffe.com. Retrieved 2026-01-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ OLAIZOLA ELORDI, Juanjo. "La fábrica de vagones y su influencia en Beasain y Ordizia (1901-1925)". www.euskonews.eus (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-02-02.
  9. ^ a b c Olabarrieta, Begoña (2017-05-01). "Un siglo de innovación" (PDF). Ministry of Development (Spain). Retrieved 2026-01-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ OLAIZOLA ELORDI, JUANJO. "La fábrica de vagones y su influencia en Beasain y Ordizia (1901-1925)". Euskonews. Retrieved 2023-11-27.
  11. ^ "Annual Report 2005" (PDF). CONSTRUCCIONES Y AUXILIAR DE FERROCARRILES, S.A. Retrieved 2023-11-27.
  12. ^ Burroughs, David (2018-07-03). "CAF to acquire bus and LRV manufacturer Solaris". Rail Journal. Retrieved 2023-11-27.
  13. ^ "Building on a century of progress and success [company history]". CAF USA. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  14. ^ Jamieson, R. (March 24, 2015). "CAF USA keeps Elmira area's rail heritage rolling". Star-Gazette. Elmira, New York. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  15. ^ "CAF logra contratos para suministrar tranvías en Bélgica y Suecia". www.eitb.eus (in Spanish). Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  16. ^ "El Grupo CAF refuerza su actividad con la compra de la empresa sueca EuroMaint". www.eitb.eus (in Spanish). 23 May 2019. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  17. ^ "CAF ROLLING STOCK UK LIMITED – Overview (free company information from Companies House)". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  18. ^ a b "More than 3000 new Welsh jobs created following inward investment". GOV.WALES. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  19. ^ "Electoral Commission". electoralcommission.org.uk. 13 November 2023. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  20. ^ "Competencia multa con 128 millones a ACS, Siemens, Alstom y otras empresas por repartirse contratos del AVE". elDiario.es (in Spanish). 1 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  21. ^ "View donation". The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  22. ^ "CASO E-00009: Comité de Solidaridad con la Causa Árabe (CSCA) – Empresa española" [Case E-00009: Committee of Solidarity with the Arab Cause (CSCA) – Spanish Company] (PDF) (in Spanish). Government of Spain. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  23. ^ "UN rights office issues report on business activities related to settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory" (Press release). Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 12 February 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  24. ^ "The consortium made up of the CAF Group and the construction firm Saphir awarded the Jerusalem tram project" (Press release). Grupo CAF. 8 August 2019. Archived from the original on 18 February 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  25. ^ "Pull the plug on the political economy enabling Israel's crimes: What states and companies must do to stop fuelling Israel's genocide, apartheid and illegal occupation and the United Nations". Amnesty International. 18 September 2025. p. 11. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  26. ^ Albanese, Francesca (2 July 2025). "From the economy of occupation to the economy of genocide - Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967". Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. p. 14. Retrieved 14 October 2025.
  27. ^ Stolchnev, Alexey (17 October 2025). "CAF added to UN blacklist, faces contract loss risks". Rolling Stock World. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
  28. ^ CAF project page on commuter train Schönbuchbahn
  29. ^ CAF project page on MÁV
  30. ^ "Chiltern Railways unveils new train carriages". BBC News. 2025-08-05. Retrieved 2025-08-05.
  31. ^ Arrived from Spain this morning
  32. ^ Heathrow Express trains take shape Modern Railways issue 564 September 1995 page 541
  33. ^ HEx clones for Leeds triangle Modern Railways issue 595 April 1998 page 213
  34. ^ "More new trains for the North and Scotland". TransPennine Express. Archived from the original on 26 May 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  35. ^ "The New CAF Plant in the Unite Kingdom Will Be Built in Newport (Wales)". Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  36. ^ Carter, Kirsty (2019-06-10). "CAF Unveils Bid To Supply Oaris Trains To HS2". Rail Professional. Archived from the original on 2019-06-10. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  37. ^ a b Ltd, DVV Media International. "Railway supply industry news round-up". Railway Gazette International. Archived from the original on 2019-08-09. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  38. ^ "CAF commences design and engineering on DMUs for Wales and Borders franchise". www.railtechnologymagazine.com. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  39. ^ a b Rosales, Elijah (2023-10-10). "Mitsubishi bags P9 billion airport train deal". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 2023-10-17.
  40. ^ Calgary Announcement of Green Line LRV order
  41. ^ "Voici le design du nouveau tramway de Tours". Le tram de Tours (in French). 2025-11-21. Archived from the original on 2025-12-01.
  42. ^ SWB announcement
  43. ^ International, Railway Gazette (1997-08-01). "Airport trains complete first phase of tests". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 2025-03-23.
  44. ^ CAF project page on Debrecen
  45. ^ CAF project page on Budapest
  46. ^ "Tram, aggiudicata la gara per la fornitura dei veicoli alla spagnola CAF" (in Italian).
  47. ^ CAF project page on Oslo
  48. ^ "CAF wins order for new DLR trains | Railnews | Today's news for Tomorrow's railway". www.railnews.co.uk. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  49. ^ "Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, we create railway solutions ::". CAF. Archived from the original on 2012-02-14. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
[edit]

Media related to CAF at Wikimedia Commons

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Construcciones_y_Auxiliar_de_Ferrocarriles&oldid=1337806049"