RAIL.ONE at InnoTrans 2006, 19 – 22 September 2006, at the Messe Berlin fairgrounds:

RAIL.ONE:  Strengthening of our market position in Germany.
Dynamic growth in Europe and Asia.

Neumarkt and Berlin, 19 September 2006 – Following its sale by the Pfleiderer Group to AXA Private Equity in April of 2006, the RAIL.ONE Group, formerly Pfleiderer track systems, aims to strengthen its market presence in Germany over the coming years, and to enter new international markets. The focus of the company’s expansion and acquisition efforts will be on the growth regions of East and Southeast Europe, as well as in Asia.

“Our goal is to continue our dynamic corporate development of the past, and to almost double our sales to around 260 million euros in the coming three years,” said Richard Ziegler, who as CEO of RAIL.ONE heads the company together with his colleagues Hans Bachmann und Gerhard Binner. “And we are pleased to have our new owner AXA Private Equity on our side: an investor who not only backs up our ambitious growth strategy, but also actively supports us with additional investment commitments. This is because AXA Private Equity recognizes the tremendous international market potentials of our segment, and intends to take advantage of these opportunities with us.”

In these efforts, RAIL.ONE intends to enhance its position as innovative manufacturer of prestressed-concrete sleepers for applications of all kinds. Over the past year and a half, for example, the company has delivered approx. 680,000 Type B 70 concrete sleepers for upgrading and expansion of the rail line from Ankara to Istanbul, Turkey. RAIL.ONE likewise plans to take full medium-term advantage of its product innovations: such as its newly developed prestressed-concrete sleepers for axle loads up to 44 tonnes for entry into new market segments such as those in the USA.

With its patented track technology in the form of the RHEDA 2000® ballastless track system, the company has by now already achieved an internationally leading position in the field of high-speed rail transport. Since the patent application for this technology in 1999, RHEDA 2000® has developed from a niche product – e.g., for applications in tunnels, over bridges, for turnouts, and in the vicinity of railway stations – to standard technology for mainline track used for high-speed traffic and heavy-haul freight loads. In comparison to classic monoblock sleepers on ballasted track, the monolithic track structure of the RHEDA 2000® ballastless track system – in which non-prestressed bi-block sleepers are cast in-situ in concrete to form a unified concrete track-supporting layer – is characterized especially by greater precision and stability in track geometry over the long run.

Ballastless track for international high-speed projects

After successful application of ballastless track in high-speed rail projects in Germany (from Cologne to the Rhine-Main Frankfurt Airport complex, and from Nuremberg to Ingolstadt), in the Netherlands (on the HSL-ZUID high-speed line from Amsterdam to Rotterdam), and on Taiwan (the THSR line from Taipei to Kaohsiung), RHEDA 2000® can now successfully demonstrate its effectiveness for all three internationally leading high-speed train systems: the ICE, the TGV, and the Shinkansen.

In addition to work progressing in a joint venture with PATIL, the largest Indian manufacturer of railway sleepers, the Chinese market promises tremendous development potentials. The very recently signed cooperation agreement with the Chinese Ministry of Railways accordingly represents an essential milestone for our market success in the Middle Kingdom. RAIL.ONE will execute this project as prime contractor within a European corporate group consisting of the Dutch Royal BAM Group, as well as the companies Eichholz and Heitkamp. This agreement regulates the long-term transfer of know-how and the training of specialist Chinese staff. In addition, it provides for participation of the corporate group in the planning and construction of the double-track rail line from Wuhan to Guangzhou in Southeast China. This high-speed line, a total of 989 km long, is planned to be completely constructed as a RHEDA 2000® ballastless track system. This is by far the most extensive ballastless track project ever to have been implemented in China with foreign participation.

“RAIL.ONE means top performance”

As internationally successful manufacturer of concrete sleepers, and comprehensively oriented provider of systems and engineering for railway track systems, RAIL.ONE sees its name not only as representing a corporate objective, but also as the symbol of its self-image. As Hans Bachmann, Managing Director for Marketing and Sales – and currently energetically behind projects in Asian countries including China, India, and Korea – emphasizes: “RAIL.ONE intends to be the first contact partner for its customers and business partners, for customized solutions and innovative technology in new construction and expansion of railtrack systems: for the international mainline and urban-transit transport provided by major national railway companies, as well as for underground, commuter, and tram facilities in urban mass rapid transit. We offer advanced, cutting-edge technology: from individual prestressed-concrete sleepers for ballasted tracks, up to complete ballastless track systems. And we aim to provide top performance in service, quality, and reliability for our customers.” All services are supplied on a one-stop basis: beginning with engineering; including production, supply, and logistics; and extending to quality management.

About the PCM RAILONE Group

The PCM RAILONE Group has been manufacturing concrete sleepers and track systems for urban transit and long-distance rail transportation for over 60 years. The technology leader also offers its expertise in the fields of engineering and plant construction. Its customer-driven innovations fulfill the highest quality standards and are installed around the world

The PCM RAILONE Group is comprised of several companies and eleven production facilities with a presence in Germany, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Spain, South Korea, Hungary, Turkey, the United States, Canada and lndia. lt maintains annual capacities of over 5 million track sleepers and 840,000 linear meters of turnout sleepers. RAILONE produces optimized products and custom solutions with over 550 employees around the world.

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