Holgate Road carriage works, York
The factory began production in 1884 as a planned expansion and replacement of the North Eastern Railway's Queen Street site; the works was substantially expanded in 1897–1900, and saw further modernisations through the 20th century.
The works closed in 1996, due to lack of orders caused by uncertainty in the post-privatisation of British Rail period.
Electric and gas shops were also added and additional stores, plus servicing and washing sheds to the west.
[8] In 1914 York carriage works built 3 kitchen-cars for use on the Flying Scotsman, these being of all steel construction - quite advanced for the time - due to being fitted with gas cooking equipment.
[9] During the First World War the York works produced material for the war effort, mostly logistics equipment, but other work included conversion of existing carriages into an ambulance train and a complete train which was produced for the Director General of Transportation.
West of the main works was a large timber drying building, and carriage washing facilities.
[13][14] By this time York had moved to 'sectionalised assembly' and this methodology, having some similarities to a production line, was expanded in 1931 under A. H.
Some early Electric Multiple Unit trains were built at York, such as British Rail Class 305/1.
BREL introduced some modern manufacturing methods at the works, installations included: five sheet metal machining centres, one with an automatic tool change, used to manufacture body shells and bolster parts for EMUs; test facilities for air-conditioning units; and clean rooms for electronics repair.
[24] Procurement contracts on British Rail began being put to public tender in the 1980s; the fate of the works was linked primarily to the number of orders for Network SouthEast for electric passenger stock – failure to win the contract for electric multiple units for the Heathrow Express service (awarded to Siemens/CAF, see Class 332) resulted in the loss of 289 jobs.
Additionally Eurotrams were built for the Strasbourg tramways at the site, and at ABB's Derby Litchurch Lane works c. 1994–95.
After the beginning of the British Rail Modernisation Plan in the 1950s blue asbestos came into increasing use, until its health dangers were recognised.
[36] In 1975 an inquest into the death of former railway worker Frank Summers recorded that he had died from an industrial disease; he had previously been employed in asbestos spraying at York Carriage works.
West of the main works the area was cleared and partially developed for housing, and the gas and electric shops were demolished; the stores building in the northeast corner was reused as a small business premises.
