Exhibition train will pull in alongside the D&C Show

The largest exhibition train ever seen in the UK will be pulling in alongside the Drives & Controls Show at the Birmimgham National Exhibition Centre in May. Siemens Automation & Drives is bringing the 284m-long train packed with automation equipment across from Germany and taking it on a five-week, nine-stop tour of the UK.

For its NEC appearance, from 28-30 May, nine of the train`s 14 coaches will be disassembled and transported by road before being re-assembled next to the exhibition halls.

Siemens is taking the train, which it bought from Opel, on a two-year tour of Europe before transferring it to China in 2003. Ian Bowman, Siemens` UK marketing manager, says that the budget for the venture runs into "millions of euros".

The train`s 450m2 interior exhibition space allows Siemens to show most of its range. The emphasis will be practical applications, with the exhibition being split into areas such as manufacturing automation, machine building and the process industries. Working demonstrations will include a golf-ball packing machine.

The on-board facilities will include 54 PCs, 145 screens, and a video conference centre, linked by 24km of cabling. Up to 50 Siemens staff will be on board the train.

Bowman hopes that the novelty of the "Siemens Explorer" will attract visitors who might not attend a conventional trade show. "It`s getting more difficult to get people out of their offices," he says. "This is different - there`s a definite `wow` factor."

Siemens expects up to 1,000 people a day to visit the train, which will tour the UK from 24 April to 30 May.