About us

Partners in excellence

We lead the rail infrastructure sector to maximise the availability of track, safety of people and assets, and deliver sustainable lifetime value for networks around the world.

Who are Pandrol?

Part of Delachaux Group – A family-owned company created in 1902, the Delachaux Group is a global player in mission-critical engineered solutions.

Pandrol defines the industry standard across rail fastening systems and aluminothermic welding. We’ve created rail infrastructure in more than 100 countries. Our portfolio extends to equipment that makes constructing and maintaining railways more efficient. Our sustainable resilient systems extend the life of track, and our electrification solutions support urban transport across the globe.

We are technicians, engineers, developers, and designers who solve complex problems using our unique history of innovation and an endless pursuit of new thinking.

  • Over 100 years of product development and engineering milestones within the railway industry.
  • A world leader and global employer with over 1700 team members across 40 locations.
  • Our products and services are at the heart of more than 400 railways in over 100 countries.
Contact Us
100+
Years experience
5,000+
Customers
1,700+
Team members across 40 locations
3 billion
Enough fastenings to build a track to the moon!
40 million
Welding kits sold
400
Railways supported in over 100 countries

and we’re maximising rail infrastructure on a global level

End to end service

We work closely with rail networks around the world at every stage of the track life cycle.

Our story

1902 - 1937

1902 – Clarence Léon Delachaux forms an industrial company dedicated to cable car infrastructure, which later goes on to build a plant in Paris to sustain its diversification into aluminothermic welding and conductor bars.

1932 – Oscar Max Bernuth founds the Elastic Rail Spike Corporation Inc to sell spike fastenings in North and South America. Within 3 years, four million rail spikes are manufactured in Pittsburgh Steel Mills for the New York Central Railroad.

1937 – Elastic Rail Spike Company forms to distribute elastic spikes for timber sleepers in the UK, quickly becoming a global exporter. A plant is built in Worksop a few years later, and this business would eventually change its name to Pandrol in 1972.

1957 - 1976

1957 – The uniquely shaped spring PR clip is patented by Norwegian railways engineer, Per Pande Rolfsen, with his name eventually inspiring the name Pandrol. Within a decade, this PR clip is adopted as the standard system for countries including the UK and South Africa.

1968 – The Nabla fastening is developed by our fastenings team in Douai, quickly becoming the standard system for tramway networks across Europe in the form of Nabla Tram, with Nabla Evolution offering high electrical insulation and lateral force absorption for concrete sleepers in ballasted track.

1976 – The e-Clip fastening is created by our team in Addlestone, with its value-engineered design reducing the weight of clips by 40% whilst improving performance further, spurring immediate adoption across the market.

1981 - 1983

1981 – We open the world’s largest purpose-designed fastenings testing laboratory in Worksop.

1982 – Railtech welding is introduced in Australia known as the ‘Boutet Process’ on Hamersley Iron mines.

1983 – Pandrol introduce the Rigid Catenary System, which quickly becomes the most widely used system in tunnels, thanks to their lower maintenance costs.

1988 - 1992

1988 – Patrick Bommard in Raismes invents the One-Shot Crucible, bringing major improvements to the quality of aluminothermic welding, with large scale production and global distribution beginning four years later.

1989 – The Vortok Coil is invented – a fast and simple solution for repairing loose screw spikes. Pandrol acquire Vortok a couple of years later, bringing a range of unique rail track maintenance, rail signalling, and rail stressing solutions into the portfolio.

1992 – In response to contractors needing a captive rail fastening system which could be delivered pre-attached to the sleeper, Fastclip FC is launched also bringing automated installation using clipping machines. The system quickly becomes the preferred system in many countries, with record installation rates being achieved for both new track projects and track renewals, leading to Pandrol winning The Queen’s Award.

1994 - 2002

1994 – Popular US welding equipment manufacturer Matweld are acquired and become part of the Pandrol family, bringing a range of on-track tools for welders.

1996 – Pandrol develop the Vanguard system, which isolates the track from the underlying structures to mitigate noise and vibration. The first installation takes place a few years later on the London Underground and becomes the system of choice for underground and metro systems around the world.

2002 – We are awarded the Alstom Innovation Award in Safety for the Vortok Safety Barrier system.

2006 - 2008

2006 – Matweld design the Wireless Controlled Track Rover, a hydraulic powered four-wheel drive mobile work cart for derailment work and transporting railroad tools and supplies to remote areas.

2007 – The world’s fastest track is constructed using our welding and fastenings. The high-speed record is set at 574.8 km/h on LGV Est.

2008 – Pandrol acquire Rosenqvist, adding a diverse range of automated clipping machines and excavator modifications to the portfolio.

2009 - 2013

2009 – We win the largest single railway contract in the world to supply 2,000 km of Fastclip FC in Saudi Arabia.

2010 – We win The Queen’s Award for enterprise innovation for our Vortok Stressing Roller.

2013 – Rosenqvist design the EQ Axle system, which bears the weight of excavators and larger vehicles alike, making transportation along track much easier and safer.

2014 - 2017

2014 – Pandrol acquire CDM Track, known for their resilient systems designed using re-purposed rubber.

2017 – The Pandrol Connect app modernises aluminothermic welding through digital traceability and provides on-track support for welders.

2017 – The decision is made to unite the strengths of our businesses within the rail division under a single brand, Pandrol.

2018 – present

2018 – We win the Rail Business Award for technical innovation for the RE Fastening System, a solution for retrofitting e-Clip lines.

1902 - 1937
1957 - 1976
1981 - 1983
1988 - 1992
1994 - 2002
2006 - 2008
2009 - 2013
2014 - 2017
2018 – present

Our values

Pandrol is a business founded on a passion for innovation, and our unique heritage is still at the heart of how we do business today.

This is a place where progress is made and possibilities are created. Where customers bring their biggest challenges to be met, and exceeded. Great products will only get a company so far. We invest as much time in developing our service and relationships as we do developing new solutions. We encourage our customers to collaborate with us to solve their problems, and we act quickly and efficiently to keep them on track.

Customer focus

We’ve created rail infrastructure in over 100 countries. That means we’ve experienced just about every situation, problem, question and solution before. Our products stand the test of time, which is why they’re chosen by half the world’s rail networks – equivalent to the distance from the earth to the moon. Our customers trust us to help them achieve their goals. And if anything falls short of our shared standards, they know we’ll put it right, right away.

Premium quality

There’s a lot riding on the safety of our products. Millions of people use our rail infrastructure every day and that’s a responsibility we take extremely seriously. We always go the extra mile to keep people safe – your employees, your customers and theirs. Safety is more than a priority at Pandrol, it’s the foundation of everything we do.

Safety

We see sustainability as central to our work in meeting global transportation needs for generations to come. We are committed to designing, installing and using products that, over their lifetime, need less maintenance and reduce carbon emissions.

Sustainable infrastructure

Pandrol Leadership Team

Nicolas Groult
Chief Executive Officer
Fabrice Seewald
Deputy CEO & Chief Technology Officer
Alison Hunt
Global Human Resources Business Partner
John Dowie
Chief Commercial and Sales Officer
Julie Thiery
Chief Financial Officer
Fabien Marcilly
Head of Operational Excellence
Olivier Jullien
Chief Procurement Officer
Arnaud Pierrard
Head of EMEA: Fastenings Business Unit
Thibaut Descamps
Head of EMEA: ATW & EQC Business Unit
Pierre Barthram
Head of APAC Business Unit
Sandro Moisés Silva
Head of Americas Business Unit

2022 Non-Financial Performance Statement

Learn more