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This is going to be a transformational project for Ontario, for the Greater Toronto, and something that will actually compete with regional networks as we have in Paris.
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Hello, I'm Giles Gerson, and this is Toronto Talks, the voice of Toronto's business community.
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What are we talking about?
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Each episode is a conversation with top business leaders about how they're shaping growth, driving competitiveness, and building up our economy.
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It's about what they believe it will take to make sure the Toronto region remains one of the world's great global cities.
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Here's today's conversation.
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Michael, welcome to Toronto Talks podcast.
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We're delighted to have you with us for a great conversation, I think, about really transit and transportation, because you are running Alstom America, so you have a pretty big portfolio here, Canada, the U.S., I think, and Mexico.
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And Latin America.
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America, that's a very big remit.
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What's most important is the GTA, of course, in all of that.
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So we'd like to talk to you a little bit about that and how we're progressing on our transit transportation system.
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Because as you know, certainly at the Board of Trade, we spent a lot of time on congestion and how to relieve congestion.
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We put a five-point plan to the city for relieving congestion, and they're starting to work on that.
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But no question, transit is the core.
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to solving our congestion problems.
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So that's in our mind, and that's why we're so excited to have you with us.
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Before we get into all of that, maybe start with you and Alstom, the company.
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Not all of our listeners will be completely familiar with the role that Alstom plays in Ontario, in the GTA.
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So maybe tell us a little bit about what that role involves, what your role involves, and how big is the business that you're responsible for?
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So Alstom is the largest private sector company in transit, pure player in mobility, as we call it.
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So that's anything to do with trains, metros, tramways, light rail, signaling system, obviously, life cycle of all of that from delivering equipment and solutions to complete life cycle, maintenance, overhauling, spare parts, operating and maintaining assets.
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We do all of that, and we're the only one.
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Is that a recent phenomenon?
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Because you often think of a company that's manufacturing, say, rolling stock, that other companies would do the planning, the operations, the maintenance, the repair.
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But you do all of that.
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Well, we've gradually moved into that.
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Obviously, we were and we are known mainly for our rolling stock business.
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That's what I think you're...
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...business.
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I'll stand for it.
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But today, and if I speak about my region, which represents today around a quarter to a third of the group in terms of revenue, order intake, and so on. The rolling stock activity is around half of what we do. The other half is service, it's signaling, it's turnkey contracts being involved in full turnkey as planners and obviously execution company.
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Is that shifted over time? I mean, I'm assuming that at one point, Alstom was really mainly a rolling stock company, but has gradually taken on these other dimensions.
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Yeah.
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But how is that moving over time?
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So, I mean, obviously, our strategy has been to grow into the complete space of mobility.
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As we see, there's a lot of value for customers, obviously, for our shareholders.
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But that's where we wanted to go.
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We had a major step into that progress, which was the acquisition of Bombardier Transportia in 2021.
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Bombardier was a very strong franchise in terms of servicing.
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Obviously, they were also a trained company manufacturer.
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So integrating all of that gave us a big boost into the strategy that we had.
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And this has been now our strategy to be a pure player operating on the life cycle of transit systems, rail systems, as we say also in the U.S.
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That's where we want to be.
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There's tremendous value for the ecosystem, for the customers, for our suppliers to have a partner that has such a scale and obviously such a depth into the industry.
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And the acquisition of Bombardier that you mentioned, that must have had a huge impact on your footprint in Ontario, in Canada, compared to what you had before.
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So the next question, I think that's probably true, but maybe you can tell us.
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But then where does Canada fit in in terms of the portfolio in Latin America and in the U.S.?
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I mean, the U.S. obviously is a very large market.
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So where do we fit in exactly?
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The acquisition of Bombardier was really driven by complementarities, like synergies between the Aston portfolio and the Bombardier portfolio.
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And we found really a perfect match.
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Bombardier was very strong where we, as Aston, were weak.
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North America was one of those.
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Bombardier was originally, is a Canadian company, obviously, you know, had deep roots in Canada and the U.S.
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Alstom was present in Canada and the U.S., but much smaller scale.
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So that's the illustration of what we did through this deal, which actually bring two companies that had a lot of complementarities, geographically speaking, but also from a product standpoint.
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Yeah, I'm going to say, it sounded like very similar.
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Yeah, the products were similar, but different.
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They were covering different, strength.
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Aston was more present on metros.
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Bombardier has been very present on commuter rail and on obviously light rail.
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So we had a portfolio which was really working well together and that was one of the main drivers of putting the company together.
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By the way, what we saw here in North America happened in a few other geographies where complementarity was good both from a product standpoint and from a geography standpoint.
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So that was the main driver for the deal.
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As far as our identity in North America, since that was your question, this new group together became the biggest and the best, I would say, in many ways in North America.
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The largest supplier of new cars, obviously, with a footprint in Canada and the U.S., that's quite unique.
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We have five factories here in Canada, three of them.
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You've got Thunder Bay, Kingston, Brampton.
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Brampton.
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We have La Pocatia in Quebec.
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And we have a few other sites which are of smaller importance.
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We have two main sites in the US, Plattsburgh, which was a former body, and Hornell, which was former Alstom.
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And that's basically a strong manufacturing footprint with very...
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I mean, they go by America in the US, right?
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Exactly.
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driven a lot of investment into the US from, I think, all over the world.
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Uh, cause if you want to bid for a, you know, Metro, whether it's Amtrak or, you know, or a city project, you have to manufacture in the US.
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So that- Yeah.
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Bio-America has been there for a long time.
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I know.
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So, uh, it's a reality that has driven Bombardier to actually go south of the border.
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Alistair had acquired the Hornell site already from the early 2000.
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And, uh, but these are sites which went, uh, through very complex periods, you know, almost shut down many times in the cycle.
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Today, they are absolutely full, both south of the border and obviously here in Canada.
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In Canada, we have 5,000 people today, which is quite significant as a company.
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We're the biggest in transit.
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Ontario is the biggest province for us.
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It's more than 2,800 people today, and it's growing.
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Quebec is the second one, and we have teams obviously in building trains, rolling stock, servicing trains. Here in Ontario, we have a big, big crew operating and maintaining the GO and UP services for Metrolinx. So we are basically, you know...
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Yeah, because UP Express, I mean, the old Bombardier trains that you've taken over essentially for GO, right? Those were like Bombardier built. But the UP Express was a completely different manufacturer, wasn't it? It's a different manufacturer. We still service them.
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We actually operate and maintain trains.
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In North America, we're the largest operator, a private operator of trains.
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We have properties all across the U.S. and Cadillac that we do operate.
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The people that welcome riders every day, users every day, are our employees.
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They wear a Metrolink shirt or a Metrolink shirt here, but these are people that are employed and are on our payroll.
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Okay, that's interesting.
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the drivers for the go locomotives every day.
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You know, the manufacturers are our people.
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I realize that.
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Employed by ASTOM, trained by ASTOM, using ASTOM management systems, ASTOM operating systems.
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And that's, you know, obviously all the maintenance activity behind all the strains are done by ASTOM people.
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On behalf of Metrolinx, obviously, we're a silent partner to the users, but we are basically managing this service.
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Much of a change from when Bombardier presumably had a similar role and then you took it over, seamless or different approach?
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So first of all, we liked very much that side of the business.
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Aston was not as present in operating.
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We were present in manufacturing, not as operating.
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And we liked this side of the business because we, again, as a pure player, we know, we hear, we're part of receiving the feedback from users.
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We are basically tied to the hip with Metrolinx, for example, in terms of delivering a good service to the users.
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Service is what's going to drive people to use transit, quality of service.
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And so being directly involved in that gives us a lot of feedback, a lot of value in terms of how we design our trains, in terms of how we maintain them.
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And obviously, the other side of that...
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You've taken the whole thing.
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Well, we understand it from the user to the agency, to the authority, to the government's position and all of that.
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So it's very valuable for us to be part of that.
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The other side is that we have decided to really professionalize this business of operating and maintaining trains.
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A lot of agencies are doing this by themselves for a very long time.
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Well, TTC does that by themselves.
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But there's a lot of value in companies like ours to actually, you know, bring the know-how we have of those trains and systems and actually build on that.
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Build a very sort of...
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ABCM, of course.
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And also build processes and tools which are, you know, the best and up-to-date and that are really driving incremental improvement every day.
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What we do that for building trains, you know, we have lean systems that deliver better value.
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The same systems can and do apply to operation or maintenance.
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You know, when we apply that know-how to operation maintenance, we drive better service.
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We drive better service in terms of operation frequency, safety, passenger satisfaction.
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We drive better service in terms of maintaining the trains at a lower cost.
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All of that stands on the backbone of very strong processes, tools that we have developed for the company and that we are implementing every day to all of these activities.
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I mean, a couple of things, I guess, come from that.
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One, global best practices, since you operate around the world, you can bring presumably global best practices to a focus here in Ontario.
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Second of all, even a rev from a commercial perspective, it sort of makes sense because you have continuous revenue from that side of the operation, as opposed to when you're building something, you get the contract, you build, you're paid, you're done, right?
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Gap, maybe another contract comes along.
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This way, as a company, you get a much better revenue flow.
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Obviously, I mean, every deal has to be good for both parties.
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So we do see value for us in terms of having more steady revenue flows and so on.
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It's also a lot of responsibilities.
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We are not here for a deal and then we run away.
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No, no.
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It's very interesting because when Infrastructure Ontario was created a number of years ago, it was to apply that model to buildings.
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We build hospitals, we build courthouses, we build all kinds of infrastructure.
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And so integrating the design, build, operate, maintain all in one made sure, I think the The idea was it made sure that the contractor who was designing and building would have a real stake in the operations.
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Therefore, how do you build in order to take it so that you want to reduce your costs as an operator, right?
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Or in maintenance.
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So you build maybe a bit differently than if you're going to hand off the project to somebody else.
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So there was a view to be really great synergies in that model.
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And now what you're saying is you've applied that model really to horizontal...
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transit and to mobility in general. Yes, that's exactly the idea is that we, you know, being a player in all of that allows us to have very deep relationships with our customers, understand their issues. You know, again, being an operator helps us understand issues of operator.
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You see it all day.
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What they feel. We know what we are good at, what we need to be better at. We know what processes are not working well and we can bring that.
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All of that in the context of scarcity of people as well.
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Many agencies can't really cultivate the skill set that they need.
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Too small.
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They're too small, they're too scattered.
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We can bring that.
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I'll give you an example.
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We won a contract for MetroLink in Los Angeles last year to operate and maintain the whole Los Angeles greater region.
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we brought a crew from Canada.
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We brought a crew that had basically experience running a system here in Toronto.
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We brought them to Los Angeles.
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Today, they are managing, they are leading a pack of around 700 people that are basically delivering service every day.
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That's the strength of having a company like us growing, becoming a real player.
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And it comes with a lot of resources.
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He pulls of talent though.
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Exactly, pulls of talent, processes that have been tested and that are working, tools that are basically delivering value every day.
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That's what we can do with scale, and this is what we want to continue to develop.
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It's not like we want to displace agencies and authorities who want to run their systems, not at all.
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We are continuing to develop inject technology, inject innovation in all of that because we can do it at scale.
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And we can do that cross-agencies.
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that brings a lot of value in the new world of partnership that we have in front of us.
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I mean, it's interesting because I will say that since COVID, I don't hear many complaints about Go.
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I really don't.
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People have complaints about the system in general, perhaps, or the transit service in general.
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But I don't hear that.
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I'm wondering what sort of...
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I'm assuming, therefore, some of the things that you were just talking about have led to service improvements and customer satisfaction on the go system, from what you're saying.
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I mean, first of all, we have to be mindful and should be very proud of that.
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We have a system that has world-class performance, 99% on-time performance.
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That's impressive.
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It's very impressive.
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And it's an old system, old in the sense, you know, it's...
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Well, it's electric, for example.
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So electric is much faster.
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Exactly.
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You know, it's like a start and, you know, we're coming to stations more quickly, leaving quickly, acceleration times.
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So how have you managed to do that with Teasel?
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So obviously, I mean, maintaining this high level of performance of the system is what guarantees customer satisfaction.
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No one wants to wait for too long.
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They want to stick to the timetable or they take their car, as you just said.
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So with Metrolinx, and Metrolinx is a big part of that, obviously.
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They are the authority above that.
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We work for them.
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they direct service to our crews.
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But with them, we have really developed a very good way of operating, a very good collaboration.
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And we had, for example, a couple of service increases last year, both episodic for specific events like the Jays World Series or more long-term with a return to work after the summer.
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And these were planned.
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They were tested.
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Metrolinks and us worked together to get to this objective.
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We made it.
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It was very, it was well delivered.
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Did you need new rolling stock for that or did you just use it?
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No, we actually worked on maintaining better so that we had more fleet available so that we could work on that.
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The other side, which is important, and you probably know that, we are involved in the GO expansion project on the core.
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That includes the electrification project?
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electrification, new signaling. And obviously with some partners, we are basically working on this project, which is about double tracking on the system, electrifying and so on. There's going to be a new fleet coming at some point in the future. All of that, and being part of that, being the operator and maintainer, allows us with Metrolinx to find solutions. We've been working for the last three years on planning, planning, planning, so we can get to the best possible solution, which corridor needs to be electrified first. Where do we put the ETCS solution, the new signaling that will allow headway to be shorter, that will allow the system to be much safer in terms of operating? All of that is basically enabled by great partnership because we're here for good. We're not here for a deal. What do we think with the electrification and expansion system. And again, double tracking, because currently I think you've still run into the CN rail, I think. The freight rail has priority on the track. It's their track. So it's hard to run a really rapid system when you've got to move over for freight trains, which is the way the system was designed. But having a double track means presumably you'll have seamless service without having to go into a siding or what have you. When with all of what you've described, when will our listeners sort of see that? I mean, as you know, with some of the projects we've had that have dragged on interminably, we won't name names, but we all know what they are. There's obviously some skepticism about when they hear about big projects, will I see it in my lifetime?
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So I think Metrolings has taken a very different approach to this one, and I praise them for that.
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You know, they really wanted to select partners who could work with them. And today we're co-located in a big office on Adelaide Street with Metrolinx, where we're doing a lot of planning.
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These kind of projects work because of proper planning.
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We understand what's the best possible sequence of doing the work, what's the best use of money in the short and long term.
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All of that is really a matter of bringing the best experts who work together and not fight.
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You know, when you're in a traditional contracting mode, you get a lot of battles, you fight.
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when you're basically in a collaborative mode like we are today on Go, we get that done.
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It took three years of really deep planning, and this is what we've been doing with Metrolinx and trying to benchmark different things and find the right sequence.
00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:30.980
We're getting to the point where we're starting today to deliver some of the projects, both on the civil side with double tracking in some sections, and obviously with the first ETCS work, which are starting today.
00:20:32.599 --> 00:20:33.920
This is a 15-year program.
00:20:34.519 --> 00:20:35.940
I'm sort of wondering what is this?
00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:38.880
It's going to be a 15-year program altogether.
00:20:39.420 --> 00:20:41.200
So like 2040 type of thing?
00:20:41.339 --> 00:20:42.759
Yeah, probably around that.
00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:46.319
But obviously with the biggest bang for the buck at the beginning.
00:20:46.460 --> 00:20:55.319
So trying to find, for example, which lakeshore is bringing the best benefit, how to address the Union Station bottleneck.
00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:56.240
It's a complex way.
00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:58.240
And a fair bit of what's going on there now, as I understand it.
00:20:58.519 --> 00:20:58.640
Right?
00:20:58.839 --> 00:20:58.900
Yeah.
00:20:59.019 --> 00:21:01.720
Exactly on being able to accommodate.
00:21:01.799 --> 00:21:12.859
So I think you will see benefits of all of that coming sooner than you've seen in other projects which were more traditional contracts.
00:21:13.059 --> 00:21:13.900
Kind of incremental, yes.
00:21:14.079 --> 00:21:14.460
Exactly.
00:21:14.700 --> 00:21:15.539
It's going to be incremental.
00:21:15.660 --> 00:21:16.900
It's going to be well-planned.
00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:18.180
It's going to be communicated.
00:21:18.420 --> 00:21:26.519
I think Metronic is doing a great job at explaining what they do and why are stations closed or why are sections closed.
00:21:27.240 --> 00:21:29.279
This communication helps people understand.
00:21:29.460 --> 00:21:33.119
And there's work being done today that will benefit in the long run.
00:21:34.059 --> 00:21:48.619
And we're very proud of being part of that because this is going to be a transformational project for Ontario, for the greater Toronto, and something that will actually compete with regional networks as we have in Paris.
00:21:49.059 --> 00:21:49.259
Right.
00:21:49.509 --> 00:21:50.339
We do the RER.
00:21:50.660 --> 00:21:50.819
Exactly.
00:21:51.259 --> 00:21:53.660
That, you know, turn commuter into regional.
00:21:53.980 --> 00:21:55.380
I hate the word commuter.
00:21:55.450 --> 00:21:56.619
I love the word regional.
00:21:56.680 --> 00:22:03.279
Well, I mean, when you've got a region with 8 million people, which is what the GTHAE currently is, it's not a commuter thing.
00:22:03.980 --> 00:22:04.539
It is a regional.
00:22:04.779 --> 00:22:08.779
And we've been pushing as an organization at the Board of Trade for integrated service, for example.
00:22:08.900 --> 00:22:13.980
We pushed hard for integrated fares, which we got from the provincial government a couple of years ago.
00:22:14.119 --> 00:22:16.420
That was a great step forward, really helpful step forward.
00:22:16.859 --> 00:22:18.279
Now we need integrated service.
00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:24.740
And I think that's going to be a big leap forward, but then you add to that the kind of service improvements you're talking about.
00:22:25.299 --> 00:22:27.119
I think you can see a very different future.
00:22:27.210 --> 00:22:40.339
I was really struck by some numbers that both of us have heard today, which was that maybe you were aware of it, I wasn't, but that in Toronto, something like 37% of Torontonians are inclined to take the transit.
00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:45.460
In Paris, it's not 37%, it's 3%, I think.
00:22:46.200 --> 00:22:47.640
In London, it's 69%.
00:22:48.099 --> 00:23:20.960
So you think about that, that's a million and a half, if we were to kind of move to Paris or London numbers, that's a million and a half more passengers. That would have a huge impact on congestion. So you can see where this is going in terms of the promise of better transit, better regional rail could have a big, big impact on the way our society operates and the way the economy operates. Yeah. I mean, a line like the Rockets is carrying more people than the, what is it, the 400 for a highway.
00:23:21.650 --> 00:23:29.019
Uh, it's a line like, like, uh, line one is equivalent to 26 lanes on a highway.
00:23:29.400 --> 00:23:29.819
I can imagine.
00:23:30.259 --> 00:23:30.339
Yeah.
00:23:31.180 --> 00:23:32.440
So people don't see it that way, but, but.
00:23:32.680 --> 00:23:32.940
Exactly.
00:23:33.319 --> 00:23:39.900
And, and no one questions the, you know, the investments on the road and the fact, I mean, what's the return on investment on the road?
00:23:40.880 --> 00:23:42.640
I mean, it's, it's uncalculable still.
00:23:43.220 --> 00:23:48.000
But you know, everybody's challenging, you know, is transit a profitable?
00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:49.680
Is a highway profitable?
00:23:49.980 --> 00:23:51.819
How do you calculate the highway profitability?
00:23:52.460 --> 00:23:54.240
We should apply the same thinking to transit.
00:23:54.960 --> 00:24:03.940
Transit is what connects a region like that and is what allows people to commute fast, to be in different places.
00:24:04.539 --> 00:24:07.579
With the return to work, people have different ways of getting to the office.
00:24:07.779 --> 00:24:10.700
It's not morning time, 8 o'clock and back.
00:24:10.700 --> 00:24:11.700
Oh, it's changed dramatically.
00:24:11.880 --> 00:24:12.660
It's changed dramatically.
00:24:12.920 --> 00:25:53.500
So all of that needs to be taken into account in the new systems that we are building, interconnected. We need a better interconnection between the different modes so that you can jump from a regional train to a subway to a light rail. That's what's going to make the greater Toronto so special in North America is because all the ingredients are here and there's also political drive for it. And will. Yeah. And will. Well, I mean, it's interesting because, you know, when you think about the way people used to think about mobility or connectivity 30 years ago, it was abundance. There was, it seemed like ample transit, there was ample roads. It was abundance, right? Take your pick and do what you want to do. Now it's a scarcity mentality, right? The roads are clogged. Transit isn't big enough and regional rail isn't big enough. So everyone has this kind of scarcity mentality. Then there's a huge impact psychologically on investment in our economy, people's desire to move around our region, to go to entertainment events or sporting events or visit their family. We've done some polling to suggest that people are really pulling back on those kinds of things, including being at the workplace, their inclination to be at the workplace because of just these constraints. So what you're describing is quite a dramatic shift if we can get back to an idea of abundance in terms of opportunity to travel across the region. Before I let you go, since we're running out of time, it's very interesting what you've had to say, but how did you get into this? You've had a variety of different roles before taking on this one, not always in the transportation system, is that right?
00:25:53.779 --> 00:25:54.079
Yeah, yeah.
00:25:54.359 --> 00:25:55.339
So how did you get into this?
00:25:55.519 --> 00:25:59.779
I'm actually a rookie. I've been in mobility for five years.
00:26:00.740 --> 00:26:04.619
So, no, I spent most of my career in the energy sector.
00:26:06.220 --> 00:26:11.059
And I came to this opportunity driven by two things.
00:26:11.279 --> 00:26:19.500
First of all, the integration of the two companies right in the middle of COVID was a very interesting challenge that I wanted to be part of.
00:26:20.299 --> 00:26:29.640
And it was, I said that- You were at Alstom before, so you knew- I was at General Electric, which then was, which acquired one Alstom business sector.
00:26:29.900 --> 00:26:31.079
I spent a long time in GE.
00:26:32.798 --> 00:26:37.519
So I moved into mobility driven by that specific opportunity.
00:26:37.690 --> 00:26:43.660
I had been involved in large integration processes of companies post-merger or acquisition.
00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:46.019
I was interested by that.
00:26:46.509 --> 00:26:58.799
The other side was this is a sector that is about very complex projects and fairly similar to what I had gone through in the energy sector.
00:26:59.720 --> 00:27:03.099
But I like what it does immediately to the society.
00:27:03.180 --> 00:27:09.140
You know, when you've done power stations for a long time, you know it's important.
00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:11.259
It feeds energy to the city.
00:27:11.259 --> 00:27:12.339
But you have to explain it to people.
00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:12.799
Exactly.
00:27:13.440 --> 00:27:26.420
But when it comes to helping make transit systems more reliable, better, having better vehicles and so on, I loved that idea that, you know, the impact that we have day in, day out on the communities we serve.
00:27:27.140 --> 00:27:35.480
In ASTOM, we have this strategy of what we call multi-local or home countries where we operate are important for us.
00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:37.319
Canada is a home country to ASTOM.
00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:40.440
U.S. is a home country to ASTOM.
00:27:40.519 --> 00:27:47.000
We wanted to be strong in these geographies, and the challenge was given to me that I was very much attracted by it.
00:27:47.099 --> 00:27:47.839
Well, congratulations.
00:27:48.259 --> 00:27:48.500
Thank you.
00:27:48.660 --> 00:27:53.099
I look forward to seeing all of this rollout in the coming years, but thank you for the conversation.
00:27:53.700 --> 00:27:54.299
I've learned a lot.
00:27:54.400 --> 00:27:55.559
I hope our listeners have as well.
00:27:56.019 --> 00:27:56.700
So thank you very much.
00:27:56.740 --> 00:28:05.579
No, thank you for having me and obviously for helping or allowing me to speak on behalf of the 5,000 Canadian employees we have here.
00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:14.779
Well, I think it's great because I think Alstom is still probably not as well known as it will be because it's only been five years since you took over a lot of these operations from Bavacchi.
00:28:15.519 --> 00:28:23.680
No, it's important and it also helps us attract talents and get people excited about all the things we're doing in the region and in Canada in general.
00:28:24.119 --> 00:28:24.180
Thanks.
00:28:24.220 --> 00:28:25.299
Excellent. Thank you very much.
00:28:25.380 --> 00:28:25.599
Thank you.
00:28:26.839 --> 00:28:34.599
thanks for listening to Toronto Talks conversations with the leaders shaping the region's economy follow us wherever you get your podcasts
00:00:00.020 --> 00:00:12.580
This is going to be a transformational project for Ontario, for the Greater Toronto, and something that will actually compete with regional networks as we have in Paris.
00:00:13.419 --> 00:00:18.980
Hello, I'm Giles Gerson, and this is Toronto Talks, the voice of Toronto's business community.
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What are we talking about?
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Each episode is a conversation with top business leaders about how they're shaping growth, driving competitiveness, and building up our economy.
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It's about what they believe it will take to make sure the Toronto region remains one of the world's great global cities.
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Here's today's conversation.
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Michael, welcome to Toronto Talks podcast.
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We're delighted to have you with us for a great conversation, I think, about really transit and transportation, because you are running Alstom America, so you have a pretty big portfolio here, Canada, the U.S., I think, and Mexico.
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And Latin America.
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America, that's a very big remit.
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What's most important is the GTA, of course, in all of that.
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So we'd like to talk to you a little bit about that and how we're progressing on our transit transportation system.
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Because as you know, certainly at the Board of Trade, we spent a lot of time on congestion and how to relieve congestion.
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We put a five-point plan to the city for relieving congestion, and they're starting to work on that.
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But no question, transit is the core.
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to solving our congestion problems.
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So that's in our mind, and that's why we're so excited to have you with us.
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Before we get into all of that, maybe start with you and Alstom, the company.
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Not all of our listeners will be completely familiar with the role that Alstom plays in Ontario, in the GTA.
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So maybe tell us a little bit about what that role involves, what your role involves, and how big is the business that you're responsible for?
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So Alstom is the largest private sector company in transit, pure player in mobility, as we call it.
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So that's anything to do with trains, metros, tramways, light rail, signaling system, obviously, life cycle of all of that from delivering equipment and solutions to complete life cycle, maintenance, overhauling, spare parts, operating and maintaining assets.
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We do all of that, and we're the only one.
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Is that a recent phenomenon?
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Because you often think of a company that's manufacturing, say, rolling stock, that other companies would do the planning, the operations, the maintenance, the repair.
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But you do all of that.
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Well, we've gradually moved into that.
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Obviously, we were and we are known mainly for our rolling stock business.
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That's what I think you're...
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...business.
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I'll stand for it.
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But today, and if I speak about my region, which represents today around a quarter to a third of the group in terms of revenue, order intake, and so on. The rolling stock activity is around half of what we do. The other half is service, it's signaling, it's turnkey contracts being involved in full turnkey as planners and obviously execution company.
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Is that shifted over time? I mean, I'm assuming that at one point, Alstom was really mainly a rolling stock company, but has gradually taken on these other dimensions.
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Yeah.
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But how is that moving over time?
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So, I mean, obviously, our strategy has been to grow into the complete space of mobility.
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As we see, there's a lot of value for customers, obviously, for our shareholders.
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But that's where we wanted to go.
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We had a major step into that progress, which was the acquisition of Bombardier Transportia in 2021.
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Bombardier was a very strong franchise in terms of servicing.
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Obviously, they were also a trained company manufacturer.
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So integrating all of that gave us a big boost into the strategy that we had.
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And this has been now our strategy to be a pure player operating on the life cycle of transit systems, rail systems, as we say also in the U.S.
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That's where we want to be.
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There's tremendous value for the ecosystem, for the customers, for our suppliers to have a partner that has such a scale and obviously such a depth into the industry.
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And the acquisition of Bombardier that you mentioned, that must have had a huge impact on your footprint in Ontario, in Canada, compared to what you had before.
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So the next question, I think that's probably true, but maybe you can tell us.
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But then where does Canada fit in in terms of the portfolio in Latin America and in the U.S.?
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I mean, the U.S. obviously is a very large market.
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So where do we fit in exactly?
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The acquisition of Bombardier was really driven by complementarities, like synergies between the Aston portfolio and the Bombardier portfolio.
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And we found really a perfect match.
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Bombardier was very strong where we, as Aston, were weak.
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North America was one of those.
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Bombardier was originally, is a Canadian company, obviously, you know, had deep roots in Canada and the U.S.
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Alstom was present in Canada and the U.S., but much smaller scale.
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So that's the illustration of what we did through this deal, which actually bring two companies that had a lot of complementarities, geographically speaking, but also from a product standpoint.
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Yeah, I'm going to say, it sounded like very similar.
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Yeah, the products were similar, but different.
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They were covering different, strength.
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Aston was more present on metros.
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Bombardier has been very present on commuter rail and on obviously light rail.
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So we had a portfolio which was really working well together and that was one of the main drivers of putting the company together.
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By the way, what we saw here in North America happened in a few other geographies where complementarity was good both from a product standpoint and from a geography standpoint.
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So that was the main driver for the deal.
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As far as our identity in North America, since that was your question, this new group together became the biggest and the best, I would say, in many ways in North America.
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The largest supplier of new cars, obviously, with a footprint in Canada and the U.S., that's quite unique.
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We have five factories here in Canada, three of them.
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You've got Thunder Bay, Kingston, Brampton.
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Brampton.
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We have La Pocatia in Quebec.
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And we have a few other sites which are of smaller importance.
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We have two main sites in the US, Plattsburgh, which was a former body, and Hornell, which was former Alstom.
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And that's basically a strong manufacturing footprint with very...
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I mean, they go by America in the US, right?
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Exactly.
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driven a lot of investment into the US from, I think, all over the world.
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Uh, cause if you want to bid for a, you know, Metro, whether it's Amtrak or, you know, or a city project, you have to manufacture in the US.
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So that- Yeah.
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Bio-America has been there for a long time.
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I know.
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So, uh, it's a reality that has driven Bombardier to actually go south of the border.
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Alistair had acquired the Hornell site already from the early 2000.
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And, uh, but these are sites which went, uh, through very complex periods, you know, almost shut down many times in the cycle.
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Today, they are absolutely full, both south of the border and obviously here in Canada.
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In Canada, we have 5,000 people today, which is quite significant as a company.
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We're the biggest in transit.
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Ontario is the biggest province for us.
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It's more than 2,800 people today, and it's growing.
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Quebec is the second one, and we have teams obviously in building trains, rolling stock, servicing trains. Here in Ontario, we have a big, big crew operating and maintaining the GO and UP services for Metrolinx. So we are basically, you know...
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Yeah, because UP Express, I mean, the old Bombardier trains that you've taken over essentially for GO, right? Those were like Bombardier built. But the UP Express was a completely different manufacturer, wasn't it? It's a different manufacturer. We still service them.
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We actually operate and maintain trains.
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In North America, we're the largest operator, a private operator of trains.
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We have properties all across the U.S. and Cadillac that we do operate.
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The people that welcome riders every day, users every day, are our employees.
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They wear a Metrolink shirt or a Metrolink shirt here, but these are people that are employed and are on our payroll.
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Okay, that's interesting.
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the drivers for the go locomotives every day.
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You know, the manufacturers are our people.
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I realize that.
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Employed by ASTOM, trained by ASTOM, using ASTOM management systems, ASTOM operating systems.
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And that's, you know, obviously all the maintenance activity behind all the strains are done by ASTOM people.
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On behalf of Metrolinx, obviously, we're a silent partner to the users, but we are basically managing this service.
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Much of a change from when Bombardier presumably had a similar role and then you took it over, seamless or different approach?
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So first of all, we liked very much that side of the business.
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Aston was not as present in operating.
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We were present in manufacturing, not as operating.
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And we liked this side of the business because we, again, as a pure player, we know, we hear, we're part of receiving the feedback from users.
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We are basically tied to the hip with Metrolinx, for example, in terms of delivering a good service to the users.
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Service is what's going to drive people to use transit, quality of service.
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And so being directly involved in that gives us a lot of feedback, a lot of value in terms of how we design our trains, in terms of how we maintain them.
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And obviously, the other side of that...
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You've taken the whole thing.
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Well, we understand it from the user to the agency, to the authority, to the government's position and all of that.
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So it's very valuable for us to be part of that.
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The other side is that we have decided to really professionalize this business of operating and maintaining trains.
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A lot of agencies are doing this by themselves for a very long time.
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Well, TTC does that by themselves.
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But there's a lot of value in companies like ours to actually, you know, bring the know-how we have of those trains and systems and actually build on that.
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Build a very sort of...
00:11:07.679 --> 00:11:08.500
ABCM, of course.
00:11:09.779 --> 00:11:20.299
And also build processes and tools which are, you know, the best and up-to-date and that are really driving incremental improvement every day.
00:11:21.460 --> 00:11:26.740
What we do that for building trains, you know, we have lean systems that deliver better value.
00:11:27.299 --> 00:11:31.980
The same systems can and do apply to operation or maintenance.
00:11:32.740 --> 00:11:37.879
You know, when we apply that know-how to operation maintenance, we drive better service.
00:11:38.039 --> 00:11:44.559
We drive better service in terms of operation frequency, safety, passenger satisfaction.
00:11:45.159 --> 00:11:49.659
We drive better service in terms of maintaining the trains at a lower cost.
00:11:50.279 --> 00:12:00.879
All of that stands on the backbone of very strong processes, tools that we have developed for the company and that we are implementing every day to all of these activities.
00:12:01.320 --> 00:12:02.820
I mean, a couple of things, I guess, come from that.
00:12:02.830 --> 00:12:11.940
One, global best practices, since you operate around the world, you can bring presumably global best practices to a focus here in Ontario.
00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:23.980
Second of all, even a rev from a commercial perspective, it sort of makes sense because you have continuous revenue from that side of the operation, as opposed to when you're building something, you get the contract, you build, you're paid, you're done, right?
00:12:24.440 --> 00:12:26.000
Gap, maybe another contract comes along.
00:12:26.500 --> 00:12:28.799
This way, as a company, you get a much better revenue flow.
00:12:29.019 --> 00:12:32.299
Obviously, I mean, every deal has to be good for both parties.
00:12:32.580 --> 00:12:38.879
So we do see value for us in terms of having more steady revenue flows and so on.
00:12:40.179 --> 00:12:41.720
It's also a lot of responsibilities.
00:12:41.779 --> 00:12:44.480
We are not here for a deal and then we run away.
00:12:44.759 --> 00:12:45.080
No, no.
00:12:45.159 --> 00:12:52.580
It's very interesting because when Infrastructure Ontario was created a number of years ago, it was to apply that model to buildings.
00:12:53.409 --> 00:12:57.360
We build hospitals, we build courthouses, we build all kinds of infrastructure.
00:12:58.980 --> 00:13:13.779
And so integrating the design, build, operate, maintain all in one made sure, I think the The idea was it made sure that the contractor who was designing and building would have a real stake in the operations.
00:13:14.080 --> 00:13:20.580
Therefore, how do you build in order to take it so that you want to reduce your costs as an operator, right?
00:13:21.460 --> 00:13:22.019
Or in maintenance.
00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:26.000
So you build maybe a bit differently than if you're going to hand off the project to somebody else.
00:13:26.419 --> 00:13:29.019
So there was a view to be really great synergies in that model.
00:13:29.309 --> 00:13:34.239
And now what you're saying is you've applied that model really to horizontal...
00:13:35.440 --> 00:13:51.940
transit and to mobility in general. Yes, that's exactly the idea is that we, you know, being a player in all of that allows us to have very deep relationships with our customers, understand their issues. You know, again, being an operator helps us understand issues of operator.
00:13:52.049 --> 00:13:52.740
You see it all day.
00:13:53.039 --> 00:14:01.379
What they feel. We know what we are good at, what we need to be better at. We know what processes are not working well and we can bring that.
00:14:01.899 --> 00:14:04.639
All of that in the context of scarcity of people as well.
00:14:05.940 --> 00:14:11.320
Many agencies can't really cultivate the skill set that they need.
00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:12.080
Too small.
00:14:12.779 --> 00:14:14.059
They're too small, they're too scattered.
00:14:14.379 --> 00:14:15.399
We can bring that.
00:14:15.539 --> 00:14:16.320
I'll give you an example.
00:14:16.919 --> 00:14:26.940
We won a contract for MetroLink in Los Angeles last year to operate and maintain the whole Los Angeles greater region.
00:14:28.059 --> 00:14:31.240
we brought a crew from Canada.
00:14:31.779 --> 00:14:36.559
We brought a crew that had basically experience running a system here in Toronto.
00:14:37.210 --> 00:14:38.940
We brought them to Los Angeles.
00:14:39.230 --> 00:14:45.240
Today, they are managing, they are leading a pack of around 700 people that are basically delivering service every day.
00:14:45.799 --> 00:14:50.899
That's the strength of having a company like us growing, becoming a real player.
00:14:52.019 --> 00:14:53.120
And it comes with a lot of resources.
00:14:53.120 --> 00:14:54.059
He pulls of talent though.
00:14:54.259 --> 00:15:03.000
Exactly, pulls of talent, processes that have been tested and that are working, tools that are basically delivering value every day.
00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:08.100
That's what we can do with scale, and this is what we want to continue to develop.
00:15:09.000 --> 00:15:14.600
It's not like we want to displace agencies and authorities who want to run their systems, not at all.
00:15:15.399 --> 00:15:22.080
We are continuing to develop inject technology, inject innovation in all of that because we can do it at scale.
00:15:23.259 --> 00:15:25.240
And we can do that cross-agencies.
00:15:25.360 --> 00:15:30.500
that brings a lot of value in the new world of partnership that we have in front of us.
00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:37.759
I mean, it's interesting because I will say that since COVID, I don't hear many complaints about Go.
00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:38.840
I really don't.
00:15:39.639 --> 00:15:43.799
People have complaints about the system in general, perhaps, or the transit service in general.
00:15:44.299 --> 00:15:44.860
But I don't hear that.
00:15:44.960 --> 00:15:46.139
I'm wondering what sort of...
00:15:46.440 --> 00:15:56.299
I'm assuming, therefore, some of the things that you were just talking about have led to service improvements and customer satisfaction on the go system, from what you're saying.
00:15:56.500 --> 00:16:00.519
I mean, first of all, we have to be mindful and should be very proud of that.
00:16:00.700 --> 00:16:05.960
We have a system that has world-class performance, 99% on-time performance.
00:16:06.440 --> 00:16:06.759
That's impressive.
00:16:07.100 --> 00:16:07.899
It's very impressive.
00:16:08.379 --> 00:16:11.600
And it's an old system, old in the sense, you know, it's...
00:16:11.799 --> 00:16:12.899
Well, it's electric, for example.
00:16:13.059 --> 00:16:14.639
So electric is much faster.
00:16:14.679 --> 00:16:14.840
Exactly.
00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:20.379
You know, it's like a start and, you know, we're coming to stations more quickly, leaving quickly, acceleration times.
00:16:20.720 --> 00:16:22.320
So how have you managed to do that with Teasel?
00:16:23.139 --> 00:16:32.539
So obviously, I mean, maintaining this high level of performance of the system is what guarantees customer satisfaction.
00:16:32.720 --> 00:16:34.440
No one wants to wait for too long.
00:16:34.980 --> 00:16:40.820
They want to stick to the timetable or they take their car, as you just said.
00:16:41.820 --> 00:16:45.320
So with Metrolinx, and Metrolinx is a big part of that, obviously.
00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:49.299
They are the authority above that.
00:16:49.340 --> 00:16:50.460
We work for them.
00:16:51.200 --> 00:16:53.559
they direct service to our crews.
00:16:54.299 --> 00:17:00.740
But with them, we have really developed a very good way of operating, a very good collaboration.
00:17:01.340 --> 00:17:14.779
And we had, for example, a couple of service increases last year, both episodic for specific events like the Jays World Series or more long-term with a return to work after the summer.
00:17:15.539 --> 00:17:16.660
And these were planned.
00:17:17.240 --> 00:17:19.099
They were tested.
00:17:20.140 --> 00:17:24.059
Metrolinks and us worked together to get to this objective.
00:17:24.180 --> 00:17:24.818
We made it.
00:17:24.880 --> 00:17:27.140
It was very, it was well delivered.
00:17:27.459 --> 00:17:29.759
Did you need new rolling stock for that or did you just use it?
00:17:29.779 --> 00:17:36.619
No, we actually worked on maintaining better so that we had more fleet available so that we could work on that.
00:17:37.339 --> 00:17:45.160
The other side, which is important, and you probably know that, we are involved in the GO expansion project on the core.
00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:47.819
That includes the electrification project?
00:17:48.180 --> 00:19:21.980
electrification, new signaling. And obviously with some partners, we are basically working on this project, which is about double tracking on the system, electrifying and so on. There's going to be a new fleet coming at some point in the future. All of that, and being part of that, being the operator and maintainer, allows us with Metrolinx to find solutions. We've been working for the last three years on planning, planning, planning, so we can get to the best possible solution, which corridor needs to be electrified first. Where do we put the ETCS solution, the new signaling that will allow headway to be shorter, that will allow the system to be much safer in terms of operating? All of that is basically enabled by great partnership because we're here for good. We're not here for a deal. What do we think with the electrification and expansion system. And again, double tracking, because currently I think you've still run into the CN rail, I think. The freight rail has priority on the track. It's their track. So it's hard to run a really rapid system when you've got to move over for freight trains, which is the way the system was designed. But having a double track means presumably you'll have seamless service without having to go into a siding or what have you. When with all of what you've described, when will our listeners sort of see that? I mean, as you know, with some of the projects we've had that have dragged on interminably, we won't name names, but we all know what they are. There's obviously some skepticism about when they hear about big projects, will I see it in my lifetime?
00:19:22.660 --> 00:19:28.380
So I think Metrolings has taken a very different approach to this one, and I praise them for that.
00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:41.079
You know, they really wanted to select partners who could work with them. And today we're co-located in a big office on Adelaide Street with Metrolinx, where we're doing a lot of planning.
00:19:41.319 --> 00:19:45.000
These kind of projects work because of proper planning.
00:19:45.109 --> 00:19:51.779
We understand what's the best possible sequence of doing the work, what's the best use of money in the short and long term.
00:19:52.500 --> 00:19:58.839
All of that is really a matter of bringing the best experts who work together and not fight.
00:19:58.930 --> 00:20:03.460
You know, when you're in a traditional contracting mode, you get a lot of battles, you fight.
00:20:03.480 --> 00:20:08.220
when you're basically in a collaborative mode like we are today on Go, we get that done.
00:20:08.450 --> 00:20:16.119
It took three years of really deep planning, and this is what we've been doing with Metrolinx and trying to benchmark different things and find the right sequence.
00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:30.980
We're getting to the point where we're starting today to deliver some of the projects, both on the civil side with double tracking in some sections, and obviously with the first ETCS work, which are starting today.
00:20:32.599 --> 00:20:33.920
This is a 15-year program.
00:20:34.519 --> 00:20:35.940
I'm sort of wondering what is this?
00:20:36.079 --> 00:20:38.880
It's going to be a 15-year program altogether.
00:20:39.420 --> 00:20:41.200
So like 2040 type of thing?
00:20:41.339 --> 00:20:42.759
Yeah, probably around that.
00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:46.319
But obviously with the biggest bang for the buck at the beginning.
00:20:46.460 --> 00:20:55.319
So trying to find, for example, which lakeshore is bringing the best benefit, how to address the Union Station bottleneck.
00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:56.240
It's a complex way.
00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:58.240
And a fair bit of what's going on there now, as I understand it.
00:20:58.519 --> 00:20:58.640
Right?
00:20:58.839 --> 00:20:58.900
Yeah.
00:20:59.019 --> 00:21:01.720
Exactly on being able to accommodate.
00:21:01.799 --> 00:21:12.859
So I think you will see benefits of all of that coming sooner than you've seen in other projects which were more traditional contracts.
00:21:13.059 --> 00:21:13.900
Kind of incremental, yes.
00:21:14.079 --> 00:21:14.460
Exactly.
00:21:14.700 --> 00:21:15.539
It's going to be incremental.
00:21:15.660 --> 00:21:16.900
It's going to be well-planned.
00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:18.180
It's going to be communicated.
00:21:18.420 --> 00:21:26.519
I think Metronic is doing a great job at explaining what they do and why are stations closed or why are sections closed.
00:21:27.240 --> 00:21:29.279
This communication helps people understand.
00:21:29.460 --> 00:21:33.119
And there's work being done today that will benefit in the long run.
00:21:34.059 --> 00:21:48.619
And we're very proud of being part of that because this is going to be a transformational project for Ontario, for the greater Toronto, and something that will actually compete with regional networks as we have in Paris.
00:21:49.059 --> 00:21:49.259
Right.
00:21:49.509 --> 00:21:50.339
We do the RER.
00:21:50.660 --> 00:21:50.819
Exactly.
00:21:51.259 --> 00:21:53.660
That, you know, turn commuter into regional.
00:21:53.980 --> 00:21:55.380
I hate the word commuter.
00:21:55.450 --> 00:21:56.619
I love the word regional.
00:21:56.680 --> 00:22:03.279
Well, I mean, when you've got a region with 8 million people, which is what the GTHAE currently is, it's not a commuter thing.
00:22:03.980 --> 00:22:04.539
It is a regional.
00:22:04.779 --> 00:22:08.779
And we've been pushing as an organization at the Board of Trade for integrated service, for example.
00:22:08.900 --> 00:22:13.980
We pushed hard for integrated fares, which we got from the provincial government a couple of years ago.
00:22:14.119 --> 00:22:16.420
That was a great step forward, really helpful step forward.
00:22:16.859 --> 00:22:18.279
Now we need integrated service.
00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:24.740
And I think that's going to be a big leap forward, but then you add to that the kind of service improvements you're talking about.
00:22:25.299 --> 00:22:27.119
I think you can see a very different future.
00:22:27.210 --> 00:22:40.339
I was really struck by some numbers that both of us have heard today, which was that maybe you were aware of it, I wasn't, but that in Toronto, something like 37% of Torontonians are inclined to take the transit.
00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:45.460
In Paris, it's not 37%, it's 3%, I think.
00:22:46.200 --> 00:22:47.640
In London, it's 69%.
00:22:48.099 --> 00:23:20.960
So you think about that, that's a million and a half, if we were to kind of move to Paris or London numbers, that's a million and a half more passengers. That would have a huge impact on congestion. So you can see where this is going in terms of the promise of better transit, better regional rail could have a big, big impact on the way our society operates and the way the economy operates. Yeah. I mean, a line like the Rockets is carrying more people than the, what is it, the 400 for a highway.
00:23:21.650 --> 00:23:29.019
Uh, it's a line like, like, uh, line one is equivalent to 26 lanes on a highway.
00:23:29.400 --> 00:23:29.819
I can imagine.
00:23:30.259 --> 00:23:30.339
Yeah.
00:23:31.180 --> 00:23:32.440
So people don't see it that way, but, but.
00:23:32.680 --> 00:23:32.940
Exactly.
00:23:33.319 --> 00:23:39.900
And, and no one questions the, you know, the investments on the road and the fact, I mean, what's the return on investment on the road?
00:23:40.880 --> 00:23:42.640
I mean, it's, it's uncalculable still.
00:23:43.220 --> 00:23:48.000
But you know, everybody's challenging, you know, is transit a profitable?
00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:49.680
Is a highway profitable?
00:23:49.980 --> 00:23:51.819
How do you calculate the highway profitability?
00:23:52.460 --> 00:23:54.240
We should apply the same thinking to transit.
00:23:54.960 --> 00:24:03.940
Transit is what connects a region like that and is what allows people to commute fast, to be in different places.
00:24:04.539 --> 00:24:07.579
With the return to work, people have different ways of getting to the office.
00:24:07.779 --> 00:24:10.700
It's not morning time, 8 o'clock and back.
00:24:10.700 --> 00:24:11.700
Oh, it's changed dramatically.
00:24:11.880 --> 00:24:12.660
It's changed dramatically.
00:24:12.920 --> 00:25:53.500
So all of that needs to be taken into account in the new systems that we are building, interconnected. We need a better interconnection between the different modes so that you can jump from a regional train to a subway to a light rail. That's what's going to make the greater Toronto so special in North America is because all the ingredients are here and there's also political drive for it. And will. Yeah. And will. Well, I mean, it's interesting because, you know, when you think about the way people used to think about mobility or connectivity 30 years ago, it was abundance. There was, it seemed like ample transit, there was ample roads. It was abundance, right? Take your pick and do what you want to do. Now it's a scarcity mentality, right? The roads are clogged. Transit isn't big enough and regional rail isn't big enough. So everyone has this kind of scarcity mentality. Then there's a huge impact psychologically on investment in our economy, people's desire to move around our region, to go to entertainment events or sporting events or visit their family. We've done some polling to suggest that people are really pulling back on those kinds of things, including being at the workplace, their inclination to be at the workplace because of just these constraints. So what you're describing is quite a dramatic shift if we can get back to an idea of abundance in terms of opportunity to travel across the region. Before I let you go, since we're running out of time, it's very interesting what you've had to say, but how did you get into this? You've had a variety of different roles before taking on this one, not always in the transportation system, is that right?
00:25:53.779 --> 00:25:54.079
Yeah, yeah.
00:25:54.359 --> 00:25:55.339
So how did you get into this?
00:25:55.519 --> 00:25:59.779
I'm actually a rookie. I've been in mobility for five years.
00:26:00.740 --> 00:26:04.619
So, no, I spent most of my career in the energy sector.
00:26:06.220 --> 00:26:11.059
And I came to this opportunity driven by two things.
00:26:11.279 --> 00:26:19.500
First of all, the integration of the two companies right in the middle of COVID was a very interesting challenge that I wanted to be part of.
00:26:20.299 --> 00:26:29.640
And it was, I said that- You were at Alstom before, so you knew- I was at General Electric, which then was, which acquired one Alstom business sector.
00:26:29.900 --> 00:26:31.079
I spent a long time in GE.
00:26:32.798 --> 00:26:37.519
So I moved into mobility driven by that specific opportunity.
00:26:37.690 --> 00:26:43.660
I had been involved in large integration processes of companies post-merger or acquisition.
00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:46.019
I was interested by that.
00:26:46.509 --> 00:26:58.799
The other side was this is a sector that is about very complex projects and fairly similar to what I had gone through in the energy sector.
00:26:59.720 --> 00:27:03.099
But I like what it does immediately to the society.
00:27:03.180 --> 00:27:09.140
You know, when you've done power stations for a long time, you know it's important.
00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:11.259
It feeds energy to the city.
00:27:11.259 --> 00:27:12.339
But you have to explain it to people.
00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:12.799
Exactly.
00:27:13.440 --> 00:27:26.420
But when it comes to helping make transit systems more reliable, better, having better vehicles and so on, I loved that idea that, you know, the impact that we have day in, day out on the communities we serve.
00:27:27.140 --> 00:27:35.480
In ASTOM, we have this strategy of what we call multi-local or home countries where we operate are important for us.
00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:37.319
Canada is a home country to ASTOM.
00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:40.440
U.S. is a home country to ASTOM.
00:27:40.519 --> 00:27:47.000
We wanted to be strong in these geographies, and the challenge was given to me that I was very much attracted by it.
00:27:47.099 --> 00:27:47.839
Well, congratulations.
00:27:48.259 --> 00:27:48.500
Thank you.
00:27:48.660 --> 00:27:53.099
I look forward to seeing all of this rollout in the coming years, but thank you for the conversation.
00:27:53.700 --> 00:27:54.299
I've learned a lot.
00:27:54.400 --> 00:27:55.559
I hope our listeners have as well.
00:27:56.019 --> 00:27:56.700
So thank you very much.
00:27:56.740 --> 00:28:05.579
No, thank you for having me and obviously for helping or allowing me to speak on behalf of the 5,000 Canadian employees we have here.
00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:14.779
Well, I think it's great because I think Alstom is still probably not as well known as it will be because it's only been five years since you took over a lot of these operations from Bavacchi.
00:28:15.519 --> 00:28:23.680
No, it's important and it also helps us attract talents and get people excited about all the things we're doing in the region and in Canada in general.
00:28:24.119 --> 00:28:24.180
Thanks.
00:28:24.220 --> 00:28:25.299
Excellent. Thank you very much.
00:28:25.380 --> 00:28:25.599
Thank you.
00:28:26.839 --> 00:28:34.599
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