Delegates from the world's rail industry converged on Corus Rail Consultancy, the York-based rail design company to learn all about the might of its high tech processes.

WELL TRAINED: Hugh Fenwick, managing director of Corus Rail Consultancy, with his guests from the world's railway organisations at the National Railway Museum, York Picture: Nigel Holland

Engineers from Singapore, South Africa, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Finland, Queensland, Estonia and Northern Ireland gathered at Hudson House to watch the organisation prepare work for its main customers, Railtrack.

And afterwards the Corus managing director, Hugh Fenwick, took the group to that other railway Mecca, the National Railway Museum in York for lunch.

The visit was part of a two-week course arranged by the Railway Industry Association for mostly foreign railway engineers.

Course director John Elliott, a retired senior engineer for British Rail, said: "We hold the course every two years and Corus makes a major contribution, sending people to Nottingham University where the course is centred. They show us their drawing offices at Hudson House in York, which includes some of the best design software in the country."

The delegates, who went on to Corus Rail's headquarters in Workington and a tour of a steelworks, were hugely impressed, especially the South African contingent - two representatives from Protekon, the consulting and construction wing of Transnet, which equates with rail guardians Railtrack.

Johan Mouton, a manager in Protekon's civil engineering design section, said: "We were tremendously impressed with Corus design programmes and its relationship with Railtrack is an example worth following in our relationship with Transnet."

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