Model Boat Mayhem
Mess Deck: General Section => Chit-Chat => Topic started by: The long Build on November 11, 2011, 12:53:48 pm
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German lessons for rail workers
Rail workers are being told to take German lessons as part of their training course for operating new track equipment, it has been revealed.
Staff on a recent course in Kent were told by Network Rail they had to learn a series of German phrases relating to instructions on track equipment, the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said.
A Network Rail spokesman said: "Network Rail appreciates this is a difficult course and we're looking at ways to make it more accessible and easier to learn and understand.
"This German kit is well proven and highly reliable and will replace old worn-out components dating back 50 years, saving money and at the same time delivering more reliable infrastructure for passengers and freight users alike."
Officials said the development comes as German rail giant Deutsche Bahn looked to "tighten its grip" in the UK through the acquisition of the Grand Central franchise, opening up an opportunity to use EU rules to start running services on the east and west coast, and with the continuing row over the proposed award of the Thameslink fleet contract to Siemens at the expense of UK train building at Bombardier in Derby.
The RMT said it would be simpler and safer to get the equipment re-programmed with a translation into English rather than placing the responsibility to learn German on the workforce.
RMT general-secretary Bob Crow said: "From Siemens' involvement in the betrayal of Bombardier through to Deutsche Bahn taking over the UK's Grand Central franchise last week, EU diktat is driving a German corporate takeover of Britain's railways.
"Profits that could be invested in our services are instead spirited out of the country without touching the sides.
"It is extraordinary that the German companies can't even be bothered to translate their safety instructions into English and instead UK rail workers have to take responsibility with these crash courses in O-level German."
http://latestnews.virginmedia.com/news/uk/2011/11/10/rail_workers_told_to_learn_german?vmsrc=pamread
<:( <:(
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OUTRAGEOUS!!!! Another example of our once proud industries being sold down the river! It makes me mad! >>:-( >>:-( >>:-( <*< <*< <*<
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I have to drive trains built in Derby by Bombardier and they are far from perfect. It's no wonder Siemens won the bid to build the new trains.
The railway I work for will be run by the Dutch from February and on the freight side, EWS used to be owned by an American company.
Since privatisation there has been foreign interests in our railway.
That's Business I suppose.
Ali.
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hmm...think I'll sell my Mercedes.
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Bombardier are Canadian I think ?
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Part owned by the French.
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Yes, Bombardier are Canadian,they also build aeroplanes, & have been bailed out numerous times by the Canadian tax payers. To say they have strong political ties would be an understatement, Mick B.
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Wartsilaone, Bombardier are based in the French speaking province of Quebec, I think that is the french connection you are thinking of.
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Hello
No part owned by French (french speaking Quebec only) here in France we have Alsthom. Bombardier inc. is Canadian, Then the railways partt : Bombardier Transport is based in Germany (with canadian owner)
Word is strange, all is now under the hands of financials ... mostly based in London with money from sunny islands paradise !
Xtian
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For once I agree with the RMT
Cost of one translator versus cost of courses for numerous employees whom may or may not become literate in the German Instructions.
The excuse for the first accident will be 'The operator interpreted the instructions wrongly'
EU rules to run trains in UK
Hang on, Didn't we INVENT the things?
Ned
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Could have been worse...might have been a Chinese company that got the contract :embarrassed:
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I drive American locos, pulling Polish built waggons and the profits from my endevours end up in the middle east!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I said part owned by the French because I believed, Alstom part own Bombardier.
As for having to learn German, This is typical of the railway wasting money I'm afraid.
Ali.
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Learning German is all very well but Technical German is a different beast altogether, best of luck, Nemesis
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Learning German is all very well but Technical German is a different beast altogether, best of luck, Nemesis
OK good effort!
but lets take out all those unecessary spaces and punctuation! lets do "technical German"....
learninggermanisallverywellbuttechnicalgermanisadifferentbeastaltogether
oh how i hate German technical manuals >>:-(
db
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I find the reference to 'who won (the war?) to be rather offensive, especially today tbh. I dont have a clue just why some folk seem to think this has anything to do with winning or losing' the war.' Rather, its a sad indictment of British workers who sat on their fat arses for too long during the 60's and 70's and thought the world owed us a living.
While we had people going on strike at the drop of a hat, making shoddy equipment etc (look at the british car industry when BMW were just a 'quirky' foreign car manufacturer) and you can see the seeds of just why foreign companies now own so much of our infrastructure.
But hey ho, each to their own.
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I find the reference to 'who won (the war?) to be rather offensive, especially today tbh. I dont have a clue just why some folk seem to think this has anything to do with winning or losing' the war.' Rather, its a sad indictment of British workers who sat on their fat arses for too long during the 60's and 70's and thought the world owed us a living.
While we had people going on strike at the drop of a hat, making shoddy equipment etc (look at the british car industry when BMW were just a 'quirky' foreign car manufacturer) and you can see the seeds of just why foreign companies now own so much of our infrastructure.
But hey ho, each to their own.
:-))
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tbh, some will find something offensive no matter what, in anything anyone does or says..
Personally I think that those we remembered today would not be pleased with the way this country is going..I know my Grandfather was,nt and that was over 20 years ago..
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As far as I understand it, on the rail network all messages relating to safety (so that's pretty much everything on a railway) have to be made in English. So the safe training and mentoring for using equipment that could (if used incorrectly) result in accident or injury to the operator, his colleagues, the infrastructure, or the public - should therefore always be in English O0
Dave
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Does that mean that all those foreign workers working for 'British Railways' are taught English? <*<
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Sorry Brian. I'm sad to say it hasn't been 'British Railways' for a long time.
Ali.
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Nettleyned said
'The excuse for the first accident will be 'The operator interpreted the instructions wrongly'
Well if an employer says that (as they have control of the training and have recieved concerns from the RMT) it might be reasonable to say 'excuse'.
For the operator (who relies entirely on the employers training, and whose union has already questioned the safety of the process) I think the word 'reason' is more applicable
or at the worst 'contributory factor'
I'm not having a pop but just thought it was worth making the distinction
Dave
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This seems very strange to me because where I work we have German, Spanish and Italian plastic bottle blowing machines and all of them will operate in whatever language you care to choose, once you select it in the menu.
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I absolutely agree with you Tony
Dave
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hmm...think I'll sell my Mercedes.
We have Mercedes ambulances here in Brisbane, catch is they are made by "KIA" and badged as Mercedes. <:( <:( <:(
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We have Mercedes ambulances in Wollongong too O0
I have seen them lined up at the Mercedes service center for days & days ..........maybe waiting for Daywoo parts? {-)........................................................................................ %) Derek
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My Ssangyong Musso, has a 5 cylinder Merc????engine,made under liscence in Korea,
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Following on from the original
If the railways had bought Russian, from say Lada (incidently that's Russian for ship :-)) )would the operators also have to learn Cyrillac script to operate the machines control panels %%
(http://s10.postimage.org/8r6wjhoyt/keyboard.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/8r6wjhoyt/)
Dave
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Having Russian letters all over the controls would be bad enough, but it would be a mercy that the train was not French.
The winners were the bankers and their mates who started the problems sometime in the 19th century.
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I have to drive trains built in Derby by Bombardier and they are far from perfect. It's no wonder Siemens won the bid to build the new trains.
The railway I work for will be run by the Dutch from February and on the freight side, EWS used to be owned by an American company.
Since privatisation there has been foreign interests in our railway.
That's Business I suppose.
Ali.
Siemens products are not that good. They hide behind the Myth " Made in Germany" as quality. In fact there trains, the ICE for example breakdown, loose wheels, fracture axles (the ICE Rolling Stock have to have monthly X Ray checks on their axles, instead of the promised 200K kms checks, which has resulted in 30% of the trains are not in Service)and derail so often that it rarely makes the News. Also the practise of the German Media to never critisise German products openly, only report negative reports of other Countries , makes the matter worse. Siemens will deliver, late, the end price will be over 40% more than that quoted, and they will be plagued with problems, all of which will be blamed on the Brits. As an example of Siemens "Forward Thinking" how about an Air Conditioning System that switches OFF when the outside temperatur exceeds 30°C? That is what Siemens installed in their latest model of the ICE !!
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Well on that bombshell, More money wasted on behalf of the British tax payer then.
Ali.
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Also the practise of the German Media to never critisise German products openly, only report negative reports of other Countries
Maybe our Media should take note !!
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Maybe our government should too!
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Also the practise of the German Media to never critisise German products openly, only report negative reports of other Countries , makes the matter worse.
Sorry Nordsee, though I agree with most of the rest of your statement I must say that this is absolute "xxxxx".
I cannot imagine any other industrial nation and their media being more technophobic than us Germans.
Wallowing in continuous concerns and criticism about all possible sorts of hazards and negative side-effects of almost any modern technology is the sheer prime issue of German media.