INTRODUCTION

  1.  Alstom UK Ltd is the UK operation of the Alstom Group which develops, designs and manufactures advanced equipment and systems for the electricity supply, rail transport and process control industries together with the associated contracting business. Worldwide, the Group employs (1998-1999) over 110,000 people and has a turnover of around £10 billion. In the UK it has approximately 22,500 employees, a turnover of £1.8 billion and undertakes at specialist research centres at Stafford, Lincoln and Whetstone an important part of the Group's total world-wide R&D activity of some £300 million annually. In the last 10 years its markets have been transformed due to progressive introduction of competition amongst its previously national monopoly customers. It now competes internationally against a small number of powerful multinational competitors on the basis of product performance, cost, and commercial offer.