Società Nazionale Officine di Savigliano (SNOS), also known as Savigliano, was one of the most prestigious Italian industrial companies of the twentieth century. It had interests in many sectors including mechanical and electrical engineering. It was founded in Turin on 17 July 1880, with a share capital of one million lire, with the aim of undertaking the "construction and repair of railway material, metal bridges, canopies, mechanical, electrical and aeronautical constructions as well as woodworking. generally".

History

The origins of Savigliano are intertwined with those of one of the first

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

ese railway companies, the

Società della Ferrovia Torino-Cuneo ''Società'' (Italian: ''Society'') was an Italian communist cultural magazine published in Italy between 1945 and 1961. History and profile ''Società'' was founded as a quarterly magazine in Florence in 1945. The founders were Ranuccio Bianch ...

, which had built a workshop for the maintenance and repair of its rolling stock next to

Savigliano Savigliano () is a of Piedmont, Northern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo, about south of Turin by rail. It is home to ironworks, foundries, locomotive works (once owned by Fiat Ferroviaria, now by Alstom) and silk manufactures, as well as sugar ...

station. In 1869, with the transfer of ownership of the line to the Società per le Ferrovie dell'Alta Italia (SFAI), the workshop was closed. On 14 December 1879, the municipality of Savigliano signed a memorandum of understanding with the SFAI, pledging to pay a considerable sum of money, and rented the abandoned workshop of the Turin-Cuneo railway to a Belgian company building railway material, enabling it to resume activity.

Production

On 17 July 1880 the Società Nazionale Officine di Savigliano was founded in Turin, with headquarters in Savigliano, which rapidly expanded to take on 640 employees and make a monthly production of over fifty rolling stock units commissioned by various railway companies such as SFAI, Ferrovie Romane and

Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (; ) is a Belgian-founded French company known for providing and operating luxury trains with sleeping car, sleepers and dining cars during the late 19th and the 20th centuries, most notably the ''Orient Express''. Founded by Georges Nagelmacker ...

. The elegant sleeping cars produced for the latter were presented at the Turin Exhibition in 1884. In 1889, SNOS merged with the Società Anonima Italiana Ausiliare, a Turin-based company competing with the related facilities located in Corso Mortara near Torino Dora station. This led to a further expansion of production that, on the threshold of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, also embraced electrical and mechanical machinery as well as metal constructions such as bridges and viaducts in many foreign countries. The period between 1915 and 1918 saw Savigliano strongly engaged in war production with activities in the nascent aeronautical sector, war equipment, cannons and ammunition. The post-war period saw the SNOS engaged in extensive production of large metal structures such as the roof of the new Milan Central station, electromechanical cranes for the major Italian ports and

electric locomotive An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or on-board energy storage such as a Battery (electricity), battery or a supercapacitor. Locomotives with on-board fuelled prime mover (locomotive), ...

s for both

three-phase Three-phase electric power (abbreviated 3ϕ) is a common type of alternating current (AC) used in electricity generation, Electric power transmission, transmission, and Electric power distribution, distribution. It is a type of polyphase system ...

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current that periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time, in contrast to direct current (DC), which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in w ...

and

direct current Direct current (DC) is one-directional electric current, flow of electric charge. An electrochemical cell is a prime example of DC power. Direct current may flow through a conductor (material), conductor such as a wire, but can also flow throug ...

. The Ethiopian campaign had seen it strongly involved both in war production and in the construction of infrastructure of all kinds but, in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

there was greater involvement in sectors such as radio and telephone field transmissions. Like other large industries, Savigliano's plants had suffered war damage but, by 1948, it had resumed supplies to the State Railways that were commissioning the production of rolling stock of all kinds.

Takeover by Fiat

Soon afterwards, Fiat took a shareholding in the company and this gradually increased until FIAT had total corporate control. In 1970, the plants in Turin and Savigliano were separated, the latter becoming

Fiat Ferroviaria Alstom Ferroviaria S.p.A., formerly known as Fiat Ferroviaria S.p.A., is the Italian division of Alstom. Fiat Ferroviaria S.p.A. was the rail division of automobile manufacturer Fiat. It was founded in 1880 as Società Nazionale Officine di Sav ...

Savigliano. Savigliano was then taken over by a group of large electromechanical companies, including

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

, Ercole Marell

and Gio. Ansaldo & C., Ansaldo. In the 1980s, Savigliano became a leader in the electromechanical sector in Italy and the Mediterranean. After other changes of ownership at the end of the twentieth century it becomes Savigliano SpA and this was followed by divestments and downsizing.

High-speed trains

Among the most prestigious constructions of the Savigliano railway plant were the prototypes E.444.001-004, the first high-speed

s of the

Ferrovie dello Stato Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. (; ; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the initialism FS) is Italy's national state-owned enterprise, state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estate service ...

, delivered between 1967 and 1968 with the Savigliano brand, and the electric train ETR.401

progenitor of the

Pendolino Pendolino (from Italian language, Italian "pendulum", and ''-ino,'' a diminutive suffix) is an Italian family of high-speed tilting trains (and non-tilting) used in Italy, Spain, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, the Czech Republic, ...

tilting train A tilting train is a train that has a mechanism enabling increased speed on regular rail tracks. As a train (or other vehicle) rounds a curve at speed, objects inside the train experience centrifugal force. This can cause packages to slide about ...

family, delivered in 1976 with the

FIAT Ferroviaria Alstom Ferroviaria S.p.A., formerly known as Fiat Ferroviaria S.p.A., is the Italian division of Alstom. Fiat Ferroviaria S.p.A. was the rail division of automobile manufacturer Fiat. It was founded in 1880 as Società Nazionale Officine di Sav ...

Savigliano brand following the spin-off from SNOS.

Other notable projects

* 1887-1889: Paderno bridge * 1883: Bridge over the Villoresi canal - road * 1887: Casalmaggiore railway bridge (Brescia - Parma line) * 1892: Bridge on the Po of Cremona - road and rail * 1916: Ponte della Gerola (Casei Gerola - Sannazzaro de 'Burgondi road) * 1916: Ponte di Zimella * 1917: Biplane C.36 * 1925-1928: Ronciglione bridge * 1926: FS Class E.626 locomotive prototypes * 1927-1939: E.626 locomotives * 1950: Ponte della Becca

Sale to Alstom

On 1 August 2000, the prestigious plant was sold to

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

and this marked the final exit of FIAT from the railway sector.