Kawasaki Heavy Industries &amp; CSR Qingdao Sifang C151AKawasaki Heavy Industries &amp; CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A The Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A is the fourth generation electric multiple unit rolling stock in operation on the North South and East West lines of Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) and CRRC Qingdao Sifang under Contract 151A. Their introduction to the network has increased the capacity of both lines by 15%. They are the last batch of rolling stock on the two lines to be painted in the original livery. Developed from the KNS C751B sets, further developments of the type include  the C151B and C151C featuring design updates and changes. The C151A is the first rolling stock on the MRT which are manufactured by a Chinese company. The initial contract of 22 trainsets of 6 cars each was awarded to KHI and Sifang by the Land Transport Authority. In 2013, a further order of 13 trainsets under was placed, with all 35 trainsets in revenue service as of 2014. On 5 July 2016, an investigative news report from FactWire alleged that C151A trainsets were being shipped back to Qingdao for rectification due to multiple defects, including an exploding battery and cracks  on trains, but without notifying the public beforehand. The Singapore government subsequently acknowledged the trains were returned for rectification works, and have since published official statements to address FactWire's specific allegations. History. On May 6, 2009, the Land Transport Authority announced that KHI and Sifang had won over Hyundai Rotem, Bombardier Transportation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to secure the contract at a cost of S$369 million, despite Hyundai Rotem offering the lowest bid at S$323 million for the order of 22 trainsets under Batch 1. Sifang handled the manufacturing and testing of the rolling stock, while KHI oversaw the  project and design. The C151A contract was the first successful joint venture between these two companies in the international market. Tender. The tender for trains under the contract turnkey 151A was closed in January 2009. The tender results were published in May 2009. Equipment. Main propulsion controller. The C151A trains are the third commuter type Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) made in Japan to feature electric systems fully manufactured by Fuji Electric. Propulsion is controlled by VVVF Inverter with 2-level IGBT semiconductor controller, rated at 415 kV. Each inverter unit controls two motors on one bogie (1C2M), and one  motor car features two of such units. Motors are three-phrase AC induction type, model MLR109, with a maximum output of 140 kW. However, the main difference is that the traction for the trains is high pitch than the ones from C751B trains which are a low pitch. Bogies. The C151A trains use the monolink axle box type bolsterless air spring bogie. There are no major technical differences between a trailer and motor car bogie other than additional electrical components for the latter. Auxiliary systems. A break from tradition, the C151A trains features auxiliary inverters for its electrical systems on  all six cars of the train. Previously, auxiliary inverters were mounted only on motor cars. The VVVF Inverter is controlled by IGBT semiconductors and rated at 80 kV. A battery charger is built with the inverter and provides 16 kW output. Train formation. The configuration of a C151A in revenue service is DT-M1-M2-M2-M1-DT The car numbers of the trains range from x501 to x570, where x depends on the carriage type. Individual cars are assigned a 4 digit serial number. A complete six-car trainset consists of an identical twin set of one driving trailer(DT ) and two motor cars(M1 & M2) permanently coupled together. For example, set 501/502 consists of carriages 3501, 1501, 2501, 2502, 1502 and 3502. Line disruptions. After the 15 & 17 December disruptions, SMRT suspected that the extra weight from the train might have caused the disruptions. The C151As were temporarily suspended from running the full-day North South Line from January 2012 to November 2013. However, the Committee Of Inquiry (COI) report released to the public on 4 July 2012, concluded no evidence to suggest that 4th generation trains (the C151A trains) were responsible for the incident. After the suspension of service  on 7 July 2015, which was the worst breakdown in SMRT history, SMRT engineers detected arcing problems on one of the C151As, but no evidence was shown that it was the root cause of the service suspension. Joo Koon train accident. On 15 November 2017 at approximately 8.18am, 2 C151A trains collided at Joo Koon MRT station. 29 passengers were conveyed to various hospitals following the incident and a further 7 walked in themselves. This is the second of such incidents after 5 August 1993, with the first being when 2 C151 trains collided at Clementi. Operational problems. On 5  July 2016, a Hong Kong-based non-profit news organization FactWire had broken the news of the C151A trains suffering from multiple defects relating to Chinese-made materials and posted the entire investigative works in YouTube. Factwire allegations. These are the list of allegations mentioned in their YouTube video "since C151A entered into revenue service in 2011" (27 May 2011). This list compiles the initial response from the authorities are compiled from the first SMRT press release on 5 July 2016, 4:30pm (GMT+8) by SMRT Trains managing director Lee Ling Wee as well as the first Land Transport Authority press  release at an hour after first SMRT's press release. and also the subsequent official position on Singapore government's online FAQ portal 'Factually' which quotes sources from the Facebook page of Land Transport Authority hours after the initial press release. Reactions. This incident was a source of public concern among Hong Kongers because subway operator MTR had ordered fleets of a new train from the same manufacturer CSR Sifang. The news was quickly reported in other Hong Kong media. The incident also created a public uproar in Singapore, generating a public reaction. Some of these discussions included criticism of  the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT for the cover-up about the defective trains, while others questioned the quality of the Chinese-made trains. The LTA released more technical details on 6 July 2016 claiming that 5 of the 26 defective trains had been rectified, including photos illustrating the 'hair-line crack'. The authority also named an independent third-party assessor, TUV Rheinland who shared the same opinion that the defects are "not safety-critical". During the same period, a rumour posted on 4 February 2015 alleging misconduct of CSR Sifang faking technical data involving almost 70 people from  multiple departments since November 2010 for failing to meet the standards set by Kawasaki Heavy Industries gained traction amongst the public. The consortium refuted the rumor on 7 July 2016 and threatened to take legal actions. The LTA also publicly dismissed the allegations in a press statement. The link to the original rumor was deleted soon after the response from the authorities. On 7 July 2016, the LTA also stated that "no brackets were added at any time to the underframe" in order to refute a subsequent FactWire report claim. LTA also stated that it "considered that the contractor was  able to quickly identify the cause of the defects, take responsibility and carry out the necessary action promptly to rectify the fault" and gave the consortium the "highest quality score" as the basis for awarded them subsequent train contracts (C151C and CT251) in 2015 despite the defects were discovered since. The contract for C151B trains had been awarded to the same consortium in 2012, prior to the knowledge about the faults being known. On 9 July 2016, a Singapore-based alternative media republished a CaiXin Online article originally published in March 2016 by the China Railway Construction Corporation blaming the  China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation for the decline of quality standards. According to the former, 60% of all railway incidents in China and 90% of all railway disruptions during 2015 can be attributed to CRRC manufactured trains not meeting quality or maintenance standards, with 210 instances resulting in death or injuries. The equivalent of the English article is also provided by CaiXin Online as well. Political furor in Singapore. The incident became a political issue as opposition politician Gerald Giam from the Workers' Party questioned the transport authority for awarding the consortium a "top quality score", among other statements in  his Facebook page. The party later issued a second statement that their MPs would file 17 questions in Parliament about the issue. Official statement from Transport Minister. On 12 July 2016, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan released an extensive statement about this issue. These are the key points that Khaw have made: Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A The Kawasaki Heavy Industries & CSR Qingdao Sifang C151A is the fourth generation electric multiple unit rolling stock in operation on the North South and East West lines of Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI