Case Study: Bombardier achieves faster, cross‑divisional breakthrough innovation with HYPE Innovation's "Innovation Express"

Bombardier looks to the next generation of mobility with HYPE

Bombardier Transportation, the global leader in rail manufacturing with ~34,900 employees and an installed base of 100,000 vehicles in 60+ countries, faced mounting pressure from low‑cost Chinese competitors and fragmented innovation. Innovation was siloed across six divisions and multiple R&D groups with no consolidated idea management, so Bombardier needed a way to drive breakthrough, cross‑divisional solutions to protect market share and accelerate growth.

To address this, Bombardier rolled out a branded HYPE platform, “Innovation Express,” running board‑sponsored R&D “cases” and focused idea campaigns to unite expertise across divisions. In seven months the program grew participation from ~2,000 to 5,000, produced over 500 ideas across 11 campaigns (about 570 overall), increased engagement 2.5×, improved information sharing by 30%, and began channeling ideas into new products from 2012.

Bombardier

Martin Ertl

Chief Innovation Officer