Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1546383
50 SMT007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2026 fabrication, EMS operations, and chip assembly in southern Mexico and along the U.S.-Mexico manufacturing corridor. Though the CIIT may have found its place and time in the global distribution networks, the CIIT is not new. Instead, it has a long history marked by multiple swings of fortune. The current CIIT, long known as Line Z, is an old interoceanic railway. The present-day Line Z of the Tren Interoceánico now runs between Coat- zacoalcos, Veracruz, and Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, across the Isthmus of Tehu- antepec, but the route dates to the 19th century. The core idea has always been to use the Isthmus of Tehuan- tepec as Mexico's shortest overland bridge between the Gulf/Atlantic side and the Pacific. In the 19th century, this allowed ships and cargo to avoid the long route around South America via the Strait of Magellan. The first effort in 1842 produced studies but no functioning railway. Throughout the mid-19th century, a series of Mexican, British, French, and U.S.-linked promoters sought concessions, but the projects stalled due to challenges including finan- cial constraints, sovereignty disputes, geographic and climatic conditions, and labor difficulties. Consequently, actual construc- tion took decades. The first project, headed by Eduardo Learned, built only 35 km; later, Delfín Sánchez added 73 km, and Edward MacMurdo and Salvador Malo helped bring the line to about 251 km by 1893. In 1894, under the control of the Mexican govern- ment, the first through service was achieved. But because the line had been built in partial segments, and at different times, it struggled. It did not help that the ports at both ends lacked adequate maritime infrastructure. 3 Figure 1: The CIIT's route over the Mexican isthmus.