For traction industry specialist WIRED Overhead Solutions, only one company matters when it comes to quality hi-rail equipment: Manco Rail.
Over the past eight years, WIRED Overhead Solutions (WIRED)
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NSW freight transport driving towards net zero
The New South Wales Government has released a new net zero emissions policy for heavy road and rail freight.
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Pearson gets SRL role in Victorian cabinet reshuffle
The new Victorian cabinet has been sworn in, with new premier Jacinta Allan handing over responsibility for the state’s multi-billion dollar infrastructure program to Danny Pearson.
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METRONET line project filled with public art
With a total of 13 local and Noongar artists engaged to create 15 public art pieces, Western Australia’s METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project has officially set the record for the largest collection commissioned on a METRONET project to date.
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Aurizon launches east coast container services
Aurizon has continued its ramp-up of national interstate container services for customers, with the commencement of the first east coast service.
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John Holland plant fleet provides delivery certainty
The long history of John Holland in rail has seen it become the go-to partner for complex rail construction and maintenance work.
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ARTC works completed at Inland Rail sites
With the Melbourne to Sydney line closed recently, almost 200 workers from the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) and contractor McConnel Dowell worked around the clock to complete a large works program to return the line to operation.
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Martinus plants seeds of railway success
Martinus has been winning railway industry contracts consistently for decades, testament indeed to its professionalism and quality of work that has made the company one of the most well-known names in the sector.
The leading full-service railway infrastructure business specialises in constructing and maintaining large scale railways and intermodals across Australia, New Zealand, Chile and North America.
Australian-owned and operated, Martinus applies its extensive civil and rail knowledge and project management skills to deliver infrastructure solutions for its clients across greenfield and brownfield projects.
Today it runs projects in four core countries, has 17 office locations, with more than $2.7 billion worth of works in hand.
Martinus head of plant and assets, Dave Van Hoos, tells Rail Express that the key to the company’s success and sustainable organic growth was its vertically integrated, self- delivery model.
“Our organic growth can be attributed to a decision made to double down on becoming the railway infrastructure experts and to drive self-delivery of our projects,” he said.
“Martinus has the in-house capability for full turnkey project development of complex railway infrastructure, from feasibility and operational transformation, engineering management, through to project management, construction management, and seamless integration.
“We provide a cost-effective and low-risk solution to clients by streamlining engineering and construction processes.
“As a self-delivery contractor and project developer, we take full responsibility for the entire project, eliminating the need for multiple contractors and suppliers. This simplifies communication and coordination throughout the project lifecycle.
“And a key aspect of this is the investment placed in our plant and equipment.”
Martinus currently has the largest privately owned portfolio of specialist narrow and standard gauge railway plant and equipment in Australia, and continues to invest in it every year.
“Our plant and equipment is vital to our ongoing growth strategy not only in Australia, but in our global core markets of NZ, Chile and North America as well,” Van Hoos said.
“The assets include high production sleeper layers, high production track layers, gantry cranes, combilift straddle carriers, locomotives, wagons, RRV shunters, track laying point systems, tampers, regulators, flashbutt welding units, excavators, rail cranes, PEM-LEMs and the list goes on.”
Van Hoos said there were clear benefits to keep investing heavily in machinery.
“Our experience in delivering large scale, complex railway infrastructure across both greenfield and brownfield environments has taught us that access to a readily available fleet provides several key advantages,” he said.
These include reliability, customisation, cost efficiency, adaptability, project control, and timely delivery.
“It allows us to mobilise quickly all over the country and adapt to the different environments across our regional and urban sites,” Van Hoos said.
“We can just as easily service downtown Brisbane as we can the Pilbara in WA.
“The control we have on our plant and equipment has allowed us to provide industry leading productivity records along the rail corridor, including:
• Ballast placement: 8000 tonnes in 24 hours • Skeleton track: 6000 metres per shift
• 65 flash butt welds per shift on formation
• 15 kilometres tamping per day “Additionally, we are proud of our safety performance record. This is underpinned by a mature and robust rail safety and safety management system through our comprehensive rail accreditation as a Rail Transport Operator (RTO). “Accredited with ONRSR as a Rolling Stock Operator (RSO) and Rail Infrastructure Manager (RIM) in Australia, Martinus operates rolling stock to maintain and construct railway infrastructure, prioritising rail transportation for the movement of construction materials – we build railways from the railway.” Martinus is supported by a dedicated plant and equipment team and workshop in Rocklea, Queensland. “Our in-house plant management team manages the asset lifecycle from procurement and logistics to operations and maintenance,” Van Hoos said. “We are a diverse and multi-skilled team made up of mechanical, electrical and boilermaker/fabricator tradespeople, civil
and rail plant and equipment operators,
and supervisory, management, safety and engineering teams. We are also investing in the next generation of railway experts with an apprenticeship and trainee program. “The plant department is committed to supporting Martinus and the rail industry in providing safe, fit-for-purpose, compliant and reliable plant and equipment to deliver our many complex rail projects.” Read More
• 65 flash butt welds per shift on formation
• 15 kilometres tamping per day “Additionally, we are proud of our safety performance record. This is underpinned by a mature and robust rail safety and safety management system through our comprehensive rail accreditation as a Rail Transport Operator (RTO). “Accredited with ONRSR as a Rolling Stock Operator (RSO) and Rail Infrastructure Manager (RIM) in Australia, Martinus operates rolling stock to maintain and construct railway infrastructure, prioritising rail transportation for the movement of construction materials – we build railways from the railway.” Martinus is supported by a dedicated plant and equipment team and workshop in Rocklea, Queensland. “Our in-house plant management team manages the asset lifecycle from procurement and logistics to operations and maintenance,” Van Hoos said. “We are a diverse and multi-skilled team made up of mechanical, electrical and boilermaker/fabricator tradespeople, civil
and rail plant and equipment operators,
and supervisory, management, safety and engineering teams. We are also investing in the next generation of railway experts with an apprenticeship and trainee program. “The plant department is committed to supporting Martinus and the rail industry in providing safe, fit-for-purpose, compliant and reliable plant and equipment to deliver our many complex rail projects.” Read More
The key to reducing carbon footprint
Key Source Rail chief executive officer David Gallagher chats with Rail Express about the plant and equipment that the company provides to the rail industry in Australia and New Zealand, particularly impacting carbon.
Key Source Rail is an end-to-end railway maintenance plant and equipment and parts supplier and railway solutions consultant, with offices and workshops in Midland, Western Australia, Brisbane, Queensland, and Newcastle, New South Wales.
Boasting extensive railway wagon and locomotive building experience, the business oversees the design, manufacture, quality control and commissioning of freight and ore wagons, ballast wagons, grain hoppers, crew cars and locomotives for the Australian and overseas markets.
And that means the company literally does it all, as its motto goes, from the
largest infrastructure owner to the smallest maintenance provider. It’s backed by more than 120 years of combined in-house experience in rail operation, rail maintenance equipment, track laying, wagon building, rolling stock and wheel-set maintenance. A significant development at Key Source Rail has been its focus on decarbonisation, sustainability and reduced carbon emissions products. The main product here has been the supply of Rosehill rubber crossings to the Australian and New Zealand rail industry. Gallagher said Key Source Rail was also the exclusive distributor for the Geismar range of railway maintenance plant and equipment in Australia. Geismar is a recognised world leader in the manufacture of equipment and services for track laying, rail maintenance and track measurement and recording. “And we are supplier of BTI hard wearing tungsten carbide tamping tines, ballast wear plates and undercutter bars and chains,” Gallagher said. As mentioned, another notch in the belt is Key Source’s ownership of sole distribution rights in Australia and New Zealand for Rosehill removable crossings. “We have overseen the supply and installation of these from the harsh conditions of the Pilbara to inner city, suburban and regional county installations in Victoria, WA and New South Wales,” Gallagher said. A feature he’s particularly proud of is Key Source Rail’s commitment to environmentally- friendly operations and products. “The railway industry has seen a recent committed focus towards environmentally responsible applications, particularly within the railway plant and equipment and maintenance arenas,” Gallagher said. “The industry has undergone significant change over the last few years largely in the two environmental areas of reducing carbon footprint and industry sustainability. “Key Source Rail has embraced these moves and, working with our suppliers, have focused on these two issues.” Meanwhile, the sustainability aspect is exemplified by the Rosehill rubber crossings, which are made from recycled tyres, instead of traditional bitumen and concrete for the surface. “Large railway owners are turning to this product and embracing this as a greener, more sustainable solution for pedestrian, vehicular and track access panels and crossings,” Gallagher said. “Rosehill panels are made from recycled tyres through a cold mould pressing process that produces a solid rubber, non-laminated product that does not crack, chip or delaminate. “The panels are produced to suit the profile of the sleeper design supplied by the customer. Rosehill panels are designed for a variety of installations ranging from pedestrian crossings, Rail Road Access Pads (RRAPS), medium duty crossings through to the heavy duty and extreme heavy duty Titan crossing panel used in extreme load and weather conditions found in the iron ore and other heavy duty mining industries.” Rosehill field panels can be produced in standard widths to fit between the outside web of the rail to the end of the sleeper, or in a wide configuration, extending past the end of the sleeper and supported by a solid rubber edge beam to allow for additional clearance for maintenance of way tamping operations. Key Source Rail oversaw the installation of a heavy duty crossing on the technologically- advanced Rio Tinto Gudai-Darri project in the Pilbara, which endures extremely heavy traffic. Crossings have also been placed for Metro Trains Melbourne and the Sydney train network. “Large rail owners and miners are starting to realise the value of installing these removable panels that enable easier track maintenance and jewellery inspection, and have the added green value of using recycled materials to replace concrete and bitumen,” Gallagher said. “We are addressing the second issue, the decarbonisation initiative, by promoting new environmentally responsible technology such as the Geismar Activion battery-powered range of equipment. “This electric-powered rechargeable technology is proving itself overseas, particularly in tunnel work and built-up residential areas where we get the additional bonus of having zero greenhouse gas emissions as well as reduced noise issues. On top of this we have the occupational, health and safety bonus of not exposing the operator to exhaust fumes.” WAGONS, LOCOMOTIVES AND
BRAKE VALVE OVERHAUL Key Source Rail has assisted in the management of manufacture and the procurement of wagons and locomotives in Australia and overseas. “We have a team of onsite inspectors based in China that carry out total production coverage. We are well versed in the needs of the country that the rolling stock is entering,” Gallagher said. Some of the types of wagons include flat cars, well wagons, five pack wagons, grain hoppers, tanker wagons for fuel cartage, crew cars and gondola wagons for ore cartage. Ballast wagons that Key Source Rail delivered to Martinus. “Evidence of the quality of our product can be seen in the 40 radio-controlled ballast wagons that we delivered to Martinus Rail last year,” Gallagher said. “The pneumatics and hydraulics were all manufactured in Australia and fitted overseas and the wagons were delivered into Queensland in 2021, and are state-of-the-art pieces of ballast laying equipment. “Key Source Rail also carries a large range of rolling stock consumable parts, including Chinese 150 brake system components and bogie springs, wear plates, adaptors, and the like. We also have a brake valve overhaul facility in Newcastle that will soon be able to inspect, service and overhaul various brake valves.” WHEELS IN MOTION The company runs its own wheelshop in Midvale, Perth, that has been established purely for railway wheelset maintenance, including re-wheel, reprofile, new assembly and bearing inspection. It has successfully undergone and passed extensive audit by wheelset owners across the industry and has been accredited to ISO 9001:2015. “We remove all package bearings from wheelsets ranging from 50t to 130t axle load and overhaul and refit.,” Gallagher said. “This includes stripping and overhaul of axlebox wheelsets for all freight and track machine wheelsets. “Part of our process is to inspect all axles to customer-specific specifications. We use temperature compensating measuring equipment for all bearing journal measuring. “Our wheelshop facility has the capacity to reprofile to any customer requested profile, eg ANZR-1, WPR2000, LW3, including all the various Pilbara requirements, including narrow gauge and standard gauge wheelsets. “We are equipped to dis-assemble and assemble wheels on freight and track machine wheelsets to customers’ requirements, including the machining of wheelseats and boring of wheels. “Being a relatively small yet versatile wheelshop, we can offer competitive rates and quick turnaround times to keep customers on the right track.” Read More
largest infrastructure owner to the smallest maintenance provider. It’s backed by more than 120 years of combined in-house experience in rail operation, rail maintenance equipment, track laying, wagon building, rolling stock and wheel-set maintenance. A significant development at Key Source Rail has been its focus on decarbonisation, sustainability and reduced carbon emissions products. The main product here has been the supply of Rosehill rubber crossings to the Australian and New Zealand rail industry. Gallagher said Key Source Rail was also the exclusive distributor for the Geismar range of railway maintenance plant and equipment in Australia. Geismar is a recognised world leader in the manufacture of equipment and services for track laying, rail maintenance and track measurement and recording. “And we are supplier of BTI hard wearing tungsten carbide tamping tines, ballast wear plates and undercutter bars and chains,” Gallagher said. As mentioned, another notch in the belt is Key Source’s ownership of sole distribution rights in Australia and New Zealand for Rosehill removable crossings. “We have overseen the supply and installation of these from the harsh conditions of the Pilbara to inner city, suburban and regional county installations in Victoria, WA and New South Wales,” Gallagher said. A feature he’s particularly proud of is Key Source Rail’s commitment to environmentally- friendly operations and products. “The railway industry has seen a recent committed focus towards environmentally responsible applications, particularly within the railway plant and equipment and maintenance arenas,” Gallagher said. “The industry has undergone significant change over the last few years largely in the two environmental areas of reducing carbon footprint and industry sustainability. “Key Source Rail has embraced these moves and, working with our suppliers, have focused on these two issues.” Meanwhile, the sustainability aspect is exemplified by the Rosehill rubber crossings, which are made from recycled tyres, instead of traditional bitumen and concrete for the surface. “Large railway owners are turning to this product and embracing this as a greener, more sustainable solution for pedestrian, vehicular and track access panels and crossings,” Gallagher said. “Rosehill panels are made from recycled tyres through a cold mould pressing process that produces a solid rubber, non-laminated product that does not crack, chip or delaminate. “The panels are produced to suit the profile of the sleeper design supplied by the customer. Rosehill panels are designed for a variety of installations ranging from pedestrian crossings, Rail Road Access Pads (RRAPS), medium duty crossings through to the heavy duty and extreme heavy duty Titan crossing panel used in extreme load and weather conditions found in the iron ore and other heavy duty mining industries.” Rosehill field panels can be produced in standard widths to fit between the outside web of the rail to the end of the sleeper, or in a wide configuration, extending past the end of the sleeper and supported by a solid rubber edge beam to allow for additional clearance for maintenance of way tamping operations. Key Source Rail oversaw the installation of a heavy duty crossing on the technologically- advanced Rio Tinto Gudai-Darri project in the Pilbara, which endures extremely heavy traffic. Crossings have also been placed for Metro Trains Melbourne and the Sydney train network. “Large rail owners and miners are starting to realise the value of installing these removable panels that enable easier track maintenance and jewellery inspection, and have the added green value of using recycled materials to replace concrete and bitumen,” Gallagher said. “We are addressing the second issue, the decarbonisation initiative, by promoting new environmentally responsible technology such as the Geismar Activion battery-powered range of equipment. “This electric-powered rechargeable technology is proving itself overseas, particularly in tunnel work and built-up residential areas where we get the additional bonus of having zero greenhouse gas emissions as well as reduced noise issues. On top of this we have the occupational, health and safety bonus of not exposing the operator to exhaust fumes.” WAGONS, LOCOMOTIVES AND
BRAKE VALVE OVERHAUL Key Source Rail has assisted in the management of manufacture and the procurement of wagons and locomotives in Australia and overseas. “We have a team of onsite inspectors based in China that carry out total production coverage. We are well versed in the needs of the country that the rolling stock is entering,” Gallagher said. Some of the types of wagons include flat cars, well wagons, five pack wagons, grain hoppers, tanker wagons for fuel cartage, crew cars and gondola wagons for ore cartage. Ballast wagons that Key Source Rail delivered to Martinus. “Evidence of the quality of our product can be seen in the 40 radio-controlled ballast wagons that we delivered to Martinus Rail last year,” Gallagher said. “The pneumatics and hydraulics were all manufactured in Australia and fitted overseas and the wagons were delivered into Queensland in 2021, and are state-of-the-art pieces of ballast laying equipment. “Key Source Rail also carries a large range of rolling stock consumable parts, including Chinese 150 brake system components and bogie springs, wear plates, adaptors, and the like. We also have a brake valve overhaul facility in Newcastle that will soon be able to inspect, service and overhaul various brake valves.” WHEELS IN MOTION The company runs its own wheelshop in Midvale, Perth, that has been established purely for railway wheelset maintenance, including re-wheel, reprofile, new assembly and bearing inspection. It has successfully undergone and passed extensive audit by wheelset owners across the industry and has been accredited to ISO 9001:2015. “We remove all package bearings from wheelsets ranging from 50t to 130t axle load and overhaul and refit.,” Gallagher said. “This includes stripping and overhaul of axlebox wheelsets for all freight and track machine wheelsets. “Part of our process is to inspect all axles to customer-specific specifications. We use temperature compensating measuring equipment for all bearing journal measuring. “Our wheelshop facility has the capacity to reprofile to any customer requested profile, eg ANZR-1, WPR2000, LW3, including all the various Pilbara requirements, including narrow gauge and standard gauge wheelsets. “We are equipped to dis-assemble and assemble wheels on freight and track machine wheelsets to customers’ requirements, including the machining of wheelseats and boring of wheels. “Being a relatively small yet versatile wheelshop, we can offer competitive rates and quick turnaround times to keep customers on the right track.” Read More
New rail bridge towers over Surf Coast Highway
Work on rail projects in Victoria’s south-west are making major progress, including the installation of a 105-metre elevated rail bridge at Surf Coast Highway in Geelong.
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