Remote operations have always presented the toughest maintenance challenges for the Australian rail industry, none more pressing than a damaged wheel set hundreds of kilometres from a major city.
When an essential locomotive breaks down with wheel damage, the traditional solution – lifting the asset, dismantling the bogie, shipping the wheel sets to a capital city workshop, and reassembling – can translate to an outage of three to six weeks, costing operators millions and impacting everything from mining schedules to freight delivery.
Rail companies are searching for innovative, rapid-response solutions to keep core assets moving, and one Australian business is providing exactly that by taking the workshop to the wheel.
NGL Rail, leveraging its extensive background in logistics and project management, has established itself as a provider of end-to-end rolling stock maintenance and repair services.
The team, comprising locomotive electricians, mechanical fitters, boiler makers, and trade assistants, offers a range of services, including locomotive overhauls, recovery of stranded assets, and final wagon assembly. The newest addition to this offering is a state-of-the-art portable wheel lathe.
The technology was developed in partnership with an international manufacturer, focusing on major design improvements from previous portable units, including reduced weight and improved reliability for operation in harsh environments.
Jock Maxwell, Manager – Rail Services at NGL, said the portable lathe was designed to solve the problem of captive fleets, such as those used by mining operators in remote South Australia or the Pilbara.
“The challenge for a locomotive in a captive fleet is that they can’t access a workshop for wheel maintenance, which means they have to lift the locomotive and remove the wheel sets and traction motors out of the bogie frames, and then send them off to an external provider to be machined,” said Maxwell.
“That can be a three to six-week process. You’re breaking the equipment apart, which also imposes additional concerns over the equipment’s reliability when you’re constantly pulling it apart and putting it back together.
“By contrast, we can be there and do that entire job within a week, even when it’s scheduled maintenance. We essentially eliminate the costly exercise of lifting and transporting to a workshop.”
The wheel lathe works in conjunction with a Calipri laser measurement tool. This laser gauge removes the interpretation and human error of traditional manual measurements, providing an accurate, digital reading of the wheel profile.
Maxwell said that by using this laser wheel measurement technology, the NGL team can ensure it removes only the minimal amount of material necessary to return the wheel to its true profile.
Using the laser also helps operators optimise their maintenance schedules. The data collected can be used as a tool for predictive and scheduled maintenance routines, helping customers maintain traceability for compliance and incident review.
“We had a customer book us in to do a wheel lathe job for them, but when we got to the site with the Calipri they didn’t actually need a wheel turn,” said Maxwell.
Crucially, the portable lathe enhances site safety, such as removing the need for high-risk lifting operations involving a 130-tonne locomotive to recover a damaged wheel set in the field.
Maxwell said that for a track maintenance operator on a major metropolitan network, the ability to have their wheels machined on-site during their regular four-day maintenance shutdown saves a week of lost asset time and helps them avoid contractual penalties.
Similarly, a mining operator with a small, remote captive fleet no longer faces a month-long shutdown while their wheel sets are shipped by barge, machined, and returned.
NGL Rail aims to expand this service to meet the national demand. The company plans to position one wheel lathe on the East Coast and one on the West Coast permanently.
Maxwell said the team’s comprehensive rail experience, whether it’s commissioning in the Pilbara, overhaul assessments and reviews, or shipping rolling stock around the world, makes NGL a unique, full-service partner for the rail industry.
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