Our Dublin based Global Rail Services Ltd team is delighted to announce the promotion of Donal Kelly to Senior MEP Manager.

The promotion is validation of the expertise and dedication Donal has provided over the last 10 years – support that has been instrumental in the success across the rail, mechanical and electrical operations in Ireland.

His role going forward will involve project tendering, project team organisation and project managing key contracts throughout Ireland, supporting staff, and acting as senior liaison for clients.

Donal will be supporting MEP Director Aidan Kelly, to deliver sustainable MEP management solutions in line with both client and business requirements.

Aidan Kelly, MEP Director for Global Rail Services Limited said:

“Donal is a high calibre Senior Project Manager. We are delighted to promote him and look forward to his support of Global Rail Services’ future growth and prosperity.”

Mechanical & electrical services provided by Global Rail Services are constantly upgraded through training and development and are consistently delivered to the highest specification. Design and project management of these specialist services are deployed on a wide range of rail, utilities and energy projects including:

• Commercial and industrial
• Private domestic
• Bespoke installations
• Site enabling field works
• Fibre splicing & copper jointing
• Clean earth systems
• Telecom and signalling room fit outs
• Electrical maintenance
• Access and security systems including CCTV
• Fire alarms
• Lighting control systems
• Building management & control

As part of a competitive tendering process and through its house resources & design capabilities from both civil and electrical perspective, Global Rail Services Ltd were awarded a contract for the design and build of 150kW charge points at five Irish Rail Stations, Sallins/Nass, Tralee, Dundalk, Westport and Bray.

With the previous successful D&B delivery of EV fast chargers for taxis on a previous contract for Irish Rail at three separate locations, Global Rail Services are becoming a supplier of choice for Irish Rail in its expansion of EV charging capabilities.

The works are in support of the Irish government through its state body, the NTA (National Transport Authority) to expand the growth of electric vehicles (EV).

On completion, each station will be equipped with a 150kW rapid charge point and all necessary site infrastructure to provide a seamless charging experience for EV drivers. This investment in EV charging infrastructure, is an important step towards making Ireland’s fleet greener and more sustainable.

The design and installation of these fast-charging stations involves the detailed design of duct routes and chambers in roadways, pathways, and car parks. Electrical works, including the provision and installation of electrical charging units and ESB units.

The works at each railway station include:

• 150kW DC rapid charge point
• Electrical supply equipment
• Groundworks and trenching of roadway
• Construction of ESBN substation reinforced concrete bases
• Signposts and safety bollards
• Car space painting

The individual charge points will include a dual outlet with the charging output shared between one CHAdeMO and one CCS connector, with the option to upgrade to CCS in the future if requirements change. These charging points will also have the ability to load share across the two sockets.

Progress to date the civil works are complete in four of the five sites with Tralee being almost complete. Cable installation has been completed in four of the five sites also, with Tralee the only site remaining. Line marking has been carried out at two of the five sites with the three remaining sites anticipated to be completed in the next two weeks. Commissioning of each unit will take place as soon as the ESB Networks metering team installs 3 phase meters and energises each metering cabinet, this is due to be completed within the next 4 weeks. The project is on track to be finished by the end of May. This is great news for EV taxi drivers who will soon have access to fast-charging stations at key locations throughout the country.

Global Rail Services is committed to supporting the transition to clean energy and reducing the country’s carbon footprint. The installation of these rapid charge points is just the beginning of a larger effort to make Ireland’s public transportation system more environmentally friendly.

In conclusion, the government’s provision for new EV fast-charging stations and Irish Rail’s partnership with Global Rail Services is a positive step towards a cleaner, greener future for Ireland.

A new accessibility footbridge at Gormanston Railway Station has been opened to the public on the 27th February 2023.

The project teams from both Irish Rail and Global Rail Services are to be praised for the safe project execution and high-quality result, particularly as all works were completed on or adjacent to an existing high speed railway line with minimal disruption to passengers or trains.

The substructure works included the installation of 10m deep SFA, nominal 350mm diameter piles, in situ reinforced concrete retaining walls and foundations and below ground utilities to tie the new facility into existing, drainage, lighting, power, CCTV and fire systems. The ESB power supply also had to upgraded due to limited capacity and for future proofing purposes.

The superstructure installation covered new precast concrete lift shafts, stairs, and bridges, the erection of structural steel cladding, a roof, glazing and handrails. The lift shafts were additionally encapsulated using a ‘euro brick’ cladding system.

Upon completion of the main works, Global Rail Services in-house teams, managed the Mechanical and Electrical installations including new platform lighting, re-wiring of the station CCTV system, new PA systems and power.

The success of this high-profile project highlights the multi-disciplinary rail engineering prowess of the Global Rail Services team, offering infrastructure clients a capable, one-stop turnkey service for managed Civil and Structural Engineering, Building, Mechanical and Electrical rail engineering projects.

We would like to send a huge thank you to all those involved for this incredibly impressive effort. As a team, we have delivered with a high level of diligence in order to make this project a success for Irish Rail and the local community.

Global Rail Services has been commissioned by Irish Rail to complete the installation of telecoms towers and monopoles including associated civils and electrical works to facilitate the roll out of the GSM-R project as part of the GSMR 3A Civils works package 2 on the Dublin to Cork railway line for Irish Rail. 19No sites in total were completed by Global Rail Services.

As part of this major program of the works, the team at Global Rail Services has recently completed a complex 15m monopole tower project in Cork.

Due to the limited area on site, a large bulk excavation was completed, which then required an engineering retaining support system to be installed prior to commencement of the Mast base location works at this site. This consisted of a large gabion basket structure to retain the existing ground profile prior to the start of the excavation.

The 1.5m excavation was completed adjacent to the rail line under lookout protection, 3m away from the running rail. Global Rail Services installed a 300mm lean mix layer below the base. The steel reinforced foundation cage was installed on site – 3.5m x 3.5m and 1.2m deep. Peri shutters were used to cast the foundation base. All concrete on site was pumped.

All associated ducting for ESB and fibre works were completed as per specification. Fibre works were completed at night under T111 possessions, road railers and rail dumpers were used to install 2No precast JB4A manholes and 45m of ducting over existing fibre, which was completed to connect to the Irish Rail network based in NTCC in Dublin.

Palisade fencing and gates were also completed to create a standalone Telecoms compound.

A crane hard standing area was then constructed to lift the new Monopole into location. Our rigging team completed installation of the 15-metre monopole, which due to the proximity of the track and the requirements for safe working was installed during a TIII absolute possession of line. This element of the project was completed by sister company GRA Networks Ireland (GSMR crews) under the supervision of Michael Ging.

As the team exited the site, they undertook landscaping works, which included planting trees, topsoiling, and seeding.

The works were delivered by our team which included David Byrne and Ger Delaney and were expertly organised, planned and coordinated by Senior Project Manager Damien Carroll.

Our Irish business – Global Rail Services – has completed its ballast containment works contract at Underbridge UBC161 in Portlaoise, for client Iarnród Éireann – successfully meeting the desired program and project outcome. The project was completed under a TIII absolute possession over an intense 4-week period – based out of Kilbricken Depot.

The significant ground engineering scope included installation of 77No Ischebeck Titan mini piles followed by 80m of galvanised ballast retention units and guard rails.  During the project Irish Rail implemented a speed restriction, reducing the 100km/hr line down to 50km/hr during the day – enabling one line to be completed at a time.

This successful project was a real team effort, with Irish Rail staff working collaboratively with Global Rail Services teams to complete these works on an extremely busy line. Global Rail Services were ably supported by supply chain partners Mannings Engineering, MDH and Breffini/Dixon Bros.

Special thanks also to Stefan Aspatartei and Stelian Poiana who delivered the project from start to finish, helped by Ger Delaney, David Byrne, Ollie Brenan and Mario Baciu.

Learn more about our railway civil engineering capabilities here. 

Global Rail Services were contracted by ESB Telecoms to undertake remedial works on the boundary wall of their mast location in Mullingar. 

The project consisted of removing and relocating the existing power supply to the Vodafone cabin on site, demolishing the existing boundary wall and rebuilding the wall in-situ. 

This site was complex due to access constraints and limited space – Global Rail Services also had to maintain parking for the adjacent businesses during the construction works.

The existing wall had extensive cracks leading to structural failure of the drystone section. The failure was ultimately due to the internal compound level, which had been approximately 1 metre above the carpark level, and exerting pressure over time on to the base of the existing wall.

This project was successfully completed on time by the Global Rail Services engineering team to meet the clients expectations in terms of program, cost and quality.

Global Rail Services civil and structural engineering capabilities take full project responsibility and offer a fully managed and integrated service for Irish clients within the built environment.

The company provide civil and structural engineering solutions from initial project planning and design, to enabling works covering site surveys, hazard and environmental assessments, procurement, onsite construction and equipment installation, through to final commissioning.

The business has a flexible approach and can undertake civil engineering projects on a turnkey, consultancy, main contract, sub-contract or resource supply basis to meet each individual client’s requirement. Skills are applied to new build, refurbishment and maintenance projects.

The Global Infrastructure Group family is pleased to welcome Damien Galligan.

Many of you will know that Irishman Damien, spent five very successful years working as a Commercial Manager for our Australian business, Global Rail Australia in Melbourne. Damien departed in 2019 to broaden his client-side experience, joining international Cost Consultant Rider Levett Bucknall.

Some 18 months later, we were delighted to be able to offer Damien, a new position worthy of his skills and experience, however, additionally, the opportunity to come back to his roots in Ireland.

Damien will therefore be joining our Irish business, Global Rail Services in Dublin, as Senior Commercial Manager, responsible for all pre and post contract duties covering cost estimating, benchmarking, value engineering, allocation of risk, project tendering, tender reports, contract administration, claims assessment, dispute resolution, negotiations and final account settlements. This covers the entire Irish portfolio, across a range of multi-disciplinary sectors covering rail and transportation, telecommunications, conservation works and new build projects.

Ivan Holloway, CEO of Global Rail Services and Global Rail Australia, added:

“Our businesses in Ireland have recently been bolstered with a number of high calibre senior appointments and promotions and this is another. Having worked with Damien in Australia, I am delighted to have been able to facilitate this senior role in Ireland for him. Welcome home Damien.”