CCTV Contract Success For Global Rail Services in Ireland

Global Rail Services has been awarded a new contract with Irish Rail for the provision of CCTV for Permanent Way (Per Way) Compounds at Dundrum, Limerick and Nenagh.

Irish Rail has sought to improve security at its facilities, due to an increase in vandalism and break-ins over the past number of months in Per Way Compounds in the Tipperary region.

In order to do this, Irish Rail has engaged with M&E expert – Global Rail Services – and specified a new IP CCTV installation at the three Per Way Compounds mentioned above.

The CCTV works will involve the installation of new ducting, the installation of new 8m hinged poles and the installation of POE fixed cameras and anti vandal dome cameras. At each location all cameras are to be cabled back to a new DVR located in a new 15U comms cabinet, which will be installed in the Per Way stores container or office.

All cameras are to be cabled in Cat5e. Power for the comms cabinets is to be cabled using 3 x 4 sq. NYMJ or SWA and to be fed from an existing local DB. There is also a requirement for additional cable containment to the final position of each camera.

All completed works will be required to be tested and commissioned by Global Rail Services and along with the provision of all necessary handover documentation.

These works will take place in Per Way Compounds and in Per Way Buildings, which are near the running rail. Global Rail Services’ in-house M&E division – led by Aidan Kelly, will manage the project and will utilise its in-house accredited personnel who have all undertaken PTS training.

GRSL’s M&E offering is constantly upgraded through training and development and is consistently delivered to the highest specification.

GRSL Awarded Listed Roof Renovation Works at Carlow Station

GRSL has been awarded a heritage roof renovation project on behalf of Irish Rail at Carlow Station.

Carlow is a historical and listed railway station built in 1848, which serves the town of Carlow and is a station on the Dublin to Waterford intercity route. The station has two platforms. The far-side platform is only used when two trains are in the station at once, as it is not accessible other than by footbridge.

In order to ensure that the listed building is protected from the elements, GRSL must set up the site and erect scaffolding that is both fully compliant and also provides total protection in respect of weathering. The station will remain open during the works, so due consideration will be given to both the public and Irish Rail staff. This is particularly important, as the booking office is also to remain operational.

GRSL’s will then set about removing the existing slates and ridges – putting them aside for re-use. This will allow for appropriate access to remove and dispose of the defective rainwater goods, lead-work and the timber fascias, soffits and bargeboards.

Once the strip out has been completed, GRSL will treat all existing roof timbers and install new felt and battens to the entire roof area. They will then supply and fit all new lead-work, cast iron rainwater goods, roof timbers and then relay the slates.

In addition to the re-roofing works, GRSL has also been awarded the station painting works.

Tom Staunton, General Manager, was delighted with this latest success and commented upon the companies heritage credentials as a key factor in this award:

“GRSL has a history with Irish Rail around sensitive remedial building works. We pride ourselves on understanding the delicate nature of historical buildings and only employ the very best tradesmen and site personnel to deliver these works

Global Rail Services Secures Further Rail Accessibility Works

Global Rail Services – the Dublin based Railway Civil Engineering and M&E specialist – has secured two packages of accessibility works covering fourteen stations for Irish Rail.

The Disability Act 2005 is a key part of the National Disability Strategy launched by the Government in 2004. The Act requires that Public bodies make their public buildings accessible, to people with disabilities.  Global Rail Services has previously delivered significant works for Irish Rail and is set to implement further accessibility works to improve accessibility for people with mobility impairments.

Package A includes stations on the Cork-Cobh line at:

  • Cobh
  • Rushbrooke
  • Carrigaloe
  • Fota
  • Glounthane
  • Little Island

Package B includes stations on the:

Maynooth Line at:

  • Ashtown
  • Leixlip Confey

Waterford Branch at:

  • Athy
  • Carlow
  • Mhuine Beag
  • Thomastown

Limerick Jct – Athenry Line at:

  • Ennis

The works include setting up a safe and secure compound area at each station and providing necessary traffic management.  Global Rail Services will be completing works at operational stations, so will also need to ensure that safe pedestrian access is maintained for commuters in and around the station, on the platforms and across the footbridge at all times throughout the works.

Works at each station have a slightly varied scope, however typically include modifications to platform walls, surfacing, tactile paving, new thermoplastic markings, amendments to fence lines and installation of new fencing and gates.  Some locations also require improvement works to station footbridges including new handrails and nosings.  There is also the requirement for new station lighting, painting and site signage works.

GRSL will fully project manage the works on behalf of Irish Rail, ensuring that all permits and required temporary works certification are completed.  They will also liaise with relevant stakeholders before, during and after each project, to ensure that vehicular access is maintained to any existing level crossing gates and for any residents living in properties adjacent to the works at all times

Tom Staunton, General Manager at Global Rail Services was thoroughly delighted with these two contact awards:

“Customers are already benefiting from accessibility works that Global Rail Services delivered for Irish Rail at Rathdrum, Mullinger and Lexilip Louisa Bridge Stations.  We look forward to delivering further rail accessibility works for passengers on these lines to enhance their customer experience”

Global Rail Construction to support Siemens’ Static Var Compensator Assembly

Global Rail Construction (GRCL) is pleased to announce it has secured a multi-disciplinary design and build contract at Greenwich Generating Station, and will comprise the design and construction of housings and enclosures to support the static VAR compensator (SVC) assembly from Siemens Plc.

Greenwich Generating Station stands on the south bank of the River Thames and provides emergency back-up power for the underground in case of a substantial failure in the National Grid.

As part of London Underground’s power upgrades, Greenwich Generating Station has been identified as a suitable location to install equipment that will improve the quality of the power feeding the distribution network.

Following significant changes to the site and its associated infrastructure the original turbine hall is now mostly unused and has available space. It is intended to use the available space by installing equipment to improve power quality and to generate low carbon electricity to the London Underground (LU) network.

As part of the project Global Rail Construction will be providing a range of civil and structural engineering design and construction services together with mechanical and electrical building services installations. The works will take place across three packages consisting of the following:

Package 1
Design and construction of a reinforced concrete over-slab beneath the entire basement area of the SVC demise to accommodate the loadings of the new superstructure

Package 2
Design and construction of new accommodation for the SVC comprising of:
Reactor Yard
Convertor Room
Pump Enclosure
Control and Protection Room
Fan assisted glycol heat exchanger supports
Access ramps, personnel stairways and maintenance platforms
Associated mechanical, electrical and fire detection systems

Package 3
Construction of an extension to the first floor 22kV switch room.

Discussing the contract award, Marco Lombardelli, Managing Director of GRCL, said:

“This project is a fantastic opportunity for us to display our extensive multidisciplinary design and construction capabilities for a prestigious client. It will be a challenging scheme with many technical difficulties involved, particularly around planning and making space available to accommodate the site’s SVC assembly equipment layout.

“This latest contract is further evidence of our growing reputation as a leading design and build contractor for the UK’s mainline and metro rail systems.”

Global Rail Services announces third Irish Rail contract award in quick succession

Global Rail Services is delighted to announce it has been awarded another contract with Irish Rail as part of its Mechanical and Electrical framework agreement.

The project specifically consists of works at Irish Rail’s Dublin Connolly Railway Station to upgrade the station’s boiler systems. The existing life expired oil-fired heating boilers will be replaced with new modulating gas units, and the plant rooms will be refurbished and fitted with gas and fire detection systems.

The Plant room refurbishment will involve the installation of new radiator units, pipework and all associated mechanical, electrical and associated builder works in connection.  The works will also require careful management of various stakeholder requirements during the works, to ensure that the programme is fully co-ordinated to meet the requirements of station staff and passengers.

Aidan Kelly, M&E Manager at Global Rail Services, said: “This is the latest in a trio of significant contract wins for us on the Irish Rail M&E framework, and further solidifies our excellent relationship with this very important client.

“The boiler replacement scheme at Dublin Connolly Station will require a full turnkey delivery solution from our experienced in-house M&E team, and will be a challenging project to complete, requiring us to utilise a full range of our in-house capabilities.

“This is a very exciting period for the business as we are celebrating multiple contract awards in such a short space of time, which is a testament to our growing reputation in the rail industry.”

Works on the project are currently underway and are due for completion by the end of October 2017.

Irish Rail Telecoms Workshop re-roofing contract secured by GRSL’s Building Division

Global Rail Services (GRSL) has been awarded a contract with Irish Rail to complete the re-roofing at its Telecoms Workshop based at the Railway Works in Inchicore.

Inchicore, west of Dublin’s city centre, is the principal locomotive and carriage works of Irish Rail, where locomotives, diesel railcars and rolling stock are maintained.

The Telecoms Workshop is an industrial building dating back to the 19th century, and is located within the Railway Works yard.

As part of the project, GRSL’s building division will provide the following services:

  • Stripping of and safely removing the roof covering, including corrugated asbestos sheeting
  • Installation of a temporary weatherproof decking to protect the equipment and archives in the building
  • Making good and installing replacement timber roof trusses and valley boards to match existing
  • Repairs to the timber structure
  • Installation of a new roof covering throughout the building
  • Installation of new rainwater goods
  • Construction of new below-ground drainage and repairs to existing drainage

GRSL was awarded the scheme through competitive tender following a successful pre-qualification process.

Discussing the contract award, General Manager Tom Staunton, said: “This is another fantastic contract win for GRSL and is further evidence of our growing reputation as a leading multi-disciplinary rail infrastructure contractor for Irish mainline and metro rail systems.

“Delivering safely and producing the highest quality are the very cornerstones of our works delivery teams and will therefore, be our primary concern as we supply a new roofing solution to this important communications building at the Railway Works in Inchicore. The scheme will require a wide range of our building expertise and will call on our in-house team’s vast experience to successfully deliver for our client, Irish Rail.”

Global Rail Services awarded Driver Only Enhancement Works at Irish Rail’s Kildare line & Northern lines

Global Rail Services is pleased to announce it has been awarded a contract with Irish Rail to provide upgrades to its DOO CCTV at Kildare line and the Northern line under the project DOO Image Enhancement.

Our in-house Mechanical and Electrical (M&E) team will be providing the following services on a scheme which forms part of the Maintenance and Replacement of Mechanical and Electrical Systems framework agreement with Irish Rail:

  • Supply, Install & Commission of Composite CCTV Driver Only Operated CCTV Equipment
  • Associated Cable and Cable Containment
  • Other items – civils requiring Pole bases and ducting, supply of PA Speakers and Cable
  • Decommission & removal of old kit, cable and equipment
  • Supply and install of CCTV Platform Equipment

On award of the works, Tom Staunton, General Manager of Global Rail Services, said:

“We are delighted to have secured this significant contract with Irish Rail, which is a further addition to our framework delivery. Our vast experience of safety-critical M&E projects in the rail industry will help us with the completion of this scheme, which will provide robust and modern Driver Only CCTV systems at both of these heavily used locations.

“We will work to a tightly scheduled programme of works to ensure the upgrades are delivered on-time with minimum disruption to passengers, and of course with safety at the forefront of our works.”

Global Rail Services is a leading Irish multi-disciplinary contractor that offers a one-stop building and refurbishment solution, using a combination of their in-house Project Management, Building and M&E workforce.

Global Rail Services awarded advertising lighting scheme as part of Irish Rail Mechanical & Electrical Framework Agreement

Global Rail Services has been awarded a contract to deliver a retrofit efficient lighting scheme to an extensive range of advertising displays for transport companies Irish Rail and Bus Eireann.

Both Irish Rail and Bus Eireann have an extensive range of advertising displays across their networks. The lightboxes are illuminated by fluorescent tubes and are mixture of single-sided, double-sided units and others with internal support bars.

Global’s in-house Mechanical and Electrical (M&E division) will provide a scheme consisting of the following services:

  • Supply of alternative lighting package to convert the existing system to a low energy/low maintenance solution, whilst maintaining the existing illuminance levels.
  • Supply of energy efficient (LED) luminaires to replace existing fluorescent tubes, while maximising light uniformity & colour vibrancy on the displayed posters.
  • Installing the package at various locations using competent tradespersons including the Installation of new luminaires
  • Removal and safe/legal disposal of existing lamps, ballasts and wiring looms from light boxes

The project is part of Global Rail Service’s Maintenance and Replacement of Mechnical and Electrical Systems framework collaboration with Irish Rail.

Aidan Kelly, who manages all M&E works undertaken by Global Rail Services, said: “Our team will deliver this challenging scheme across a large number of locations for the clients. It will result in an upgraded low energy and low maintenance solution which provides cost-savings while maximising light uniformity and colour vibrancy on the displayed posters.

“This contract win is another shining example of our M&E capabilities, and will help further develop our long-term partnership with Irish Rail.”

Global Rail Construction Ltd Secures Feltham Resignalling Works

UK Rail contractor, Global Rail Construction Ltd, is delighted to have secured the Principal Contractor (PC) role for the design and construction of the advanced civil engineering works on Phase 1 of the Feltham resignalling project – having submitted a most detailed and comprehensive offer to do so.

As PC, Global Rail Construction (GRCL) will deliver the full GRIP 5-8 design and construct contract directly for Network Rail Infrastructure Limited (Network Rail). The scope of work covers civil and structural engineering works on Network Rail’s Wessex Route and specifically covers: Area 1a – Shepperton Branch; Area 1b – Norbiton Sub Station to Fulwell Jct and Area 2 – Barnes to Whitton Jct, Hounslow Sub Station.

A thrilled Marco Lombardelli, Managing Director of GRCL, was quick to praise his team:

“This is a fantastic achievement and a true reflection of the hard work, effort and professionalism of all who contributed to this success. It is great to be part of such an exciting opportunity for our business, especially having worked so incredibly hard during the last couple of years to achieve and maintain full PCL status.”

The Feltham resignalling project forms part of the signalling renewals/National Operating Strategy (NOS) scheme, which is intending to renew the life-expired signalling infrastructure in Feltham and Wokingham areas to the modern equivalent form. The total scheme covers the renewal of 538 Signalling Equivalent Units (SEUs). The full geographical workscope, which covers over 80 miles of railway lines also included, for the first time, the introduction of Atkins’ brand-new signalling system – Elix.

Commercial Director Jim Cuell also added:

“This PC contract award comes off the back of our previous sub-contract work on the Feltham resignalling scheme, whereby civil and structural engineering works were undertaken along the Shepperton branch and successfully completed at the end of 2016.

“This is therefore a fantastic opportunity for GRCL to directly deliver a high-profile PC package of work to Network Rail, and we look forward to the successful delivery of this project in due course.”

Global Rail Construction Ltd is part of the Global Infrastructure Group and is a leading UK provider of design and build services to clients in the rail and transportation sector. The company is a principal contractor for UK mainline and metro railways across a number of disciplines, which include signalling, mechanical, electrical and power (MEP), telecoms, civil and structural engineering, maintenance, renewal, providing a fully tested and commissioned service, on both Network Rail and Transport For London controlled infrastructure. You can read more about what we do by clicking here.

Global Rail Construction wins GAGA award

Global Rail Construction Ltd has been awarded the Sustainability Award at the Galvanisers Association’s GAGA Awards 2017 for its work to design, supply and install of several large galvanised steel signal structures for Network Rail at Crossrail.

The company was commended for its efforts to achieve significant cost and programme efficiencies while including new strategies for sustainability at the end of the installation’s life.

GRCL’s engineering team offered a thoroughly sustainable approach to the project lifecycle, allowing them to consider all aspects of material construction and deconstruction. They proposed the use of hot dip galvanised gantry and cantilever structures with galvanised steel support grillages, which allows the equipment to be easily reused or recycled when removed at the end of its useful life.

The decision to move away from traditional methods was a key success of this project. Current end of life scenarios for steel and concrete show that 93% of steel is recycled and 6% is reused – a growing natural resource as opposed to concrete which is 20% recycled and 75% downcycled.

David Vine, Principal Design Manager of GRCL said: “We are delighted to have been recognised for our efforts to provide innovative solutions for the galvanising industry with this important award.

“We look forward to being able to deliver further ground-breaking and sustainable projects for all of our rail clients in the future.”

To read more about the rail infrastructure projects Global Rail Construction undertakes, please click here.