DUMBARTON RAIL BRIDGE REPLACEMENT

OSPREY’S APPROACH TO RAIL REPLACEMENT SAVES TIME AND REDUCES RISKS

The UK’s rail infrastructure is ageing. There’s an extensive replacement programme in place, but Network Rail are committed to reducing the impact on commuters and freight as much as possible. That means working to tight schedules.

In Dumbarton, we only had 48 hours to replace a railway bridge. We’ve done many of these moves now, and while each one is different, we’re building up a portfolio of insights that let us reduce timeframes without cutting corners, or increasing risks.

• We started by creating a detailed route analysis and giving our a fully-engineered report that showed our approach in detail.
• The plan started with the removal of the old bridge using hydraulic supports, and then moving it, by SPMTs a kilometre away, to off-site compound.
• Next, we supported the first fix works being carried out at ground level on the new bridge. ‘Standard’ first fix happens after a bridge like this has been installed, but our approach saves time and reduces some of the need to work at height.
• We then used our fleet of SPMTs to transport and install the new bridge, making sure it was precisely located with our jacking system.

For many clients, the biggest challenge is time. Our team provide fully-engineered calculations for the increases in weight that are created by carrying out the first fix on the round. This reduces the usual risks around working at height – saving a great deal of time and money for our client.