A rail consortium funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has highlighted several ways in which the UK’s track infrastructure could be improved. Source: University of Southampton Engineers investigating ballast migration. The £3.1m research project, entitled “Railway Track for the 21st Century”, took place over five years. It involved a consortium led by the University of Southampton, alongside the Universities of Birmingham and Nottingham plus industry partners who provided additional financial support. Using computer modelling as well as on-train and trackside measurement, the consortium investigated the forces that railway track is subjected to, coming up with proposals to mitigate against some of the most significant problems. It concluded that more effective management of lineside vegetation could help manage water content and improve stability, while better risk assessment of earthworks would reduce the risks of trains encountering landslides during periods of high rainfall. Piles driven into banks of land to stabilise slopes could further lower the risks of landslides, and a wider range of grain size supporting the track could help reduce stress and ease maintenance requirements. Source: University of Southampton Discrete element model of ballast and sleeper interface. “Trains have changed hugely over the last few decades, but the track and earthworks they run on are substantially the same as a century ago,” said Prof William Powrie, University of Southampton. “Increases in the speed and weight of trains are putting our rail infrastructure under growing pressure, while increases in service frequency are reducing maintenance windows. The changes we’ve explored offer ways to help maintain and upgrade the infrastructure for the 21st century.” According to the consortium, a slope stabilisation project in London has already achieved £1.5m in savings, shaving four months off the completion time. It is estimated that savings of between £13m and £20m can be made from improved design based on the research. Source: University of Southampton Scale track model tests for noise radiation and absorption. “This is an excellent example of how research aligned to government transport policy produces significant benefits, in this case for the railways and passengers,” said Kedar Pandya, head of engineering at EPSRC. EPSRC will now provide the bulk of the funding for the £8.2m follow on project, “Track for the Future”, which will take place over the next five years. The same consortium will undertake the research, joined by Huddersfield University. “Our work has shed more light on the many complex factors and mechanisms that determine how railway track behaves,” Prof Powrie said in a statement. “Our conclusions are equally applicable to the UK’s existing rail network and to the high-speed railways of tomorrow.”

Smart motorways programme director says contractors that fail to collaborate and share knowledge while working on its £1.5bn schemes will not benefit from its ‘everybody wins’ incentive scheme

The multi-million pound redevelopment of Waterloo train station could begin as early as October after the station submitted a planning application to local authorities.

The government has green-lit the construction of two new gas-fired power stations worth a combined £400m.

Origami-inspired folding bridge could aid disaster relief Japanese engineer Dr Ichiro Ario has designed a new mobile bridge based on the principles of origami, which could speed up emergency relief to cut-off areas following natural disasters. Source: Hiroshima University, Japan Construction Method and Machinery Research Institute, Hoshikei-kinzoku People walked on the completed MB over the Hongo river in Fukuyama City at its first construction test. The Mobile Bridge Version 4.0 (MB4.0) can fit in a car trailer, and unfolds in a scissor-like fashion to span small rivers and ravines. Its first construction test took place last month over the Hongo River in Fukuyama City, near Hiroshima in southwest Japan. “From this test of a new bridge concept, the next generation of bridge technology starts on a new stage in the field of bridge engineering,” said Dr Ario, who is assistant professor at the Institute of Engineering, Hiroshima University. “It is possible to use a real deployable and smart bridge with a scissor-type bridge system using this structural theory.” From arrival on site, MB4.0 takes approximately one hour to deploy, with the actual extension time taking just five minutes. It is claimed that the patented scissor mechanism outperforms the older block assembly method of construction, making MB4.0 “the world’s lightest, fastest, largest, strongest and lightest expanding temporary bridge.” Source: Hiroshima University, Japan Construction Method and Machinery Research Institute, Hoshikei-kinzoku The new technology uses a scissor-type mechanism, enabling rapid bridge construction. No foundation construction or crane operations are required to deploy the bridge, and it is hoped that its speed and flexibility could lead to faster relief reaching areas in need following natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, tsunamis and landslides. Dr Ario believes MB4.0 could also have other applications, such as providing structural support to existing bridges in need of repair, or as an alternative crossing where a bridge is closed for maintenance. “I will further promote the development and evolution of MB4.0 in the future.,” he said. “Making MB stronger, longer, lighter, more compact, and quicker to set up will promote the development of infrastructure construction technology in general.”  

Skanska UK’s operating margin dipped from 3.1 per cent to 2.4 per cent year-on-year in H1 2015, but the contractor will recruit 1,000 staff to deliver major projects as its order book swells.

HS2 has begun the recruitment process for members of its design panel.

Smart motorway deals worth around £1.5bn have been awarded to some of the UK’s biggest contractors, with a Balfour Beatty/Vinci JV set to scoop the biggest of the packages.

Network Rail is set to spend up to £20m on an overhaul of its headquarters at Waterloo station.

EDF Energy is on the verge of revealing “a number of preferred bidders” for work on the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant.