At a corner of the hall, Rail Media
colleagues Railway People were also
talking to visitors and sheltering exhibitors
alike. The charity Mind and JW’s CV-
writing service were in the same area.
When contractors are on site, safety
is naturally a priority. Minor injuries
outnumber major accidents, so on-site
treatment of wounds, abrasions and
sprains is important. Aero Healthcare
supplies everything from first-aid kits to
AEDs (automated external defibrillators),
even the lightweight stretchers used for
medical evacuations, and used Railworx to
showcase its first-aid solutions for the rail
industry.Into the rain
Outdoors, it really was soggy. Those
exhibitors who had trailers or cabins were
sheltering visitors, like Dual Inventive,
whose trailer displayed their workforce
safety and railway sensing technology.
James Fisher Prolec had a Quattro road-
rail excavator siting on a length of track
outside the (crowded) hospitality cabin.
The reason it was there was to show off
PMX. Combining two well-established
technologies - excavator hazard mitigation
and geolocation - PMX helps prevent
plant equipment from striking pre-defined
hazards and increases machine efficiency
by up to 30 per cent when compared with
existing systems, so the manufacturer
claims.
Suited for a wide range of high-risk
sectors, including civil construction,
highways and rail, PMX is the first system
of its kind to receive accreditation from
Network Rail for Any Line Open (ALO)
projects.Also on show, and combining rated
capacity limiter (RCL) and movement
limiting devices (MLD) technology into a
robust, safety-critical solution, was James
Fisher Prolec’s TrackPilot™ - a next-
generation hazard mitigation solution
for ALO on-track operations that has
been specifically designed for excavator
rail-road vehicles (RRVs) and, apparently,
can achieve ten times faster processing
and functionality speeds than any other
solution on the market.
Ilecsys, manufacturer of GRP location
cases and walkways - and anything else
you care to order - had a trailer, and Peter
Dickson and the team kept snug in that.
Geismar weren’t so lucky, except their
open-fronted tent was right opposite
the Rail Media trailer, where hot coffee
and pork pie was available. Network Rail
track director Steve Featherstone visited
as well, so Richard Cradock was a happy
man despite it all. He also commented
that Railworx was the place to be going
forward, so hopefully he’ll be back for the
next one.Better Wednesday
Sheltering in cabins was not so necessary
on day two, as the pouring rain gave way
to a light drizzle. Some, however, chose to
sit indoors for part of the day and attend
the Get Set conference, which looked
at skills and skill shortages. Joe Guy,
group HR director for integrated talent
solutions at Network Rail; Trudy Layden-
Freeman, lead HR business partner for rail
at Costain; Clair Mowbray, chief executive
of the National College for High Speed
Rail; Mohanad Ismail, senior systems
consultant, Young Rail Professionals and
Neil Franklin, head of skills intelligence
at the National Skills Academy for Rail
(NSAR), spoke on this important topic.
Outside, things were looking up.
Network Rail was open for business while
Bollé, manufacturer of safety glasses, had
opened its doors and looked inviting. The
company had run a competition before
Railworx, giving 20 pairs of Tryon Tryoflash
safety glasses to registered visitors to the
show. Well done, Bollé!
Colin Burnikell’s team at Hilti emerged
into the (weak) sunlight and demonstrated
their powerful tools and specialist drilling
equipment, the distinctive red equipment
being put through its paces.
Gioconda were managing to keep their
electronics dry and were in good spirits.
Santon Switchgear, which both supplies
new circuit breakers and also upgrades
old ones to give them a new lease of life,
and Duvine/DMS Technologies, which
“has a long experience working with
Network Rail engineers designing and
manufacturing rugged battery systems
for trackside installations, operating in all
weathers”, displayed their wares.
The team from Marshalls CPM displayed
their Redi-Rock modular walling system,
which is ideal for protecting the rail line
against erosion, landslips and rock falls.74 PLANTWORX/RAILWORX