Kennards Rail to help Australia expand vast railway network

The Australian government has announced it plans to upgrade the country's existing 40,000 kilometres of railway in a $15 billion project that will significantly increase the ability to ship goods between regions.

Such an undertaking will require extensive help from maintenance contractors who will also need the right unique tools for the job. To make this a reality, Kennards has created its new Kennards Rail business that will benefit both contractors and the government.

The new division is based at the company's Rutherford, New South Wales facility, located in the Hunter Valley region. This base will supply everything workers will need to complete the upgrade, and will also serve as a training center where employees can learn more about the rail equipment that is being hired out.

Employees will need to know their way around the new equipment, and those who complete the training will be a part of a specialist rail team. This team will be tasked with any new Kennards customers whose business is related to the new railway.

The Centre of Excellence in Rail Training will assist Kennards in teaching workers about the rail equipment.

"The training area will have e-clip and fast clip systems that will also assist customers' teams to become fully competent in using equipment before they get to track and compliant with the new
competency requirements," said Alex Eisermann, manager of Kennards Rail.

"This ensures our team not only understand[s] customer needs but the machinery provided is the most suitable for the project – an important distinction that all Kennards Specialist Businesses have."

Mr Eisermann added that once the team has been selected, all members will receive their OneTrack/Pegasus/RISI cards, which demonstrate that they are certified and accredited specialty machinery operators.

Kennards has already developed the full lineup of equipment the contractors will use, including trolleys, rail drills, rail saws, 70-ton tensors and more than a dozen other tools essential for building a secure and effective rail system. 

Eisermann concluded that the biggest benefit contractors will see by hiring their equipment from Kennards Rail will be that they won't have to spend huge amounts up front on supplies that comply with the work, and they'll also see major savings on maintenance and inspections.

By turning to Kennards Rail, contractors will be able to build a better Australian transport network, which will have a knock-on effect for any of the several industries that depend on robust transportation infrastructure.