On the rails
24 February 2021
An earlier blog post on the site reported how the rail industry recognises the importance of adopting environmentally-friendly work practices throughout its operations and supply chains.
Hirers serving this important sector have embraced green issues for some time, and more evidence of this comes from Speedy. The company has opened a new, larger regional service centre in Doncaster to support rail engineering firms and other contractors across the region.
Amongst the items offered are battery-powered tools for welding and track placement. A managed trackside lighting service will also provide rail customers with site surveys, bespoke eco-friendly lighting systems and on-going maintenance and management services throughout projects.
Kelly Adams (pictured), Speedy’s regional director for Yorkshire & the North East, says that the facility will help contractors delivering major infrastructure projects across the region, including regeneration work under way in Sheffield and Doncaster.
“Doncaster is also a strategically important location for our national rail services business,” says Kelly. “The town is among one of the biggest rail conurbations in the country, bolstered most recently by Siemens’ new train manufacturing factory being constructed nearby in Goole.”
Speedy’s new 15,000 sq ft centre is four times the size of its previous site and the business expects to recruit new staff as it expands.
Interestingly, an electric vehicle charging point will be available for customers, with the depot also powered in part by solar energy. This shows how the need to be green extends beyond just the equipment in hirers’ fleets.
As was also reported on the blog, Speedy’s chief operating officer, Dan Evans, recently joined the board of the Supply Chain Sustainability School. The organisation aims to help the construction industry meet sustainability targets set out in the government’s UK Construction Strategy 2025.
• Read the earlier story on Network Rail’s targets to limit global warming here.
