NEW ZEALAND: Depot safety control specialist FirstClass Safety & Control has deployed depot protection systems at two KiwiRail sites in collaboration with Freightquip.
UK-based FCSC has installed its flagship Depot Protection System product at the Waltham Mechanical Hub in Christchurch, which is being developed as KiwiRail’s main maintenance facility on the South Island. The depot will maintain 47 Class DM main line diesel locos being supplied by Stadler.
The SIL-2 DPS covers nine double-ended tracks, interlocks with the wheel lathe, drop table and depot doors, and has bespoke sounders, a SCADA system and provision for internal shunting and permissive movements.
The second installation is at Hillside Mechanical Hub wagon assembly site in Dunedin. The bespoke system combines a mechanical interlocking with a wireless interface to the 11-road traverser, and covers 12 workshop roads and seven sidings.
‘Our innovative approach to system design and architecture not only makes it easier to support and manage international installation, but is future proofed to allow for modifications and upgrades, offering flexible and guaranteed protection for assets and staff for decades to come’, said FCCS director Mark Meyrick on January 23.
