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Aurizon track dampers celebrate traditional culture

Rail freight operator Aurizon has honoured the Darumbal people of central Queensland by emblazoning its two new Plasser track machines with indigenous artwork and giving the units traditional Darumbal names.

Aurizon is the owner and operator of the Central Queensland Coal Network, a 2,670km track network that covers Queensland’s Bowen Basin coal region, an area traditionally owned by the Darumbal.

The company says it’s important to build strong links with local indigenous communities.

 “Today is about reflecting on and recognising that the land on which these machines will operate is the homeland of the Darumbal people,” Aurizon executive vice president Alex Kummant said at a recent naming ceremony.

A local group of Aurizon employees and more than 20 Darumbal elders gathered at Rockhampton Station for the ceremony, where the track machines were christened ‘Yugu Nunthi’ which translates to ‘water lily country’.

The two rail tamper machines have been painted with traditional artwork by local Darumbal artist Tosie Cora.

The machines are two Plasser Australia 09-2X Dynamic Tamping Expresses, heavy-duty track laying units that will be used to maintain the extensive coal rail network.

The dual-sleeper tamping machines are equipped with two 16-tool, non-synchronous tamping heads mounted on a self-propelled satellite frame.

The machines are equipped with fully automatic, computer controlled lifting, levelling and lining systems. These systems can be set on an automatic, semi-automatic or manually-controlled tamping cycles depending on the task required.

The major investment is part of Aurizon’s long term commitment to the coal supply chain, with the new units set to greatly expand the coal network’s capacity and efficiency.

“The upgrade our mechanised maintenance fleet with the latest technology will significantly improve our capability and performance – the new machines are 50 percent more productive than their older predecessors, which means better network utilisation and more capacity for our customers,” Kummant said.

 

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