Name of the Project
Dunnottar train manufacturing complex project.

Location
Gauteng, South Africa.

Client
Gibela Rail Transport Consortium, comprising Alstom (61%), Ubumbano Rail (30%) and New Africa Rail (9%).

Project Description
The project involves the construction of a 60 000 m² factory at the Dunnottar industrial complex to manufacture trains for South African State-owned Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA). This forms part of a R51-billion contract to supply 600 new trains over ten years and provide technical support, as well as spare parts over an 18-year period, to the rail agency.

The train manufacturing complex has a geographical footprint of 78 ha, comprising:
• the total built area of the factory of 51 ha, of which only 33 ha will be developed. The remaining land comprises an environmentally sensitive wetland, the preservation of which has necessitated the construction of a dam as part of the design and layout of the plant.
• 27 ha that has been reserved for the uBumbano Rail Park, which will house suppliers of equipment and components required for the new trains.

The factory will produce 580 coaches.

The plant will also be equipped with several kilometres of rail network, including a 1.2 km dynamic test track for the testing of completed trains.

The first trains are being manufactured in Brazil, while the remaining 580 units will be assembled at Dunnottar. At its peak, the manufacturing facility will produce 62 trains a year, in line with Alstom’s X’Trapolis Mega commuter train design.

To ensure that the contract’s 65% local-content stipulation is met, the complex will also accommodate local components suppliers.

Jobs to be Created
About 400 workers are currently employed on the Dunnottar site, with an estimated 50% of these workers recruited from neighbouring areas such as Kwa-Thema, Duduza and Tsakane.

Value
R1-billion.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
The construction of the Dunnottar facility is on schedule, the rail consortium has reported in a project update.

Construction work on the Dunnottar facility has been divided into plant rescue, site clearance, bulk earthworks and civil infrastructure; main site buildings; supplier park buildings; rail infrastructure; electrical reticulation and equipment; mechanical; and cranes.

Trencon Construction, Gibela’s contractor for site clearance, bulk earthworks and civil infrastructure, was tasked with an indigenous plant rescue operation.

With the help of Xihungaso Construction Services, a black women-owned construction services company, Trencon Construction appointed a workforce of mostly disabled workers and safely removed more than 10 000 indigenous plant species from the Dunnottar site.

When the construction programme is complete, the indigenous plant species will be replanted on site.

Trencon Construction began site clearance, as well as bulk earthworks development of the civil infrastructure following the plant rescue operation. This included mass earthworks, fencing and hydrology.

Work on package two is currently in progress. This package is the most extensive in terms of time and employment.

The tender to complete package two has been awarded to a joint venture (JV) between Trencon Construction and Black Jills Engineering.

The JV has to complete the main site buildings, including the training centre.

The foundations for the main site buildings have been laid, and construction teams have started to set up the steel structures of the main site buildings.

“This major milestone of structural steel installations to the foundations started towards the end of August,” Gibela construction manager Vernon Colbert has said.

“We are faced with very tight deadlines to accommodate the industrialised fit-out of the different workshops, but we are on track.”

Gibela says work packages five, six and seven will be awarded soon.

The 4 000 m² training centre has to accept people by October, with the first manufacturing building to be completed in March next year.

Train production is set to start in the second quarter of 2017.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Trencon Construction (site clearance, bulk earthworks and civil infrastructure) and Trencon Construction and Black Jills Engineering (main site buildings, including the training centre).

On Budget and on Time?
The project is on schedule, following delays in initially securing the site.
Construction of the factory was initially expected to start in early 2015.

Contact Details for Project Information
Gibela communications director Pamella Radebe, email pamella.radebe@gibela-rail.com.
Alstom, Linda Huguet, tel +33 1 57 10 42 or email linda.huguet@transport.alstom.com.