Low-carbon railway sleepers debuted at Global Centre of Rail Excellence
Innovate UK-funded project with Cemex delivers carbon saving for rail infrastructureOn a sunny day in the South Wales valleys, Concretene showcased its technology to an audience of rail industry decision-makers, press and local and national government.
More than 200 guests gathered at the Global Centre of Rail Excellence, a few miles north of Swansea in South Wales, to learn more about 12 different rail technologies that have been funded by the Department of Business and Trade (DBT), via Innovate UK, to showcase this amazing regeneration project.
Sited on an old open-cast coal mine, it is now due to become a world-leading destination for sustainable rail development and play a key role in revitalising the economy of the South Wales valleys.
This first-generation sleeper, developed with Cemex, uses 3.75kg less cement in its manufacture (reducing carbon footprint by 7%) and passes both Cemex and Network Rail testing standards. Our second-generation sleeper is already in development, with a 15% reduction in CO2 achievable.
We had very productive discussions with representatives from DBT, Network Rail, Vossloh, Arup and more about potential deployment of sleepers in depots and on the network.
James Brewer, Head of Rail Supply Chains at DBT, said: “It’s fantastic to see the progress made since I first met Concretene’s Alex McDermott around 18 months ago at the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre to learn about graphene-enhanced concrete to deliver a reduced carbon footprint.”
Find out more about the GCRE project and watch a video on our Projects page.