BRUNEL BACK AT TEMPLE MEADS: A Statue of Isambard Kingdom Brunel has been unveiled at its new home outside the Passenger Shed at Bristol Temple Meads station –a building he designed. The statue, created by John Doubleday, was originally presented to the city by the Bristol & West Building Society, being first unveiled in May 1982. In 2006 it was moved from the Broad Quay to Temple Quay. Another statue of Brunel, by the same artist, is located at London Paddington station at the Eastern end of his great railway.
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COLLABORATION between Network Rail and infrastructure company Amey has resulted in the creation of a new overhead line tunnel drill.
Network Rail first noticed potential areas for improvement working with Amey on CP6 tunnel refurbishments that require two operatives working at height in full personal protective equipment, manually holding a drill to carry out maintenance work. The risk of hand/arm vibration injuries, noise, inaccuracies, and dust contamination were potential factors operatives faced.
Working with Foulstone Forge, Network Rail, and Amey, the team created a drilling rig for use in railway tunnels. The Overhead Line Electrification Drill (OLED) machine is mounted on a flat-bed road rail vehicle, with the drilling arm managed via remote control. Along with a dust extraction system, the arm reduces the risks associated with working at height and using rotary-percussive power tools.