British Steel’s rail team has secured an order from Australia for 20,000 of our steel sleepers.
Cold Forge, our exclusive Australian distributor for British Steel rail and steel sleeper products, has been successful in securing supply to Arc Infrastructure in Western Australia.
Arc Infrastructure manages and operates 5,500 kilometres of rail network across the Southwest of Western Australia.
Cold Forge designs and supplies a range of competitive, reduced cost-of-ownership engineered product solutions for the construction and maintenance of rail permanent way including track, sleepers, fastenings, and all related track components.
The type 436 narrow gauge sleepers will replace timber sleepers on the Midland Railway (MR) between Mingenew and Carnamah as part of the Agricultural Supply Chain Improvements (ASCI) programme. This line is crucial for the transportation of grain to Geraldton Port and the upgrades will enhance the capacity and efficiency of the network.
Construction is expected to commence in mid-2026 to approximately 96km of track, increasing it from 16 Tonne Axle Load (TAL) to 19 TAL.
Caroleann Thompson, British Steel Commercial Manager - Rail, said: “This is a great win for the team and the wider business, it’s great to see our steel sleepers once again being selected for installation in the Australian market.
“Our sleepers are the most advanced in the world. Our investment in research and development means we can supply a product that meets and exceeds modern operational demands and track-laying methods.”
The sleepers have been rolled in our Scunthorpe Rail and Section Mill and will be sent to Trackwork, Wallasey, where they will be processed.
Steel sleepers have been chosen specifically for this project as they provide lower installation and maintenance costs as well as being more efficient to transport than their concrete counterparts. Over a large project, cost savings from reduced ballast requirements, improved handling efficiency and an end-of-life scrap value of the sleepers, provides a saving of over 40% compared to comparative concrete products.