HK MTR Station Car interior Goninan Quality Nov-2013 United Group Australia name sign

UGL Rail is an Australian rail company specialising in building, maintaining and refurbishing diesel locomotives, diesel and electric multiple units and freight wagons. It is a subsidiary of UGL and is based in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, with a staff of 1,200 across Australia and Asia. It operates factories in

Broadmeadow Broadmeadow is a locality in the Hunter region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is the geographic centre of the Newcastle city and suburban area. Its main commercial hub is located at the "Nineways".

(

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

), Spotswood and Bassendean. While it used to operate a factory in

Taree Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...

, the plant was shut down and the equipment sold off.

History

Founded in Australia in 1899 by Cornish brothers Alfred and Ralph Goninan as an engineering and manufacturing company for the coal industry, A Goninan & Co Limited was incorporated as a public company in 1905.Goninan, Alfred (1865–1953)
Australian Dictionary of Biography It entered the rail business in 1917 via Commonwealth Steel Products Company of

Waratah Australia’s famous waratah (genus ''Telopea'') is an Australian-endemic genus of five species of large shrubs or small trees, native to the southeastern parts of Australia (New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, and Tasmania). The be ...

, a wheel and axle manufacturer, because those items could no longer be imported from

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

due to

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. A Goninan & Co moved to more convenient freehold land at

in 1919 and built a flourishing business in general engineering. It made pitheads, boilers, wagons and a huge, cast 41-ton block for the district's coal trade. In October 1964, A Goninan & Co was purchased by Howard Smith. In August 1999, A Goninan & Co was sold to

United Group United Group B.V. is an alternative telecom provider in the Balkans that operates both telecommunications platforms and mass media outlets. History United Group was formed in 2007, as a Luxembourg-registered multinational entity, in a merger of ...

and re-branded United Goninan. In 2005, it was renamed United Group Rail, as part of a reorganisation following United Group's purchase of

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

's Australian subsidiary, Alstom Transport Australia and New Zealand.

Factories

While most items were manufactured at Broadmeadow, it did purchase

Comeng Commonwealth Engineering, often shortened to Com-Eng, later known as Comeng was an Australian engineering company that designed and built railway locomotives, rolling stock and trams. History Smith and Waddington, the predecessor to Common ...

Bassendean, Western Australia Bassendean (once referred to as West Guildford) is a north-eastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its local government area is the Town of Bassendean. It is also the name of the sand dune system on the Swan Coastal Plain known as the ''Ba ...

plant. This plant rebuilt many

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, sparsely populated regions of Western Australia, region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal people; wealth disparity; its ancient landscapes; the prevailing r ...

Alco The American Locomotive Company (often shortened to ALCO, ALCo or Alco) was an American manufacturer that operated from 1901 to 1969, initially specializing in the production of locomotives but later diversifying and fabricating at various time ...

locomotives with

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

components in the 1990s as well as building 17

Westrail P class The P class are a class of diesel locomotives built by A Goninan & Co, Bassendean for Westrail between 1989 and 1991. History In 1988, Westrail placed an order for 15 CM25-8 Dash 8 locomotives for bulk grain and general freight haulage with ...

and 60

NR class The NR class are Australian diesel-electric locomotives built by A Goninan & Co for National Rail between 1996 and 1998. They are currently operated by Pacific National. The C44aci model locomotives built by UGL Rail at Broadmeadow adopted t ...

locomotives. In 1983, a factory was established in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

to fulfill a contract for Queensland Railways 2600 class locomotives that required them to be built locally. It later built the 2800 class. As part of UGL's acquisition of Alstom Australia and New Zealand in 2005, UGL leased Alstom's workshops at Ballarat North from then until 2012.

Products

National

*14 Australian National EL class diesel locomotives *120

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, a group representing passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the passenger services previously provided by ...

diesel locomotives *137 C44aci diesel locomotives

New South Wales

*6 New South Wales 43 class diesel locomotives *20 New South Wales 47 class diesel locomotives *5 stainless steel power vans *150 S set EMU carriages *160 K set EMU carriages *56 C set EMU carriages *455 Tangara EMU carriages *196

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

EMU carriages *14

Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...

DMU carriages *12 QR National 5000 class diesel locomotives *19 QR National 5020 class diesel locomotives

Victoria

*4 4D EMU carriages *22

V/Line Sprinter The Vline Sprinters are diesel railcars which are operated by V/Line on its Seymour V/Line rail service, Seymour line service with some also leased to Metro Trains Melbourne for its Stony Point line commuter service. They were built between 199 ...

DMU carriages

Queensland

*3 Queensland Railways 1150 class diesel locomotives *13 Queensland Rail 2600 class diesel locomotives *50 Queensland Rail 2800 class diesel locomotives *3 UGL Rail PH37ACmai diesel locomotives

Western Australia

*20 Western Australia ADL/ADC class DMU carriages *17

diesel locomotives *9 Prospector/Avonlink DMU carriages *3

GE C36-7 The GE C36-7 is a 6-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by GE Transportation Systems, GE do Brazil and UGL Rail, A Goninan & Co between 1978 and 1989. It is an updated GE U36C with a 16-cylinder FDL engine, externally similar to the GE C30-7 bu ...

diesel Locomotive, built in 1978 for

Hamersley & Robe River railway The Hamersley & Robe River railway, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, and operated by its subsidiary Pilbara Iron, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia for the purpose of carrying iron ore. The network is larger than ...

Hong Kong

*Refurbishment of 762 MTR Metro Cammell M-stock carriages for

MTR The Mass Transit Railway system, known locally by the initialism MTR, is a rapid transit system in Hong Kong and the territory's principal mode of Rail transport in Hong Kong, railway transportation. Operated by the MTR Corporation (MTRCL), ...

Hong Kong Light Rail The Light Rail, also known as the Light Rail Transit (LRT), officially the North-West Railway, is a light rail system in Hong Kong, serving the northwestern New Territories, within Tuen Mun District and Yuen Long District. The system oper ...

20 Phase 3 LRV *UGL and

CSR Corporation Limited CSR Corporation Limited (CSR), formerly known as China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corp was a Chinese manufacturer of locomotive and rolling stock. In 2015, the company merged with China CNR to form CRRC. History In 2007 the China Sout ...

22 Phase 4 LRV (Design)

New South Wales

Sydney Metro

UGL is a part of

Metro Trains Sydney Metro Trains Sydney Pty. Limited (MTS) is the operator of the Sydney Metro North West & Bankstown Line. It is a joint venture between Hong Kong–based MTR Corporation, John Holland Group and UGL Rail formed in September 2014. It operates the ...

which constructed and now operates the

Sydney Metro Northwest Sydney Metro North West was a rapid transit project that constructed the first section of the Metro Northwest and Bankstown Line through the north-western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The project included the conversion of ...

New Intercity Fleet

UGL is a member of the RailConnect NSW consortium, a joint venture between UGL,

Hyundai Rotem Hyundai Rotem Company, often referred to as Hyundai Rotem (), is a South Korean manufacturer of railway rolling stock, railway signalling, defense products and plant equipment. It is a member of Hyundai Motor Group and has presence in more than ...

and

Mitsubishi Electric is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational electronics and electrical equipment manufacturing company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1921 as a spin-off from the electrical machinery manufacturing d ...

, which has designed and will build and maintain more than 500

NSW TrainLink D set The New South Wales D sets, also referred to as the Mariyung trains, are a class of electric multiple units (EMU) that operate on Sydney Trains' intercity lines. The sets operate on the Blue Mountains Line, Central Coast & Newcastle Line and So ...

train carriages. Delivery commenced in the second half of 2019. Maintenance will be carried out at the Kangy Angy Maintenance Centre.

UGL Unipart

UGL Rail has been responsible for the maintenance of all of

CityRail CityRail was a passenger railway brand operated by State Rail Authority, the State Rail Authority from 1989 to 2003 and by RailCorp from 2004 to 2013 with services in and around Sydney, Newcastle, New South Wales, Newcastle and Wollongong, the ...

's EMU fleet at Maintrain, Auburn since March 1994 following the closure of

Electric Carriage Workshops The Electric Carriage Workshops, often abbreviated to Elcar, was the principal maintenance centre for the New South Wales Government Railways electric multiple unit fleet. Construction commenced in 1922, coinciding with the electrification of t ...

and

Eveleigh Carriage Workshops The Eveleigh Carriage Workshops were built by the New South Wales Government Railways in 1888 as a depot for its passenger carriage fleet. The workshops are located west of what is now Redfern station on the northern side of the Main Suburban r ...

. In the early 1990s, A Goninan & Co refurbished S and V sets at Broadmeadow as part of the Citydecker program. Since December 2011, UGL Unipart, a 70:30 joint venture with

Unipart Unipart is a British multinational logistics, supply chain, manufacturing and consultancy company headquartered in Cowley, Oxfordshire, England. It has operations in Europe, North America, Australia and Japan and works across a variety of sec ...

, has maintained most of CityRail and later

Sydney Trains Sydney Trains is the brand name and operator of Railways in Sydney, suburban and intercity train services in and around Greater Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The metropolitan part of the network is a hybrid urban rail, urban-suburban r ...

and

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a regional train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and into Australian Capital Territory, the Australian Capital Territory, Victoria (state), Victoria, Queensland and South Australia ...

's EMU fleet. Maintenance on H sets was initially carried out at

Eveleigh Eveleigh is an inner southern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Eveleigh is located about 3 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney. ...

but from 2018 is done at other depots with major work done at Maintrain, Auburn as for other types of Sydney Trains sets. The contract to maintain 1,050 Sydney Trains carriages including H and V sets was extended for two years from 1 July 2019.

Country Regional Network

UGL Rail has been responsible for maintaining the NSW Country Regional Network since January 2022. It took over from

John Holland Group The John Holland Group is an infrastructure, building, rail and transport business operating in Australia and New Zealand. Headquartered in Melbourne, it is a subsidiary of China Communications Construction. History The company was founded in ...

Metro Trains Melbourne

UGL Rail owns 20% of

Metro Trains Melbourne Metro Trains Melbourne, often known simply as Metro, is the operator and brand name of train services on the electrified metropolitan rail network serving the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is the largest urban rail network in Au ...

, the consortium that has run

's metro railway network since November 2009.

Adelaide

In July 2020, UGL Rail became responsible for maintenance of the

Glenelg tram line The Glenelg tram line is a tram/light rail line in Adelaide. Apart from a short street-running section in Glenelg, the line has its own reservation, with minimal interference from road traffic. The service is free in the city centre and al ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

as part of the

Torrens Connect Torrens Connect is a public transport operator in Adelaide, Australia that began operating bus and tram services as part of the Adelaide Metro network under contract to the Department of Planning, Transport & Infrastructure in July 2020. It is ...

consortium.UGL and John Holland to operate Adelaide trams
''

Metro Report International ''Metro Report International'' is a business journal for urban transport professionals which covers the metro, light rail, tram and commuter rail industries worldwide. It includes news and articles looking at urban transport around the world, ...

'' 12 March 2020

References

External links

Company website
* ttp://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/tia/855.html Alfred Goninan {{DEFAULTSORT:Ugl Rail Locomotive manufacturers of Australia Rolling stock manufacturers of Australia Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1899 Australian companies established in 1899 Manufacturing companies based in Melbourne

History

Factories

Products

National

New South Wales

Victoria

Queensland

Western Australia

Hong Kong

New South Wales

Sydney Metro

New Intercity Fleet

UGL Unipart

Country Regional Network

Metro Trains Melbourne

Adelaide

See also

References

External links