As a direct result of massive capital expansion projects by Transnet, W.D Hearn will be supplying two Yu-Shine vertical turning machines to Transnet for the production of wheels to the salt river and Saldanha depots.
 
Transnet rail engineering's (TRE’s) Salt River railway plant in Cape Town, which celebrated 150 years of operation this week, will play an important part in upcoming rail investment projects in South Africa.
 
A return to salt river’s glory days is just around the corner, as investment in South Africa’s rolling stock accelerated, citing a recent  announcement that 3 860 coaches would be refurbished by 2015. TRE provides key maintenance support for locomotives and wagons on the Sishen-Saldanha iron-ore export corridor, which boasts the world’s longest train.
 
TRE, as an operating division of Transnet, carries out production; refurbishments; repairs; conversions and upgrades of locomotives, wagons and coaches at its six production plants and 132 maintenance sites around South Africa. The company employs 13 000 staff and provides services not only to local rail companies, but also to other regional and export railway markets. In South Africa R200 billion will be invested over the next seven years to improving our rail system.
 
TRE CEO Richard Vallihu said that he was looking forward to the upcoming rail infrastructure projects for TRE as a whole, as well as the Salt River site, which he said had not been functioning at full capacity.