Ever got to the platform to discover that you train has been cancelled? If yes the chances are that thieves or vandals may have stolen valuable copper items, like rail cable or electrical earthing components, without which the trains cannot safely run. In the East Midlands, FM Sudafix’s home region of the UK, the costs in compensation for cancelled or delayed rail services are enormous and rising, and this does not include the costs of remedial action. FM Sudafix Group CEO, Steve Hutchinson, commented, “Whenever I read reports of thefts leading to problems on the railways I can’t help but think that a theft resistant, reduced copper Conducrete system may have prevented the problems. As an Achilles Link-Up supplier to the rail industry we are contacted when remedial works happen and you can’t help but notice the waste; I would always much rather see our products and services used on a new project, which expands and improves the UK infrastructure as opposed to having to put something back that should be there.”
The thieves who steal valuable non-ferrous metal products from electrical safety systems expose themselves to great personal risk as injuries can result in death. Steve further commented, “Anyone who thinks that stealing copper is a good idea should check the internet and search to see the injuries that they could suffer. Desperate people, or those attempting to make cash quickly from stealing, often end up dead. The people who steal copper and get away with it often have the narrowest of escapes from injury probably without realising how lucky they are; in that way by catching and stopping criminals the British Transport Police are probably saving those people from horrendous personal injury.”
The FM Sudafix Group supplies a range of railway electrical safety products and services featured on a dedicated website, where customers can see the range, which includes railway earthing cable, rail contact kits, rail bonds, Voltage Limiting Devices (VLDs) and many others. The company is recognised for its ability to engineer solutions for railway projects, often finding suitable applications for the cost, time and life-saving conductive aggregate Conducrete, which prevents theft and reduces a reliance on copper products to create electrically safe zones.
If you have concerns about the electrical safety, or wish to safeguard operational continuity, then please contact the team.
