Rail Extension and Redevelopment from Galvanizers Association

Korvest Galvanisers for Elizabeth and Munno Para Stations, SA.

Station works for a major railway electrification project in South Australia attracted this year's Sorel award for Galvanizers Association of Australia (GAA) member, Korvest Galvanisers, primarily for its treatment of impressively large-sized assemblies for a group of railway stations encompassing pedestrian overpasses, lift towers and enclosed stairways.

The rail electrification project included major redevelopments of both the Elizabeth and Munno Para stations on the northern Gawler line and construction of two major rail stations at Seaford and Seaford Meadows.

The award winner was announced at GAA's 50th anniversary Gala Dinner held in Melbourne on Friday, 18 October which was attended by over 180 local and overseas members, guests and industry suppliers.

Presented by GAA Chief Executive Officer Peter Golding, the award was accepted by Korvest Managing Director Alexander Kachellek, Korvest Galvanisers General Manager Steven Evans, and Technical Manager Peter Freeth.

The Sorel Award was this year judged by two GAA Life Members, Mike Dennett and Colin Bain, who between them brought over 60 years worth of galvanizing industry related experience and nous to the task.

They said the winning Korvest Galvanisers entry scored highly on its market development potential and technical innovation by demonstrating that a high quality hot dip galvanized (HDG) coating can be applied to oversize assemblies without coating blemishes or distortion.

"Often larger components are not considered fit for galvanizing due to kettle size constraints and resistance from industry to double-end dipping as well as weld joining of galvanized pieces," Mr Evans from Korvest Galvanisers said.

"This project contained all of these elements that many engineers and architects shy away from, but with careful planning and concise communication at all phases from technical, commercial, quality and documentation to logistics, a project like this can be executed successfully. "The process capabilities of galvanizing as well as the benefits in terms of corrosion protection were clear to all parties which made the projects easy to manage.

"Resistance to vandalism and the ability of galvanized coatings to withstand wear and tear of traffic made galvanizing the coating of preference. "Although some of the large pieces had to be welded post galvanizing, the proven track record of field repair underwritten by GAA and ACA gave the engineers confidence that the corrosion protection would be adequate."

He said even though Korvest is one of Australia's smaller galvanizers, that has not stopped it being involved in large projects before.

"Getting involved in a project with so many technical and logistical challenges and delivering successfully proves we have the people skills as well as the systems to cope. "Our employees are very proud to be recognised and will remember this achievement well into the future."

The judges considered that the success of this project pushes the boundaries for HDG that could open up new opportunities for the industry. They noted that for all their differences, the entries shared architecturally exposed steelwork which must have a high performance, low maintenance corrosion protection system.

The other three shortlisted entries were:

• Multi Use Entertainment Facility at 'The Star' casino, Darling Harbour NSW
• The Moment sculpture on a 220-apartment block, South Melbourne VIC
• Golf Centre driving range and practice facility, Thornleigh NSW

The judges said they were pleased to consider such as diverse range of projects entered from a 300-tonne frame for an entertainment complex built atop an existing casino to a three tonne wall-mounted metal sculpture and two ground-level projects with widely differing end uses.

The Sorel Award commemorates French civil engineer Stanislaus Sorel who filed a patent in 1837 for a method of protecting iron from rust - the parent of the hot dip galvanizing process. The Award's criteria encompass account engineering, technical innovation and market development potential within the galvanizing industry.

To be eligible to win a Sorel Award, a project needs to show how it (1) offered market growth potential for the industry, (2) exhibited engineering or other technical innovation, (3) provided economic benefits for the end user and (4) showed environmental or social responsibility. The 2014 Sorel Awards will be open for entries this coming June.