OUR NEW HEAVY OVERHAUL WORKSHOP - By David Withers

The following is adapted from an article that recently appeared in the NVR magazine 'Nene Steam'.

If you've visited Wansford recently, you may have noticed that groundwork is now under way adjacent to the Open Shed for our new 134 x 65 ft (41 x 20 metre) Heavy Overhaul Workshop. This is a brief account of why this new building is needed, how it became attainable and what remains to take it to completion.

No-one who has been involved in locomotive overhauls at the NVR would doubt that these huge undertakings could be carried out with much greater efficiency if we had a more spacious and better equipped workshop. Discussions on how to achieve the extra space have been going on for a very long time but the killer has always been the finance or, rather, the lack of it. A Shed Extension Fund started many years ago hadn't been growing at anywhere near the required rate, possibly because it didn't have the 'appeal' of the other calls for financial help that preserved railways rely upon so desperately for their existence. There seemed to be no realistic prospect of a solution.

Then along came a Mechanical Engineering Group working member who happened to possess considerable expertise in building construction and workshop installation. He recognised the benefits that would be offered by a sizable open-plan crane shed and he put his hand deeply into his pocket to donate to the NVR a major part of the cost of buying and erecting such a building. He has also sourced the building and the crane and provided valuable know-how on construction and fitting-out.

This new building will be a huge boost for the railway in more ways than one. Not only will we have a top class Heavy Overhaul Workshop, a knock-on benefit is that the old premises will be freed up to become a long overdue Running Shed for the protection, maintenance and repair of the NVR's service locomotives, including 656 and 1178 when they return to traffic. All we will then need is an Exhibition Shed and a decent Carriage Shed!

There follows an outline of just a few of the everyday problems to be found in the existing workshop, and the potential benefits of the new one:

Problems with the Existing Workshop

Working Space

• Finding floor space is the first requirement when commencing full or part overhaul of a loco. Where space is inadequate it has to be made by rearranging things and this can often mean stopping others from their work so as to assist.
• Making space can inconvenience other projects, for example it can take over an area allocated to a project that is only temporarily suspended. When that initial project comes back on-line, another time-consuming exercise is needed to regain its lost floor space.
• Moving heavy objects to make space often entails manual lifting because travelling the 1-tonne wheeled crane gantry is impracticable in our very full workshop.
• When working in inadequate space, finished components sometimes become damaged as movements take place, requiring time and money to be spent in correction.
• There is insufficient space for rough and dirty operations to be carried out away from finished work. A significant amount of time and money can be wasted in refinishing painted components that have become contaminated by nearby processes such as angle-grinding, and the products of dirty work can also contaminate the bearings and other wear-sensitive parts of nearby locomotives and assemblies.

Storage

• Much time and energy is spent looking for tools, parts and materials in the widespread places in which they have to be kept due to a severe shortage of local storage space.
• The inconvenience of walking across the yard to external stores and containers, especially in inclement weather, promotes 'personal' holdings of commonly required items, therefore it is easy for shortage, overstock or oversight to occur.
• The lack of a dedicated space for each project means that components have to be left 'somewhere convenient'. This results in a very untidy workshop, with time wasted in tracking down components put away by people who may later be absent or have forgotten the location.

Lifting Facilities

• Heavy overhaul means heavy lifting, and we do not at present have suitable lifting apparatus. The 1-tonne wheeled gantry crane is always difficult to position and there is no room to get the 2-tonne JCB Loadall teleporter into the workshop.
• Heavy components and steel stock have to be lifted from the delivery lorry using the teleporter and then manhandled into the workshop.
• The average age of staff and volunteers is approaching 60 years and lifting by hand can be exhausting and health hazardous.

Benefits of the New Workshop

General

• Undercover space will be provided for the overhaul of two large or three small locomotives at a time. Depending on the final layout, there may also be space for overhauling a coach bogie, diesel power unit or other railway engineering items.
• A key attribute of the new workshop will be flexibility. Facilities and working spaces will be movable to cope with changing requirements over both the short and long term. Flexibility will cater for changes in matters such as the size and overhaul needs of locomotives being worked on, the size and number of machine tools, and staff / volunteer levels. Changes of layout can be made very quickly using the 10-tonne overhead crane.
• A further attribute of the new workshop will be the opportunity for tidiness. There will be a place for everything and it will be expected of staff and volunteers that they comply with the need for tidiness for the safety and comfort of their fellow workers as well as the efficient operation of the facility and the satisfaction of the Health and Safety Executive.

Loco Overhaul Procedure

• It is expected that the complete loco will be shunted in and the tanks, cab, fittings, etc., removed and placed into identified storage areas. If the boiler is over 10 tonnes, the part-stripped loco will then be shunted outside and the boiler removed using the 40t crane. Boilers will generally be stored outside pending any required work.
• Wheelset removal will be carried out inside the workshop by raising the frames with Matterson jacks which will have been lifted into position with the 10t crane.
• All components, other than boilers, will be stored inside the workshop, thus making it easier and more convenient to work on them, an added benefit being improved tidiness of the yard. Heavy and bulky items will be stored on the workshop floor but components of manageable size will be placed on racking or in a store within the workshop.
• Components on which work is to be carried out will be moved to benches or identified working areas, using the crane if required. The components will be refitted to the loco or returned to their allocated place of storage upon completion of work.

Building Construction and Fitting Out

• The building will be of steel-clad portal frame construction, however there will be some blockwork and there may also be some brick-facing in an LNWR style to the lower part of the front of the building as and when funds allow.
• A front door giving Berne Gauge access to the track will be of the powered roller-shutter type. Personnel doors will be provided for access into the yard, etc.
• A rear door will be provided, also of the roller-shutter type but hand-operated. This will be sized to accept lorries into the workshop for loading and unloading using the 10t crane.
• Delineated walkways within the workshop will allow access to all parts of the building for gas bottle trolleys, pallet trolleys, etc. The walkways will be kept clear of hardware, other than when being travelled by a trolley or the like, so as to improve the safety of staff, volunteers and any visitors authorised to enter.
• Consideration will be given to providing screened bays for fabrication, welding, painting, etc., the type and number depending upon available finances.
• The machine shop will be much larger than at present, with a main section containing the machine tools and accessible by the 10t crane for lifting heavy equipment, workpieces, etc., and an annexe to house complementary items such as power hacksaw and tool cabinets.
• Around six workbenches will be provided, one for each MEG staff member and the remainder for volunteers. These benches may be bolted to the wall to permit heavy leverage and may be supplemented with others in island formation to allow access to all sides of heavy workpieces. Personal tool cupboards will be located nearby, plus racks for the cheaper, commonly used, hand tools.
• Each workstation will be provided with a 110V electrical supply and two air supplies (one being moisture-free for cleaning components, e.g. painting preparation, the other being lubricated for air tools). This will reduce the trip-hazard of trailing cables and air hoses.
• Some fixed facilities are planned, including mess rooms for loco crews and MEG personnel. There will also be staff toilets, showers (useful for volunteers who travel far and want to stay overnight) and an office.
• A raised viewing gallery will be provided, allowing visitors to view the workshop and the open shed from a height. This will be a valuable addition to our visitor experience.

A workshop of 134 ft x 65 ft sounds huge -- but it isn't. Preliminary layout plans have shown that once the minimum equipment and two fully dismantled locos are in, space will be at a premium. We looked at having the fixed facilities outside the building as a lean-to extension, however this would increase the cost to a level which cannot be justified so they will be going inside, along the northern wall.

Provision of some of the fixed facilities will be delayed pending fund-raising, any welfare facilities being less urgent than the main building because functional welfare facilities already exist whereas a fit-for-purpose workshop does not. Early completion of the main building is important to the future of the railway, however we can live with the existing basic welfare facilities for a while longer.

But financing the building structure is only the start. The railway has added substantially to our benefactor's very generous donation, however erecting and fitting out a crane shed of this size soaks up money as a sponge soaks up water and we are a very long way from having enough in the kitty to complete it.

We now need materials and labour to finish the building and fit it out and we are calling for your help with this. Money is the main requirement but, if you cannot spare even a little of that, perhaps you can help in other ways. All offers of help, financial or otherwise, should please be directed to project manager Dave Head. Dave can be contacted at home on 01733-762739 or via the NVR Wansford office (see Contact Us page).