Page 8 - October 2021 Track N Times

LORAM PTY LTD.

Loram’s 60 Years of Service in Australia

Stephen B. Mannix, Managing Director

On 6 June 2021, Loram passed the significant milestone The Hamersley enabled the transport of iron ore from
of 60 years delivering service to the Australian rail indus- mine to port in Australia’s Pilbara region with what
try. Its history reflects Loram’s evolving strategy, and were then the heaviest axle loads in Australia. Innova-
throughout those six decades shows our people’s com- tive equipment was introduced, including the
mitment to delivering innovative solutions and unrivalled ‘Autotrack’ from Mannix International, Ballast Sleds,
service to our Customers. tracklaying machines permit-
Mannix Contractors Pty. Ltd. was regis- ting 1,000 foot lengths of rail,
tered in Australia June 1961. It opened and patented track alignment
an office in Melbourne at 67 Queens equipment. The rail was laid
Road and was soon bidding on civil con- in record time by Mannix
crews that included many
struction projects in Australia. Civil
construction expertise from major pro- Torres Strait Islanders re-
jects in Canada and the United States cruited in North Queens-
included the building of dams, mines, land. The Hamersley was
pipelines, highways and airports. It also completed for service and on
schedule on 1 July 1966, de-
notably included the construction of
railways, which is how F.S. Mannix and spite Cyclone Shirley in May
his “Outfit” first got its start in Canada in 1898. Like its of that year. M-K and
other related entities, the company changed its name to Mannix thereafter provided maintenance to the com-
Loram Contractors Pty. Ltd. in the early 1970s. “Loram” pleted railway line.
is an acronym for “Long Range Mannix”. In 1967, the M-K, Mannix, and Oman joint venture
(MKMO) started construction of 265 miles of grade,
The first major Australian construction project was un-
dertaken in joint venture between Morrison-Knudsen (M bridges and track for the Mt. Newman Railroad.
MKMO established offices at 639 Murray Street, Perth.
-K), Mannix, and McDonald Constructions to build the
193-mile Hamersley Railway from Mount Tom Price to Again, Mannix rail-laying crews were largely composed
the port of King Bay. The JV kept offices at 115 St. of Torres Strait Islanders who laid an average of one
George’s Terrace, Perth, and began the project in 1964. mile per day. New innovative equipment was also em-
ployed, including a semi-automatic sleeper laying ma-
chine, and rail loading equipment for quarter-mile
strings. In May 1968, 4.35 miles of track was laid in a

Auto Sled Hamersley Railway Line July 1966

Volume 2 : Issue 9 Page 6