Needham Market Rail Station, Suffolk, UK

Project Overview

See how Needham Market train station in Suffolk was the first station in the world to implement the King’s Award winning composite fibreglass platform system solution known as Dura Platform which has now been installed at over 50 UK stations.

Just 36 hours for a complete GRP platform installation.

Needham Market is a railway station situated in the East of England, operated by Abellio Greater Anglia. In spring of 2015, the previous concrete platform at Platform 2 was replaced with a new composite fibreglass platform solution known as Dura Platform.

The radical award-winning Dura Platform design is a precision engineered GRP product manufactured by pultrusion process which complies with National Rail specifications and offers significant improvements over traditional alternatives – including a dramatic reduction in possession time and sizeable overall project cost savings.

Working in partnership with key rail stakeholders.

The solution was developed following an in depth consultation and planning process with key stakeholders Abellio Greater Anglia (AGA) and Network Rail, to ensure that both the financial considerations of the operators, the logistics of carrying out works and the needs of passengers were fully taken into account.

Key benefits include a superb strength to weight ratio, lightweight, non-corrosive, non-conductive and a low maintenance lifecycle. With a wealth of detailed technical information based on real-world testing criteria, Dura Composites can provide extensive loading data, span information and technical drawings to support the document control system requirements for any project.

Platform installation in just 36 hours

See how Needham Market train station in Suffolk benefitted from expert platform installation by Hammond (ecs), who acted as the principal contractor to Network Rail, installing the new system in just 36 hours. Network Rail, Abellio Greater Anglia and Hammond (ECS) took a forward-thinking approach in selecting Dura Platform, which has a modular lightweight structure and is easy to install, meaning shorter possession time and a vast reduction in plant required on track.

We are always looking to improve stations for the customers and communities we serve. This innovative approach delivers a better platform for passengers, which is durable, more cost effective and quicker and easier to install.

Simone Bailey

Asset Management Director at Abellio Greater Anglia

Our Specialists

We’re helping to answer the major challenges facing Britain’s railway network such as capacity, reliability and efficiency. Talk to our experienced team about how you can tap into our specialist knowledge and engineering capability for your project.