UAE’s Etihad Rail has invited bids from concrete sleeper manufacturers in the second stage of the project.

It’s seeking bids for maintenance of the Etihad Rail sleeper factory and equipment until the completion of the contract and also designing, manufacturing, testing, handling and storage of pre-stressed concrete railway sleepers for the second stage of the project, using Etihad Rail Sleeper Factory in Abu Dhabi which was set up to produce sleepers and bearers in the first stage of the project.

Railway sleeper is a support for the rails in railroad tracks. Railroad ties were traditionally made of wood, but pre-stressed concrete is now widely used especially in Europe and Asia.

According to Wikipedia, steel ties are common on secondary lines in the UK; plastic composite ties are also employed, although far less than wood or concrete. As of January 2008, the approximate market share in North America for traditional and wood ties was 91.5 per cent, the remainder being concrete, steel, azobé (red ironwood) and plastic composite.

Interested companies can download prequalification documents from Etihad Rail website and can submit them by March 27, 2014.

Etihad Rail aims to start operations and maintenance of the factory in mid-2014.