Unique project for the manufacturing of sleepers and steps for retaining walls in Australia

Outback Sleepers Australia was established in January of 2000 and is based in Adelaide with operations having recently expanded to Melbourne.
Michael Ineson, the Managing Director and founder of Outback Sleepers has first hand experience working with concrete sleepers and concrete wall panels due to his early working years being spent primarily as a retaining wall contractor. Working closely with precast concrete retaining walls and other precast concrete products during the 1990’s gave Michael the inspiration to develop and manufacture the coloured and patterned concrete sleepers that are now the heart and soul of the company.
The humble beginnings took place in a backyard home producing ten sleepers per week using a household concrete mixer, adding colours and vibrating the sleepers by hand. Patterned concrete merchandise from Outback Sleepers now come in a range of products including precast concrete steps to precast concrete wall panels.
There is also a wide range of supporting building materials available for purchase such as under fence plinths and steel support posts. Outback Sleepers’ manufacturing plant employs over twenty people and is a well established and reliable company offering customer satisfaction along with fast distribution and delivery throughout South Australia and Victoria.

MCM Plant: plug & play

The fast growing market and the high quality concrete sleepers for retaining walls used for large civil projects, landscaping works and small retaining walls pushed Outback Sleepers to perform some necessary upgrades to machinery in the factory.

Having carefully considered several offers Outback Sleepers selected MCT GROUP as the batching plant supplier after Italian producer competently substantiated all the technical solutions implemented in the MCM 3.1.25 mobile batching plant.

The main requirement for the Customer was to ensure smart design with assembly involving minimal use of foundation, civil work, crane, erection tools and the shortest possible downtime. For MCT GROUP, a company with 53 years of experience in the production of complex concretes, the task was well within its range.

The plant was delivered late January 2019, installed in a fixed location in factory located in Adelaide – SA, and immediately started up. On the 10th of February, the plant was up and running and producing concrete, this was largely due to the quality and technology with the manufacture of the plant and equipment, and also that of the technicians and engineers, sent from MCT to assist with the installation and commissioning of this new equipment.

Nick Monchgesang, Production Manager for Outback Sleepers, affirmed: “On the 25th of February 2019 our factory had reached a new capacity that we could not have before, this was considerably due to the quality of service, advice and products that we received throughout the entire process, from placing the order to taking control of the plant on our own for the first time”.

Semi mobile plant for automatic production of high quality concrete

MCM 3.1.25 batching plant equipped with moisture, plasticity and water-cement ratio control systems providing uniform concrete that meets the most strict requirements.

The humidity control system automatically detects water content both at the beginning of aggregates dosing from the hoppers and after the mixing water addition. After the introduction of an admixture the program reads and determines the mixture plasticity. All parameters are displayed on the control cabin screen, and the operator can monitor the process in real time or request a report that is saved automatically.

The planetary counterflow mixer is equipped with automatic washing, moisture control sensors and a sensor for measuring the mixture plasticity. The washing is activated from both the operator’s cabin, and directly upstairs from the control panel near the mixer.

A mixer of 1500/1000 liters was chosen for this project as optimal for the production of a mixture within production grade of 40-45 cubes per hour.

Win – Win collaboration

The project support was provided by Bennett Equipment team, who already took part and organized the delivery of MCT Group equipment to the Australia.

Bennett Equipment shared its opinion about the batching plant, « MCM 3.1.25 batching plant is good in all senses. First, it is compact, easy for transportation and erection. Secondly, it is equipped only with the best components, which guarantees its durability. Thirdly, it is easy to maintain, and its most complex component – the control system does not break down, as Compumat is constantly monitored by MCT GROUP specialist through remote access. And finally, such plants are already operating in the Australia for more than 7 years ».

“The concrete rejects are also minimized. Simply said, the precast construction technology is a smart combination of optimally used raw material and efficient concrete factory technology. Inferior concrete quality is a thing of the past thanks to new production methods and state-of-the-art machines », Australia Area Sales Director at MCT Group.

The many years of experience from the MCT Group team was evident throughout the process, and Outback Sleepers was able to rely on this as were learning new, efficient, and cost-effective ways to produce high quality concrete.

Nick Monchgesang, continued: “The support received throughout was second to none. The level of organization, skill, and knowledge was abundant and freely available at every step of the process, from the team on site in Australia to the teams back in Italy, there was no challenge faced that was too great for this wonderful company”.

No job is too big or small

Michael Ineson, the Managing Director of Outback Sleepers concludes: “We have designs to suit every taste and budget. As a local manufacturer, we offer fast turnaround, large quantities of stock, and an efficient delivery service to Adelaide and South Australia, Melbourne and regional Victoria and New South Wales. For us and for MCT Group NO JOBS IS TOO BIG OR TOO SMALL! With a the new equipment Outback Sleepers will increase the reputation in the market and will match wall builders suitable for any installation”.