Gruppo Bonomi
A Key Player in Railway Electrification Since the Very Beginning
This article first appeared in the Railway-News magazine, Issue 3 2022.
Since 1928 Gruppo Bonomi’s production units have specialised in the engineering and production of solutions to support electrical conductivity and insulation. Our particular expertise lies in the railway, energy and custom sectors.
Over the last 10 years the group has broadened its product base and expertise by acquisition, establishing itself as an international market leader.
Bonomi has been involved in rail electrification from its inception providing high-performance and innovative solutions in overhead line technology (from 1.5 to 25kV). Gruppo Bonomi offers design and production flexibility, which supports customer requirements from component specification to overall line design.
For over 40 years we have been working in profitable partnerships and close collaborations with the technical offices of the railway authorities to develop railway/ tramway and underground overhead lines. This ensures a continuous improvement in the engineering experience, highly customised projects and more efficient and sustainable solutions. For many years Bonomi has been supporting international clients in designing and engineering many overhead contact lines.
We both realise brand new electrification projects and renew old lines with the most modern standards of the sector.
Our design and engineering specialists support our customers in new electrification and the upgrading of existing lines.
Gruppo Bonomi in the UK
The Omnia Cantilever was developed in 2008 and introduced to the UK in 2009. This resulted in Network Rail product acceptance in 2011 for its new Series 2 design range.
The drivers behind Series 2 (and indeed Series 1) included increased reliability, reduced maintenance and faster installation.
Omnia ticked these boxes through a range of characteristics including:
- corrosion-resistance materials
- reduced component count and factory quality controls
Through these projects, including North West Electrification Phases 1 & 2 and Cumbernauld in Scotland, Omnia was broadly liked by installers for its flexibility, light weight and simplicity.
However further work was carried out with Network Rail’s design department EPDG (now NRDD) to refine the range, including standard walk outs/reach distances and greater adjustability for reduced encumbrance (it seems to be a great plus, considering the great number of low bridges in the UK). Significant support was provided from the Gruppo Bonomi technical team to Network Rail in refining the Series 2 and UK Master Series drawings.
