Commonwealth Engineering
Encyclopedia
The Commonwealth Engineering Company Limited (Comeng) is the brand name of a former Australia
n Engineering Company that designed Locomotives, Electrical Multiple Units (EMU), Diesel Multiple Unit
s (DMU) and Trams.
building bodies for motorcars and small buses. It was reformed after the Depression
as Waddingtons Body Works and moved to Granville
. The Commonwealth
government took control of the company during World War II
to produce materiel
in the Granville factory. The government bought up a controlling stake of the shares in 1946 and changed the name to Commonwealth Engineering.
The company name was changed to Commonwealth Holdings Limited in 1963. It was taken over by Australian National Industries Limited
in 1983 and Comeng became ANI's rolling stock division.
ANI sold Comeng to ABB Transportation
in 1990. This later became Adtranz
and is now part of Bombardier Transportation
.
The first of a three volume history of Comeng by John Dunn was published in 2006, and the second in 2008.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Engineering Company that designed Locomotives, Electrical Multiple Units (EMU), Diesel Multiple Unit
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
s (DMU) and Trams.
History
The Commonwealth Engineering Company Limited was a major Australian engineering and railway rolling stock manufacturer. It began in 1921 as Smith & Waddington, a small company in the Sydney suburb of CamperdownCamperdown, New South Wales
Camperdown is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Camperdown is located 4 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Inner West region...
building bodies for motorcars and small buses. It was reformed after the Depression
Great Depression in Australia
Australia suffered badly during the period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. As in other nations, Australia suffered years of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging incomes, and...
as Waddingtons Body Works and moved to Granville
Granville, New South Wales
Granville, is a suburb in western Sydney, Australia. Granville is located west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Parramatta. A small part in the north-west is located in the Local Government Area of the City of Holroyd.South Granville is a...
. The Commonwealth
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
government took control of the company during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
to produce materiel
Materiel
Materiel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....
in the Granville factory. The government bought up a controlling stake of the shares in 1946 and changed the name to Commonwealth Engineering.
The company name was changed to Commonwealth Holdings Limited in 1963. It was taken over by Australian National Industries Limited
Australian National Industries Limited
Australian National Industries Limited was an Australian heavy engineering company with diverse range of holdings, including:*Cockatoo Island dockyard.* Commonwealth Engineering.* Bradken .* Bus body building....
in 1983 and Comeng became ANI's rolling stock division.
ANI sold Comeng to ABB Transportation
Asea Brown Boveri
ABB is a Swiss-Swedish multinational corporation headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland, and best known for its robotics. ABB operates mainly in the power and automation technology areas. It ranked 143rd in Forbes Ranking ....
in 1990. This later became Adtranz
Adtranz
ABB Daimler-Benz Transportation , commonly known under its brand Adtranz, was a multi-national rail transport equipment manufacturer with facilities concentrated in Europe and the USA....
and is now part of Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation is the rail equipment division of the Canadian firm, Bombardier Inc. Bombardier Transportation is one of the world's largest companies in the rail-equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Its headquarters are in Berlin, Germany....
.
The first of a three volume history of Comeng by John Dunn was published in 2006, and the second in 2008.
Products
Vehicles manufactured by Commonwealth Engineering include:- L, R & S sets Sydney electric trainL, R & S set (CityRail)The L, R and S sets are a class of electric multiple unit operated by CityRail in New South Wales, Australia. The carriages are of stainless steel, double deck construction and are not air-conditioned...
- U set Sydney electric trainU setThe U sets were a type of electrical multiple unit operated by the New South Wales Government Railways and successor organisations between September 1958 and November 1996.-Development:...
- V set Sydney electric trainV set (CityRail)The V set or DDIU is a class of electric multiple unit operated by CityRail in New South Wales, Australia. These stainless steel double deck trains operate on the Interurban lines of the CityRail network, serving the Blue Mountains, South Coast and the Central Coast to Newcastle.-First batch :In...
- 442 class diesel locomotive (final 6 units)
- 70 class diesel hydraulic locomotive
- 80 class diesel electric locomotive
- 85 class electric locomotive
- 86 class electric locomotive
- XPT diesel train
- Comeng type Melbourne electric train
- ADK class railcarNZR ADK class (Diesel Multiple Unit)The ADK class consists of nine diesel multiple unit cars each coupled to an ADB class trailer, operating on Auckland's suburban rail network. The Auckland Regional Council owns these units, and they are operated by Veolia.- History :...
- Prospector diesel railcarsTranswa ProspectorThe Transwa Prospector is a standard-gauge passenger train operated by Transwa that runs between Perth, Western Australia, and the Goldfields town of Kalgoorlie.-History:...
- 2000 class Adelaide railcar2000 class railcarThe "2000" class railcars are self-propelled diesel railcars which are used by TransAdelaide on the Adelaide metropolitan rail network. The body shell design was based on the Budd SPV2000, Metroliner and Amfleet cars but the 2000 class railcars have a slightly different curve to the Amfleet. They...
- 3000 class Adelaide railcar3000 class railcarThe "3000" class railcar is the main workhorse of TransAdelaide's suburban passenger operations in Adelaide, South Australia. There are two variants: 3000 series, featuring a cab at each end, and 3100 series with one cab....
- Post War Sydney R1 trams. Entered service between 1950 and September 1953. R1 2087 was the last tram built for Sydney.
- Z1 class Melbourne tram
- Z2 class Melbourne tram
- Z3 class Melbourne tram
- A1 class Melbourne tramA1 class Melbourne tramThe A class of single-unit bogie trams that operates in Melbourne, Australia was built by Comeng, a manufacturing company in Dandenong, Victoria, Australia...
- A2 class Melbourne tram
- B1 class Melbourne tram
- B2 class Melbourne tram
- KCR Light Rail tramKCR Light RailThe MTR Light Rail, also known Light Rail Transit , is a light rail system in Hong Kong, serving the northwestern New Territories, within and between Tuen Mun District and Yuen Long District...
- Diesel Railcars for Indian Railways
- Indian Pacific passenger carriages