Gladstone businesses join forces to build four radars for weather bureau

The collaboration of engineering, electrical and transport businesses will build four weather radars.

A collaboration between members of the Gladstone Engineering Alliance has entered its second phase of the construction of four doppler radars for the Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology.

Extreme Engineering staff have been hard at work for the past five months on manufacturing the massive pieces of essential technology.

Radar, an acronym for ‘radio detection and ranging’ uses technology based on radio waves.

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Australia has the fourth largest radar network on the globe, with 60 radars installed around the nation.

Primarily used to detect approaching rain from a distance, doppler radars, which have the additional ability to measure wind speed and direction, send micro-waves from a rotating antenna in short pulses.

When the radio waves hit water, particles they reflect back to the radar, with the time taken for the pulses to return indicating the distance the weather event is away.

A Gladstone Engineering Alliance spokesman said the unique and exciting project involved businesses from engineering to electrical and transport.

The spokesman said a milestone was reached in the unique project this week when the first of the four radar towers was transported to Extreme Engineering’s Callemondah painting and blasting facility.

“The transportation was conducted in three individual trips with the assistance of local transport provider TRANZQIP, who will also see the towers to their final destination,” the spokesman said.

“Construction and installation of the towers will be completed in collaboration with a number of Gladstone-based industrial companies, engaged by Xtreme Engineering.

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“The towers will be blasted, painted and preassembled by Xtreme Engineering over the next few months.

“Local electrical contractor I&C Electrical of Boyne Island will fit the towers with their electronic components.

“Once completed two towers will be transported to Greenvale and Taroom in Queensland and the remaining two towers transported to Perth and Dampier in Western Australia.

“Once delivered they will be installed by Xtreme Engineering.”

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