The Dutch railway network has a length of almost 3,000 km. Above most of the railways there is an electricity grid. About every 75 metres there is a so-called catenary support structure, on which the overhead power line is suspended. The steel surface area per support structure ranges from approximately 20 m2 up to a good 200m2.

On average, the balance beams are painted once in the 20 years.

Since 1992, Van der Ende has painted hundreds of thousands of square meters on commission of ProRail.

The work is physically heavy and demands a lot from the painters. The accessibility is difficult. In connection with the risk of falling, the painters always work on a leash.

The work is mainly done at night. During the work, the catenary is free of voltage and the tracks are taken out of service. The period of interruption of service is extremely short, often no longer than 3 hours.

During the execution, several security people are present who supervise and monitor the painters to ensure that work is only carried out in voltage-free zones. In some cases also, elevated platforms and pre-assembled scaffolding are deployed.

There are only a few companies in the Netherlands that have been selected by ProRail to carry out this particular job. Van der Ende is proud to have the longest record of service within ProRail for the conservation of catenary support structures.