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• The Greenbrier Cos. recently received orders for 4,200 rail-car platforms worth $325 million. The majority of the orders are for double-stack intermodal platforms, with the balance consisting of box cars, covered hoppers and various car types for Europe, according to Greenbrier. Delivery is anticipated for sometime later this year. Greenbrier’s new rail-car manufacturing backlog as of Feb. 28 stood at 9,500 units worth an estimated $720 million, compared with 8,100 units worth an estimated $580 million as of Nov. 30, 2010.

• Siemens Mobility has obtained a contract to supply the railway electrification system for Kolkata Metro Rail Corp.'s new metro line in India. Siemens will provide project management, design, installation and commissioning services, plus personnel training and maintenance for three years. The new, nine-mile line will serve 12 stations and about 480,000 riders daily. The project's first phase is slated for completion by the end of 2013, and the second phase by the end of 2014.

• Siemens Industry Inc. has named Gert Seidel vice president of the Rail Automation Business Unit and Randy Brundridge, senior director of business development, freight solutions. Seidel joined Rail Automation after 15 years with the Siemens Post Automation business, where he was involved in the automation of the U.S. Postal Service's mail redirection system.

• Bombardier has launched its PrimoveCity e-mobility solution designed to address the range and recharging constraints of electric vehicles. The company also has opened a "center of excellence" at its engineering and manufacturing site in Mannheim, Germany, which will feature a new testing and development facility in September. The center will support future partnerships, projects and opportunities in the electric mobility sector, according to Bombardier.

• Prover Technology has obtained an order from Ansaldo STS for the Prover Certifier safety verification of ERTMS Level 2 interlocking systems supplied to the Swedish Transport Administration. Prover Certifier's software will enable Ansaldo to replace traditional testing methods for checking safety, which will reduce costs and provide complete coverage in safety verification of delivered systems, according to Prover Technology.

• Union Pacific Railroad has added Lewis Bolt & Nut Co.'s Evergrip™ Spike to its track standards. UP plans to use the new spike on severe curves, turnouts and other places where optimum holding power is required, according to Lewis Bolt. In addition, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority plans to convert its track maintenance group to the Evergrip™ Spike, according to the supplier.

• Rail industry sales executive Rachel Burns has launched Native Rail Supply (NRS) L.L.C., which plans to sell railroad signals, track materials, bridge materials and locomotive parts. Based in Tulsa, Okla., the firm also aims to help companies meet diversity and small business requirements. Burns, who also serves as director of sales for Railroad Signal International, and the Native Rail supply team have been involved in the railroad industry for more than two decades. NRS has been certified as a woman-owned business enterprise and a minority-owned business, and is in the process of being certified as a disadvantaged business enterprise in the railroad industry, Burns said in a prepared statement.