Rail supplier news from Greenbrier, Thales, MRT, United Rail and Tideworks (Sept. 13)

The Greenbrier Cos. Inc. has built its 50,000th covered hopper rail car, the company announced today. In February, Greenbrier completed production of its 100,00th intermodal double-stack rail car. Both milestones exemplify the company's "transformation from a limited builder of specialized rail cars to a broad-based manufacturer of virtually all rail-car types," Greenbrier officials said in a press release. The company built its first covered hopper rail car more than 11 years ago. Greenbreir now builds a full line of small, medium and large covered hopper rail cars with freight-carrying capacities from 3,250 cubic feet up to 6,580 cubic feet.

Thales has closed on its acquisition of Guavus, a Big Data analytics company. The transaction is expected to help Thales address the growing needs of an "increasingly connected global ecosystem," Thales officials said in a press release. Guavus has built an industrial Big Data platform designed to be implemented across multiple new markets. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, Guavus employs 250 people. Its revenue is expected to exceed $30 million for the current fiscal year, according to Thales. Thales announced plans to acquire the company in spring.

MRT Holdings has introduced two new systems designed to help railroads improve track geometry inspection operations and work-zone sign management. Designed for mass deployment on any vehicle, the company's track geometry system includes modular hardware, wireless sensors and modern software utility. Those features are aimed at making it easier for railroads to inspect and automatically transmit reports to a back-office utility, MRT officials said in a press release. The company's remote sign system is a two-piece product that can be deployed to reflect work zones or other protected areas of track. With the system in place, users don't need to manually raise and lower signs on a daily basis. Users can remotely monitor the real-time status of all deployed signs through a web-based utility.

United Rail Inc. has agreed to represent and support EKE Electronics Ltd.'s products and services in the North American passenger-rail market. Under the partnership, United Rail will provide business development, sales and marketing, engineering services, Buy America support and after-sales services for EKE Electronics' products. EKE provides solutions for system integration, train automation, train communications and improved safety.

TraPac LLC has gone live with Tideworks Technology Inc.'s Spinnaker Planning Management® solution at a terminal in the Port of Los Angeles. TraPac deployed the planning management system to support automation of on-dock rail operations at its container facility. The system enables TraPac to perform graphical planning, check pre-arrival consist visibility, and establish drag-and-drop ramp assignments. Tideworks provided all associated implementation services to ensure proper deployment. That included project management, software configuration and installation, integration services, user training and go-live assistance.