Rail supplier news from Union Tank Car, LGS, L.B. Foster, Ricardo and Kelso (March 2)

Union Tank Car Co.'s repair business unit has established a tank car remanufacturing facility in Marion, Ohio. The new plant was developed to retrofit existing DOT 111 and CPC-1232 tank cars with new safety features required by HM-251. The cars will attain a DOT117R specification that will allow their continued use in flammable liquids service. The retrofit adds top fittings protection, thermal insulation, an 11-gauge steel jacket, full half-inch-thick head shields and a bottom outlet valve handle that disengages from the valve when the car is in transit. The company's new remanufacturing plant, which received certification from the Association of American Railroads in February, is less than 2 miles from Union Tank Car's existing full-service repair shop in Marion. The 125,000-square-foot building, which previously had been used for heavy manufacturing, has been fitted with more than 1,000 feet of in-grade standard gauge rail, heavy lift cranes and a turntable capable of rotating a 66-foot-long tank car inside.

LGS Innovations has completed a comprehensive cybersecurity risk assessment contract with Railinc Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads. Under contract terms, LGS conducted a thorough analysis of Railinc's IT internal and external cybersecurity operations and processes, and provided the company with an assessment of its findings. The project enabled Railinc to validate the cybersecurity framework that governs its business and customer relationships, LGS officials said in a press release.

For fourth-quarter 2015, L.B. Foster Co. reported net income of $3.3 million, or 32 cents per diluted share, compared with fourth-quarter 2014 net income of $6 million, or 58 cents per diluted share. Sales in Q4 2015 fell nearly 14 percent to $139 million from $161 million in 2014. During Q4 2015, L.B. Foster sold certain concrete tie manufacturing assets in Tucson, Ariz., for $2.8 million and recognized a $2.3 million gain on the sale.

Following approval from the Chinese government, Ricardo plc yesterday confirmed the completion of the transfer of a small rail joint venture owned by Lloyd's Register group and CCS in China. This concludes the transfer of the Lloyd's Register Rail business to Ricardo. The addition allows Ricardo to continue growing its international footprint into the Chinese rail market, which has built the world's largest high-speed rail network over the last 15 years, Ricardo officials said in a press release.

Kelso Technologies Inc. has appointed Anthony Andrukaitis chief operating officer as part of a scheduled change to the company's management team. He has more than 25 years of senior management experience in the railroad sector, and has served as COO of Trinity Rail and president of Trinity Tank Car Inc. Additionally, Kelso named Neil Gambow managing director of corporate development. He has played a key part in Kelso's development following its near bankruptcy in 2010, company officials said in a press release. Gambow will remain an active executive manager of Kelso and a key adviser to both the chief executive officer and COO.

[Editor's note: This post has been updated since it was initially published.]