ACF Industries reopens Pennsylvania rail-car plant due to booming energy sector

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett yesterday participated in a reopening ceremony for ACF Industries L.L.C.'s rail-car manufacturing plant in Milton.

ACF closed the facility in 2009 because of declining sales. But booming growth in the U.S. energy sector created a shortage of tank cars and components, prompting the company to reopen the plant, said Corbett and ACF officials in a press release.

The company has hired 230 people since the spring reopening and expects to create a total of 333 jobs and retain 20 existing jobs in the next three years. ACF received $483,000 in state funding for machinery and equipment purchases, and employee training.

"The rebirth of this company represents growth in traditional manufacturing, re-energized by the natural gas industry," said Corbett. "By supporting our expanding energy sector and helping to connect industries, we are helping to create a new Pennsylvania."

Rail cars manufactured in Milton will be shipped to gas fields in the Dakotas and Canada to be used to transport crude oil to various U.S. refineries. Because of the increased extraction of propane from the Marcellus Shale and continued growth in the natural gas industry, ACF plans to begin producing stationary propane tanks at the Milton plant by 2013's end.