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The Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority recently awarded a contract to The Greenbrier Cos.' Polish manufacturing arm Wagony Swidnica and Boston Transit Group for 240 flat container platforms.

To be built by Wagony Swidnica, the platforms are the first freight-car orders Greenbrier has obtained in Iraq in more than 20 years. The contract also is the first business Poland has secured in the country since joining the coalition armed forces at the start of the Iraqi war last year.

Acquired by Greenbrier in 1998, Wagony Swidnica employs 900 people at a plant in Poland's lower Silesia region. The company plans to bid on a freight-car tender that soon will be issued by Polish national railroad PKP.

Meanwhile, Greenbrier announced it received orders for about 7,000 rail cars valued at $400 million during the past two months, mostly in North America. The orders include 4,700 double-stack intermodal wells and 400 box cars for TTX Co. — Greenbrier's largest-ever contract, according to a prepared statement.

As of today, the car builder's combined North American and European backlog stands at a record 14,600 units valued at $860 million compared with 9,700 units valued at $600 million on May 31 and 10,000 units valued at $560 million on Feb. 29.

Since September — the start of Greenbrier's fiscal year — the company has received North American and European orders totaling 11,500 cars valued at about $800 million.

"The pricing for the orders takes into account the current volatile environment for steel and specialty components," said Greenbrier President and Chief Executive Officer William Furman. "Our North American and European backlog now stretches through most of 2005."