Rail supplier updates from Burns Engineering, WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff and Predikto; also, in memoriam: Josef Neuhofer (April 5)

Burns Engineering Inc. has teamed up with Ansaldo STS to furnish a complete positive train control (PTC) system on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) commuter-rail network. Burns is leading wayside design, survey data management, wayside transponder design and programming, and technical support and documentation for the $451 million PTC system. The companies will provide integrated ACSES II and I-ETMS-based PTC systems on all MBTA commuter-rail lines. The agency's service area includes 175 communities, with service stretching to 133 stations across 664 miles of track.

Former Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI) President and CEO Joyce Rose has been appointed principal consultant in the Baltimore office of WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff. She'll provide client services nationwide relating to transit/rail operations safety and security. Additionally, she'll serve as a project manager for the on-call systems safety services contract with the Maryland Transit Administration. Before her time at OLI, Rose served for 25 years as a congressional staff member for the U.S. House and Senate transportation committees.

Predikto has added Greg Hrebek as vice president of rail solutions. He'll focus on accelerating the company's innovation in the rail industry for operators, OEMs and aftermarket providers. Hrebek previously served as director of engineering of the train dynamics systems division at New York Air Brake. During his time there, he was responsible for that company's simulation operation and training suite and its controls product LEADER (Locomotive Engineer Assist / Display and Event Recorder). Hrebek's hire comes as Predikto continues building a strong leadership team to address "Big Data" growth, company officials said in a press release.

Josef Neuhofer died March 29 after a short illness. He was 78. Neuhofer started his rail career as a salesman for Plasser & Theurer in Linz, Austria. After moving to the United States, he helped transform Plasser American Corp. into a "worldwide premier manufacturer of railroad technology equipment," according to his obituary. A past president of the Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association, Neuhofer earned many awards from the Austrian Embassy for business development. He is survived by his wife, Betty; a brother; three sisters; two children; and three grandchildren.