Congressmen visit rail suppliers in Minnesota, Utah and Ohio

U.S. Rep. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) earlier this week met with Miller Ingenuity staff for a product demonstration of ZoneGuard, the company's roadway worker protection system.

Walz also joined representatives from Operational Lifesaver Inc. and local railroads to tour Miller's manufacturing plant in Winona, Minnesota.

The Railway Engineering-Maintenance and Suppliers Association (REMSA) coordinated the event. Miller Ingenuity President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Blue led the tour.

Attendees toured ZoneGuard's manufacturing assembly area and discussed the product's operational features with Miller's leadership and engineering team, REMSA officials said in a press release.

During Walz's visit, rail advocates pushed for full funding of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program and the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Grants program for fiscal-year 2018.

Other attendees included Mark Peterson, mayor of Winona; Liisa Stark, assistant vice president of public affairs for Union Pacific Railroad; and Sean Winkler, director of advocacy at REMSA.

Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) on Wednesday joined rail advocacy organization GoRail to tour A&K Railroad Materials Inc.'s national headquarters in Salt Lake City.

From left to right: Doug Davis, general counsel, A&K; Rocky Smith, VP field operations, A&K; U.S. Sen. Mike Lee; Rhonda Nicoloff, president, A&K; Jeff Galyean, chief financial officer, A&K; Jeff Long, western region sales manager, A&K

Photo – GoRail

The visit included an overview of railroad operations in Utah and the freight-rail industry's legislative priorities, GoRail officials said in a press release.

A&K President Rhonda Nicoloff led the tour, which highlighted the company's distribution facility.

In a meeting before the tour, the group discussed proposed rail regulations under consideration by the Surface Transportation Board and their potential impact on the country's rail network, GoRail officials said.

The regulations include "forced access," which would stifle rail companies' ability to invest in their network and operations, according to GoRail.

Finally, Stronghold Coatings recently hosted U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) to mark the opening of the company's new facility in Franklin, Ohio.

U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson (left) participates in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Stronghold Coatings' new facility.

Photo – Stronghold Coatings

The facility will double Stronghold Coatings' production floorspace and make room for additional employees, company officials said in a press release.

The 5,000-square-foot facility will house production for the company's MM1018 bridge and structural repair product, which is a polymeric metal material providing force-fit gap compensation.

To manufacture the MM1018 product in-house, Stronghold Coatings acquired specialized mixing and blending machinery. The company's older facility will continue to produce other products, including Dichtol micro-porosity sealers.