Rail supplier news from GATX, Hub Group and Thales; also, in memoriam: RMC's Edgar Powell (July 19)

GATX Corp.'s second-quarter net income rose to $35.1 million, or 74 cents per diluted share, from 2012's second-quarter net income of $23.5 million, or 49 cents per share. The quarter's results include a $3 million benefit from tax adjustments and other items, while the 2012 results included a negative tax impact of $15.3 million, according to a company press release. The Rail North America segment reported profit of $48.2 million for the quarter compared with $53.2 million a year ago. Year to date, the segment's profit was $98.5 million, compared with $103.9 million a year ago. The decline in quarterly and year-to-date segment profit was driven primarily by an expected increase in maintenance expenses related to regulatory compliance and the timing of re-marketing activity, which is expected to increase in the year's second half.

Hub Group Inc. reported net income for the second quarter increased 10 percent to $18.6 million, or 50 cents per share, compared with $16.95 million, or 46 cents per share, in the previous year's quarter. Revenue rose 8 percent to $837 million from $778 million a year ago. "All of our business lines contributed to a record second quarter. We remain focused on growing profitability and expect continued growth in the second half of the year," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Yeager in a press release.

Network Rail's Intelligent Infrastructure program, which incorporates an Intelligent Infrastructure Management (IIM) system for remote conditioning monitoring from Thales UK, was recognized as the Real IT Awards' project of the year in the United Kingdom. The system was designed to enable Network Rail to reduce delays caused by asset failure. Network Rail selected Thales UK in 2009 to pilot an IIM system between Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. The pilot led to the system being rolled out nationally, and today monitors more than 22,000 assets.

Edgar "Ed" Powell, former vice president of sales and marketing at Railway Maintenance Corp. (RMC) in Pittsburgh, died July 14. He was 92. Powell began working for RMC prior to serving in World War II. During the war, he was a first lieutenant of the Army Air Corps. A B-24 pilot, Powell ended up a prisoner of war in Germany after his plane was shot down. He remained a POW for a year until the war's end. Upon returning to RMC, Powell became the company's first service representative and, later, its first service manager. In the late 1950s, Powell went into sales, advancing to VP of sales and marketing in the early 1960s. Powell served in that role for nearly 25 years, until his retirement in 1984. In 1975, RMC was acquired by Portec Inc. and became the RMC Division, keeping its Pittsburgh location. RMC previously had a longstanding relationship with Portec though the lubricators.