Rail supplier updates from Alstom, RailComm, HNTB and Railway Supply Institute (July 31)

Alstom and its three consortium partners will extend Algeria's Constantine area tramway by 6.2 miles. The company will supply track, catenaries, telecommunications and signaling, substations, ticketing equipment and an integrated system. Alstom's share of the contract is worth approximately $88.6 million.

Iowa Pacific Holdings chose RailComm's computer-aided dispatch system to operate six U.S. railroads running under the GCOR and NORAC rulesets. Dispatch will be provided over 400 miles of non-signaled territory mainline track, while dispatching operations will be performed using RailComm's Domain Operations Controller (DOC®) platform.

HNTB Corp. hired Jimmy Thompson as principal tunnel engineer. He has 30 years of experience in the design and construction of large infrastructure projects, and specializes in tunnels and underground facilities. Prior to joining HNTB, he served as an underground lead for the project management team on the Red Line Light-Rail Transit Project in Tel Aviv, Israel. He also worked as the lead tunnel engineer for the California’s high-speed rail project.

The Railway Supply Institute selected seven students to receive scholarships for the 2015-2016 academic year. The students will receive $2,500 to $5,000 each. This year's recipients, their colleges and rail-industry affiliations are: Kasey Christensen, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, FreightCar America; Audrianna DeLacour, Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Brookville Equipment Corp.; Tyler Irani, University Of Denver, Transportation Technology Center Inc.; Laura Isdahl, Gustavus Adolphus College, Loram Maintenance of Way Inc.; Breana Liberoni, St. Vincent College, Wabtec Corp.; Karla Lopez Lemus, University of the State of Hidalgo, the Greenbrier Cos.; and Timothy Pierret, University of Notre Dame, New York Air Brake Corp.