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• Invensys Rail Corp. has acquired privately held PHW Inc. for $24 million. PHW, which manufactures cab signaling systems and other electronic train control systems for the North American rail and transit industries, will operate as a wholly owned Invensys Rail subsidiary, according to an Invensys press release. Amtrak uses PHW’s onboard system on the Northeast Corridor and in conjunction with other associated railroads as part of its ACSES positive train control (PTC) system. PHW’s PTC products will be a major expansion of Invensys Rail’s North American PTC product line, Invensys officials said.

• Ricardo is joining forces with Artemis Intelligent Power and Bombardier Transportation on a research and development project to create environmentally friendly regenerative braking capability for diesel commuter trains, according to a Ricardo press release. Scheduled to begin in the year’s second half, the project could lead to a system that would be retrofitted to existing rolling stock and incorporated into new rail vehicles, Ricardo officials said. “The combined Ricardo Kinergy and Artemis Digital Displacement® system, together with Bombardier’s … rail equipment manufacturing and system integration expertise, will enable this groundbreaking technology to be integrated into diesel trains for the first time,” they said.

• Bombardier Inc. reported first-quarter net income of $190 million, or 10 cents per diluted share, down from $220 million, or 12 cents per share, in the same period a year ago. Revenue fell to $3.5 billion from $4.7 billion in first-quarter 2011. Bombardier Transportation’s revenue for the quarter slipped to $2 billion versus $2.5 billion a year ago. Bombardier Transportation also reported new orders worth $1.2 billion for the quarter, representing a book-to-bill ratio of 0.6, compared with $1.2 billion and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.5 for the corresponding quarter last year.

• RailComm has provided a remote control system for a New England Central Railroad bridge. RailComm’s Domain Operations Controller (DOC®) System is used to dispatch the railroad and has been modified to include control of the bridge. In addition, RailComm has created a secondary communications link that was outfitted with a cellular communication link that provides backup to the primary link.

• Gage McCotter, longtime chief financial officer of Auto Truck Group, announced plans to retire on June 1. His Auto Truck Group career dates back to June 1979. Since then, he has been involved in all aspects of the financial, accounting and information technology departments. “He has been a true backbone of our company,” said Auto Truck Group President Jim Dondlinger in a prepared statement. Auto Truck Group manufactures and installs work truck equipment.

• RailTerm has appointed Ashley Langford senior vice president. He will be responsible for business development and major project initiatives. Prior to joining RailTerm, he worked for major multi-national companies involved in the rail industry, such as Siemens, Bombardier and Alstom. Langford also worked in the public sector, including a stint as VP at Infrastructure Ontario, and served several senior policy positions in the Ontario government.

• Cubic Transportation Systems and the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of San Diego have partnered to research the next generation of intelligent travel technology for cities. Cubic will contribute $500,000 during the next five years to the school to fund research by faculty, students and Cubic staff. The project aims to achieve a better understanding of the application and utilization of emerging technologies, with the ultimate goal of making transportation easier, Cubic officials said in a prepared statement.