ELECTRO MOTIVE DIESEL (EMD Inc)

Don McQueen

 

Summary of EMCC London activity during March/April 2011:

 During March, 18 new SD70ACes, export JT42CWRMs and ECO repowered units were shipped from London.

 In order 20106377 11 Norfolk Southern SD70ACe 1000-1003, 1006-1012 left CN London East via Sarnia, and Flat Rock to NS Bellevue.

 The last five JT42CWRM units in order 20078968 (96801, 96803, 96804, 96806 & 96807) for seven which had been at the EMCC plant in London since 2008 finally were shipped in March as GMDX 1001 to 1005. Initially ordered in early 2007 by Dillon & Le Jeune Cargo (DLC) they had been completed as JT42CWRs by October 2008 but put into storage at Stratford as a result of changing European economies and the 2007 merger between DLC and Crossrail Benelux. They were returned to London in April 2009 and rebuilt for the AKIEM European hire trade as JT42CWRMs with no assigned road numbers or livery - other than basic grey with yellow ends. These units hold the record for being at the builders longer than any other order since 1950.  MV “Fairlane” docked at the port of Rotterdam on April 21st, and unloaded these them the next day.

 Lifted by GEXR LLPX 2236 & FEC 709 on March 4th, 2011, they arrived at CN's MacMillan yard the next day. CN export train #X316 left Toronto with CN SD60F 5524 and the two EMDX idlers on March 16th, and arrived in at Halifax Ocean Terminal (HOT) on March 18. They were moved to Pier 27/28 on April 3rd, in preparation for an April 5th loading onto JumboShip FAIRLANE and a scheduled arrival in Rotterdam on April 13th.

 In late March, UP SD59-2MX 9907 was finally shipped to the Transportation Technology Center (the former AAR Test Track) in Pueblo.

In April EMD was busy with the Ferromex SD70Ace order and six GT38ACe export units for  PTKA (Sumatra)  in  Indonesia.  On April 12th Bill Cresswell clicked one of the first new Ferromex SD70ACe locomotives (unlettered and unnumbered) on the test track at EMD - London. The first completed Ferromex units to be shipped were: FXE 4015, 4017, 4018 and 4019, all departing the London plant on April 20th.  GEXR delivered four more Ferromex units to CN on April 23rd 4016, 4020, 4021, 4024, and  two more 4023 and 4025 on the 25th.  Then on April 29th, FXE 4026, FXE 4027, UP 9905, and UP 9909 were lifted by the GEXR. With this, all the UP SD59MX repower units are now off the property.

Norfolk Southern SD70ACe’s 1004, 1005, 1014-1018 & 1021 were delivered on April 1st.  NS 1019 and 1023 were shipped from the London plant on April 8th (GEXR to CN).  Then on April 12th, the last three remaining from the NS order still at the plant (NS SD70ACe 1020, 1022, and 1024), were lifted to CN by GEXR.    

 Walter Pfefferle caught 1004, 1005, 1014, 1015, 1016, 1017, 1018 and 1021 being lifted by GEXR to CN London Yard.  

  

Western Australia e-mag with some great photos of Canadian-built SD90MAC-H’s and SD70Ace’s:

http://westernrails.com/West_Aust_Railscene_e-Mag_issue_number_132.pdf

© CRO May 2011