ABC-NACO Unit Awarded $51 Million Signal/Communications Contract
10 April 2000
ABC-NACO Unit Awarded $51 Million Signal/Communications Contract
DOWNERS GROVE, Ill.--April 7, 2000--The Rail Systems Division, part of ABC-NACO Inc.'s Rail Services and Systems business group, was awarded a transit-line signal and communications contract valued at $51 million from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA).It is the largest single contract received to-date by the Rail Systems Division and is representative of future projects in the bid process today.
The contract calls for upgrading the existing signal and communications facilities on a ten-mile stretch of SEPTA's Broad Street Subway line. The multi-track Broad Street line, with express and local service, serves the heart of Philadelphia. Among its station stops are the city's sports complex, including Veteran's Stadium and the Spectrum; City Hall; the Pennsylvania Convention Center; and Temple University.
Under the contract, the Systems Division will design, engineer, furnish and install updated signals and communications facilities between the Pattison Avenue and the Fern Rock Yard stations on the line. The work will also include installation of automatic vehicle identification and dispatch systems on the line's existing subway cars, as well as cable and rehabilitation work on the line. When completed, the investment is expected to improve passenger service on the line which began operation in 1926.
The work is expected to begin shortly and will take about three years to complete, according to Steve Yoder, President of the Rail Systems Division. Yoder said, "For the first time, we will be working with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Local 98, who will provide skilled labor under the direction of our supervisors. The Rail Systems Division is now represented by The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalman and the IBEW." The major subcontractor on the project will be Union Switch and Signal. Assisting in the management of the project will be RailDocs.com, a daily operations control system.
Joseph A. Seher, ABC-NACO, Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The SEPTA contract is just as significant to the Company as the recent long-term wheel service agreement with Union Pacific. It represents another major breakthrough for our new service strategy, which allows us to move up the supply chain, closer to the needs of our customers for value added services and e-commerce solutions. As part of that strategy, we recently strengthened the Systems Division's product and service offering by combining it with our Specialty Track Division, which designs and manufactures products such as switches, turnouts and crossings. We believe this strategy will be well received by the market place and anticipate positive developments in the near future."
ABC-NACO's Rail Systems Division provides signaling systems, services and specialty track products to passenger, transit systems and freight railroads in the United States and internationally. The division is headquartered in Verona, Wisconsin, and is one of the largest independent railroad and transit maintenance-of-way service providers in North America.
ABC-NACO is one of the world's leading suppliers of technologically advanced products to the railroad and flow control industries through its three business groups: Rail Products, Rail Services and Systems, and Flow and Specialty Products. With four technology centers around the world, ABC-NACO holds pre-eminent market positions in the design, engineering, and manufacture of high-performance freight rail car, locomotive and passenger rail suspension and coupler systems, wheels and mounted wheel sets. The Company also supplies railroad and transit infrastructure products and services, technology-driven specialty track products, as well as highly engineered valve bodies and components for industrial flow control systems worldwide. It has 32 offices and facilities in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Scotland, Portugal, and China.
Safe Harbor Statement Under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The statements contained in this release which are not historical facts, may be deemed to be forward-looking statements that are subject to change based on various factors which may be beyond the control of ABC-NACO Inc. Accordingly, actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in any such forward-looking statement. Factors that could affect actual results are described more fully in the Company's Annual Report on 10-K for the transition period ended December 31, 1999, under the caption "Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward Looking Statements," and other risks described from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made.