When I add to my layout in a few months I’m going to have several industries. I’m going to buy them early so I have them when I need them but I don’t know what to get. I’m already going to have a Grain elevator, but that’s the only industry set in stone. I’m going to post links of industries i’m interested in and please tell me if it would be found on a present-day midwestern RR.
http://www.1stplacehobbies.com/cgi-bin/prod.asp?pn=933-3019 also would Medusa cement ship “cement powder” or sand in Grain hoppers like this?
http://www.wholesaletrains.com/Detail.asp?ID=200428580
would the open-air transload be found on a present-day setup?
http://www.firsthobby.com/store1/Product.asp?ProductID=WALS2918&SN=2006020118212946
if you have suggestions for other industries i should consider feel free to post a link.
I believe that everyone of them are modern day equipment loading facilities, i’ve seen the cement plant in real life similar to that one where i live , and the open docks can be found on spurs and sidings thruout the country…chuck
I do believe you still see the transload areas around, and the following straight truck to railcar facility.
http://www.rixproducts.com/truck_terminal_30_x_80.htm
I like this one because it takes up less space and looks modern. personal opinion, of course. I have on on my layout.
I have seen in M.R. Magazine an article on Seven Industries that can be Modeled. It is a download that can be purchased fro $7.00 I personal would suggest a recycle paper plant. You could bring in coal or oil for a power plant. Chemical tankers for coating and such, box cars and trucks of waste paper and boxcars of out going product. At the paper mill I work we have box cars that are over height for large rolls which is what a recycle plant would ship out. THe buildings would pretty much be square corrugated sheet metal. I am aware of these plants being built in urban areas in the west and midwest. Taking advantage of large streams of waste paper.
How about a petroleum refinery? Lots of possibilities associated with a refinery – crude oil, gasoline, fuel oil, plastics, etc. etc. There are a couple of good kits out there…
Anything that handles plastics can be very easily modeled. Any type of modern building, corregated steel or prestreesed concrete sides along with a few silos, and an unloading walkway is all you need. There is an industry in Council Bluffs, IA that has 2 tracks (pretty sure) and handles about 6 to 8 covered hoppers at a time (4 on each track). The walkway runs between the 2 and the silos are at the end of the tracks. Not sure what they make there, could be PVC pipe but haven’t had the chance to fully investigate. Pikestuff would probably have all you need:
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/541-8015
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/933-2915
Of course teh bakery would work too! The silos are available separately.
Rick
You may want to check out the industry database available at the operations SIG website:
http://www.opsig.org/industrydb/
You download and use their application to print a list of industries (names and types) that the prototype you are modeling serviced. I plopped in NY state and it generated a list of more than 1200 industry names, locations and railroads that serviced them.
This can give you a good idea of what to model before you pick out a specific kit.
Good luck.
EdW
There was a topic called BEER! last week. It was about modelling a brewery. I thought it was a great idea. It generated lots of potential carloads, both in and out.
Yes i remeber the topic “BEER!”- well you’ve all given me lots to think about, but the key is IT HAS TO BE SOMETHING FOUND IN THE MIDWEST- i’m modeling a freelanced illinois central in HO scale.
Energy is a great enterprice. Super long coal trains are very modern. A huge port with gigantic silos, and an spectacular open sky mine with more huge silos. What about Gas and Oil, and any petrochemical production plant, lots of tanks, pipes, steel towers and blinking strobes, very modern.
dingoix, I just did a quick look at the site WickhamMan sent, you have plenty of possibilities. On the IC line in Illinois alone you have Mistubishi (autos), Cargill and Pillsbury (various grains), several chemical plants, a candy factory, plastics, fiberboards and containers (cardboard boxes), and steel tanks.
Rick
I might be wrong, but from what I remember, powdered concrete has to be carried in shorter covered hopper cars because it is so much denser/heavier than grain.
Powder (Aka portland) CEMENT. Not concrete.
Now that we got that set in concrete. LOL.
I went back and looked at the OPSig site and found a link to this text file that contains a listing of real industries serviced by all railroads in the midwest:
http://www.opsig.org/industrydb/OpSigMWC.txt
You should be able to right-click on this link and save the file to your local hard drive. Once there, you can open it with Excel (or another spreadsheet program) and sort the data any way you want. I sorted it by state code and got a listing of 2600+ industries in Illinois. If you can’t get enough ideas from this, I don’t know what will do the trick.
Good luck,
EdW
like this http://www.athearn.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=ATH93904
LOTS of suff on that link but it doesn’t help my quest for finding models of industries.
yes modern, but midwestern?
is Medusa cement midwestern? and what in / out loads and switching might be required for that? i’m also quite interested in the open transload building mainly because it looks moderate sized and could be fun to switch.
I’ve seen pikestuff’s HO version of that.
Here is a list of cement companies accross America. You can see Medusa is in Michigan. With a little research you can probably find some pictures and such, or just slap an appropriate name on the Medusa kit and go for it.
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/pcem/plantlis.pdf
Rick
Sounds good.
Victor
Happy Railroading.[swg][swg]
Thanks for that link, Rick. IF i have room to have the Medusa Cement i’ll slap an appropriate name on it. I’m still not 100% sure about the transload building. i don’t know if it’d provide enough switching or not.
Like others have mentioned - cement is shipped ‘to’ a facility like the Walthers Medussa cement plant. Plants that ‘make’ cement are large, and Walthers released a kit in the past year that included the large rolling oven that is used.
Cement is shipped in 70-100 ton capacity 2 bay covered hoppers. The stuff is ‘dense’ and would overload a 4700 cubic foot hopper long before you filled it out!
Transload facilities are still quite common. Progressive Rail has a industrila park full of unload/reload spots and warehouses: Check out their web site…
http://www.progressiverail.com/
Jim Bernier