Yuma sand plant reopening?

[TC Man]

Heard on radio today of a hiring session at Michigan Works for multiple postions open at "Fairmount Santrol in Harrietta". Harrietta is next to Yuma. Plant manager, foreman, equipment operator, etc.

Great news for GLC if they are actually going to go back into production!

[~Z~]

Heard on radio today of a hiring session at Michigan Works for multiple postions open at "Fairmount Santrol in Harrietta". Harrietta is next to Yuma. Plant manager, foreman, equipment operator, etc.

Great news for GLC if they are actually going to go back into production!

Could be... says Fairmount Santrol, formerly Wexford Sand, will be in the Cadillac Michigan Works! office on Thursday, December 14th from 7:00am - 11:00am OR 3:00pm - 7:00pm for open interviews.
Wexford Sand is the sand plant known to be called in Yuma, but has a Harrietta mailing address.

[AARR]

Frac Sand is in demand again. Yuma has the volume and loading capability to make it economical.

Fairmont shipped frac sand from Yuma for a few years (prior to closing). They would ship around 300 cars per month of fracing sand when they were busy. They closed when demand went down and Fairmont had excess capacity at other newer and more economical mines.

Hopefully they will reopen. GLC will need the additional business with three Cadillac commodities (coke, wood chips and wood ties) facing questionable futures.

[MiRailProductions]

This would be great business for the GLC, just as it was before it closed down. No doubt about it. However, with these past two weeks seeing multiple CSTN's with 50-60+ cars, what would another 50+ cars per week do? It seems like there would have to be three engines in Cadillac at all times to handle that kind of traffic.

[csx801]

This would be great business for the GLC, just as it was before it closed down. No doubt about it. However, with these past two weeks seeing multiple CSTN's with 50-60+ cars, what would another 50+ cars per week do? It seems like there would have to be three engines in Cadillac at all times to handle that kind of traffic.

Great Lakes Central is already having capacity issues in Cadillac. They frequently max out the capacity of Selma yard. If coke traffic dies off, it will open 2 yard tracks that are currently used for the transload but that doesn't do much when you are turning 50+ cars per week. Even more so, empties don't turn as quickly as loads do. When you are supplying for a volatile industry like sand, demand shifts frequently. To compensate for this railroads (more so shortlines) typically stockpile empties to some degree to handle fluctuations in demand.

I am curious to see how GLC will handle this if it comes to fruition.

[GP-35]

GLC is going to be leasing two SD 40-2 because of so much grain and other freight they have been moving, this has been in the works for a while. So pretty soon you will see bigger power on the GLC.

[AARR]

Yuma has a mile long loading track and a mile long yard track for staging empties. Boon or Harrietta (or both) have sidings for staging empties.

Back when Yuma was shipping 50-100 cars a week of foundry sand TSB had two jobs stationed at Cadillac. One worked the sand and Clare Turns. The other worked the line north of Cadillac. They both worked Cadillac Yards.

Capacity challenges are a good problem to have vs. low business volumes .

[TC Man]

Yuma has a mile long loading track and a mile long yard track for staging empties. Boon or Harrietta (or both) have sidings for staging empties.

Back when Yuma was shipping 50-100 cars a week of foundry sand TSB had two jobs stationed at Cadillac. One worked the sand and Clare Turns. The other worked the line north of Cadillac. They both worked Cadillac Yards.

Capacity challenges are a good problem to have vs. low business volumes .

Also, I'm pretty sure that some of that coke goes to CMI in Cadillac (the big plant right near the GLC shop, so if that's correct, coke won't go away, just not as much.

[AARR]

Several years ago CMI and EJIW and at least one to three other foundries were getting their coke from the transload. I don't know whom currently receives their coke from Cadillac but CMI and EJIW are good bets.

Also, I'm pretty sure that some of that coke goes to CMI in Cadillac (the big plant right near the GLC shop, so if that's correct, coke won't go away, just not as much.

[MiRailProductions]

GLC is going to be leasing two SD 40-2 because of so much grain and other freight they have been moving, this has been in the works for a while. So pretty soon you will see bigger power on the GLC.

I can't wait to see this? Any time frame as to when they will be arriving?

[GP-35]

They will be coming off lease from another railroad and will be going to there home shop for inspection and then heading to the GLC in a few weeks or so.

[AARR]

In the past the SD40 trucks did some damage to the tracks in some of the curved areas. GLC was able to use the NS modern SD's because they have radial features to their trucks. I wonder what has changed so GLC is comfortable with SD40's? Maybe as TSB/GLC upgraded track they did so with mind of using SD's in the future.

[MiRailProductions]

In the past the SD40 trucks did some damage to the tracks in some of the curved areas. GLC was able to use the NS modern SD's because they have radial features to their trucks. I wonder what has changed so GLC is comfortable with SD40's? Maybe as TSB/GLC upgraded track they did so with mind of using SD's in the future.

I'm sure their main usage will be along the ONTN jobs from Owosso to Clare. Over the past couple years, they've been converting some of the track over to welded rail, and they've made significant progress, as almost every time I chase 1225 I find a new stretch of welded rail. Right now there are areas north of Owosso that are welded, and areas between Ithaca and Rosebush that are welded as well. SD40-2s will be fine on most of that track if this conversion to welded rail continues.

[MQT1223]

Has a 6 axle ever been North of Alma? (1225 doesn't count)

With the GP38-2's not going anywhere anytime soon, would GLC have any reason to replace/suppliment the GP35's with SD40's or 38's? A lease is only temporary, but those GP35's aren't exactly new anymore. I wonder if GLC has ever considered sending out the GP35's for any type heavy rebuilding with an electronics upgrade, granted their shops are very capable.

[csx801]

Has a 6 axle ever been North of Alma? (1225 doesn't count)

An SD60I wandered around up here for a run or two last fall. I think it came in on a unit train from NS.

[Steve B]

There's no reason six axle power can't run just fine on jointed rail, given adequate roadbed strength, rail weight and curvature limits. Untold billions of ton-miles have been produced by six axle power for many decades, on jointed rail all over the country.

[MiRailProductions]

There's no reason six axle power can't run just fine on jointed rail, given adequate roadbed strength, rail weight and curvature limits. Untold billions of ton-miles have been produced by six axle power for many decades, on jointed rail all over the country.

This is true. The SD's could probably run on every line except the TC branch or the Middleton Branch.

[Saturnalia]

There's no reason six axle power can't run just fine on jointed rail, given adequate roadbed strength, rail weight and curvature limits. Untold billions of ton-miles have been produced by six axle power for many decades, on jointed rail all over the country.

This is true. The SD's could probably run on every line except the TC branch or the Middleton Branch.

There really isn't anywhere an SD can't go except due to curvature, which you're just not going to find the limits of on the mainline. Unless the whole unit is overweight (which isn't much more than a comparable Geep) you're just not going to run into the weight issue, generally speaking.

SDs chew up bad track because it tends to spread the rails out (in curves, particularly), they can put more power down, and they generally weigh more. SDs aren't going to destroy your decent CWR or even jointed.

The worst thing you can do to any track is let the roadbed degrade, second probably to letting the bolts get loose, rot the ties, etc. Bad bed and ties just feeds the joint problem. CWR is great because it doesn't have the vibration concentrators that joints are...so the track isn't trying to rattle itself apart.

The 1225 does much more "damage" per mile than SDs ever will. I've also heard that smaller 4-axles like SWs also aren't nice to track, either.

[SD80MAC]

An SD40-2 weighs more than a GP35 or GP38, but has two extra axles to spread the weight over. GLC has one of the best maintained mainlines in the state, if not the country (seriously, its immaculate). The only place I could see them not running might be north of Cadillac.

[J T]

Jon, any idea of the weight restriction on the Hamilton branch, especially with the trestle?