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DOT 186-04
Contact: Brian Turmail (202) 366-1621
Bill Adams (202) 366-4570
Thursday, Oct. 7, 2004
Skyrocketing Orders for New Railcars Keep Workers at Portland’s
Gunderson, Inc. Railcar Manufacturing Plant Busy
Backorder for Freight Railcars Signal Strong Economy,
Transportation Official Says
PORTLAND, OR – As the expanding U.S. economy continues to drive demand for
shipments of goods by rail, the future looks strong for Portland’s Gunderson,
Inc. railcar manufacturing plant and its local employees who are working to fill
a record backlog for new railcar orders.
U.S. Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, Emil Frankel, today toured
Gunderson’s railcar plant floor to see workers churning out freight railcars to
satisfy the backlog, which will keep them busy until late 2005. Gunderson’s
parent company, The Greenbrier Companies, estimates the plant produced in excess
of 4,700 rail cars this past fiscal year, up from the 3,800 deliveries logged in
FY 2003.
And in a move that mirrors the improving railroad industry as a whole, Gunderson
is now running operations with nearly 1,200 employees – the highest number of
workers in several years.
“The thriving business at Gunderson is a story we are seeing repeated around the
country. The growing U.S. economy has railroads scrambling for freight railcars
to haul goods worth billions of dollars to market,” Assistant Secretary Frankel
said.
“The transportation sector is a bellwether of an improving economy. Gunderson
has added 300 jobs over the last few years to keep up with new orders. People
are buying again, and the freight railroad industry is vital to keeping goods
moving and shelves stocked,” he said.
Nationwide, orders for new freight cars in the first six months of 2004 have
already surpassed total orders for 2002, and are on course to surpass 2003
totals, as well. The current industry backlog is approximately 51,400 cars – the
highest backlog since 1998. Greenbrier, with an estimated 25 percent industry
share, has reported a backlog of 14,300 railcars operation wide.
“Railroads have hired 10,000 new employees this year, and plan to hire more than
80,000 over the next six years. The positive growth at Gunderson and across the
industry all point to an improving American economy,” Assistant Secretary
Frankel said.
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