When something is important to Tom Hoback, he lets you know.
The Indiana Rail Road, of which he is founder, president, and CEO, is one. Railroading, in general, is another and lately, so is the Wheel/Rail Interaction Conference.
So important is the conference coming next week, that Hoback paused during a recent overseas trip to talk about it, fighting through spotty cell phone reception to get his message across.
“Here you have less than an inch square with all these contact forces that are so critical to us,” Hoback said of WRI’s focus on topics concerning what happens when flanged wheel meets steel rail. “This is really devoted to help us extend the life of the rail, life of the wheels.”
Hoback said Indiana Rail Road personnel attended the 2012 WRI conference. What he learned from them impressed him enough to become an advocate and agree to give the keynote address this year. The veteran railroader said he intends to share with the WRI audience how Indiana Rail Road transformed itself from a light-density spin-off into a heavy-haul railroad – with an emphasis on the little things.
“Had we only had to re-build our railroad to the needs of the day, where our traffic was – and substantially less than we’re moving today,” there would have been little ability to grow traffic, he said. “We’ve had to harden the infrastructure.”
As he tells it, re-building the Indiana Rail Road to thrive involved more than replacing track, but paying attention to rail neutral temperatures, investing in ballast, ties, rails, and doing anything that would make sure the railroad was “adequate for today’s heavy axle loadings.
“In some cases, we’ve had to re-lay rail twice because our tonnage has grown so significantly,” he said.
Hoback’s words are an admission of how much forethought went into considering the business of the Indiana Rail Road and how much preparation it required. In recognition of this, Railway Age recognized Indiana Rail Road as its 2012 Regional Railroad of the Year. Proud of past accomplishments, but moving ever forward, Hoback said that the “bread-and-butter” issues WRI covers will affect how the company sustains its property improvements over the long-term.
Some topics, like the use of ‘friction modifiers’ that grease rails to reduce wheel strain, but without losing traction, would not have been considered even a decade ago, but are cutting edge this year. And then there’s research on how grinding certain rails more often leads to less wear and longer life.
“The one thing I would say is that the whole concept of putting this conference together, I think, is brilliant,” Hoback said. “On one hand, railway engineering has been with us 200 years. … What you’re doing is using that basic technology and making it efficient into the future.”
Hoback is scheduled to speak at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, May 8, during the first day of the Heavy Haul portion of the conference.
More details are available by visiting the Wheel/Rail Interaction website.
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