Small Industry, Many hoppers

[ericsp]

If you are like most model railroaders you are probably looking for a small industry with large quantities of train cars. I found an aerial photograph of one in Cerritos, CA.
TerraServer Satellite Photograph

Live Maps Bird's Eye View (Added 02/22/09)

[cacole]

That looks like a fertilizer or cement unloading facility, with all of the trucks parked around the area to deliver the material after it is unloaded from the covered hoppers.

[Bob Hayes]

Maybe someone living in the Cerritos/La Mirada area can tell us what the industry is. From the Thomas Guide, the freeway is the 5, the east-west street is Alondra.
Bob Hayes

[Anonymous]

In my cement hauling experience, I must declare those hopper cars too big for the Portland Cement. These appear to be 50 footers and the sheer weight of the stuff will break the long hoppers. Upon examination of the photo, I surmise that we may be looking at either a Travel Trailer Factory or Mobile Home Factory because some of the trailers look like they got propane tanks on the front hitches and cooling A?C boxes on top. I think the plastic pellets are being used to shrink wrap the cars because the entire facility looks very clean and most of the trailers appear to have been parked away from what I think is the main assembly in the lower right corner.

What a mystery...

[Eriediamond]

I agree with Highiron in that the large plant appears to be a travel-camper trailer plant. With that said, I haul a lot of materials to these plants and the hundreds of plants I haul into throughout the country from coast to coast do not have any rail service into them. What is really a mystery to me, is that I see no semi trucks that would haul anything into the rail head or carry any product out. You would think with that many hopper cars, there would be a couple of large silos to store the product unless there is an under ground conveyer system we don't see. Ken

[Anonymous]

I used the map's Functions to shift the view several "Panes" over and decided that I am looking at a Dealership for Mobile Homes. You can see the extensions on the sides of some of these vehicles where people use them to gain extra interior space by "pushing" out when parked. The facility is totally fenced in with every vehicle onhand stored inside the fence line. I would imagine that there is no obvious way for the siloes that the hoppers are next to to transport material into the building. Therefore I decided that this is probably a Import, Export or COOP elevator where Grains or light products are bought and sold. There appears to be much plant growth near the one car being loaded at the base of the silos but no obvious Truck Wiegh Scales or even Hydralic End Dump Ramps. The type of vehicles (Cars) gathered at the office of the silos are farmer, pickups and other hard working type vehicles while you can observe that the cars parked at the dealership on it's property are sports cars and not commonly found in industry. These I think are customers or sales people who hav e made a nice living and can afford these nicer sport's cars.

I dont see any kind of piping, conveyors or underground transits between the silos or the dealership. Therefore I decided that we are looking at two seperate businesses. The Silos certainly have access for big trucks as a semi driver I can visualize in my head that I can pull into one drive to the silo load or unload and pull out the other driveway without too much trouble. This is reinforced by large clear areas that are kept clear by employees parking vehicles AWAY from the drive way and particulary with the valubale moble homes being tucked far far away as possible from the silo operation while they await space to be freed up on the fenced and secure dealership property.

I may come back to this picture later on and expand it to look for the sea. If this place is near a coast then it is export/import if this place is near a alot of FARMS then we are dealing with crops inbound and outbound.

The trackage shows a straight several track storage yard next to the silo. There are no apparent spots along the back wall of the dealership ( for boxcars of parts etc) so that rules out a factory.

[ericsp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by HighIron2003ar

I used the map's Functions to shift the view several "Panes" over and decided that I am looking at a Dealership for Mobile Homes. You can see the extensions on the sides of some of these vehicles where people use them to gain extra interior space by "pushing" out when parked. The facility is totally fenced in with every vehicle onhand stored inside the fence line. I would imagine that there is no obvious way for the siloes that the hoppers are next to to transport material into the building. Therefore I decided that this is probably a Import, Export or COOP elevator where Grains or light products are bought and sold. There appears to be much plant growth near the one car being loaded at the base of the silos but no obvious Truck Wiegh Scales or even Hydralic End Dump Ramps. The type of vehicles (Cars) gathered at the office of the silos are farmer, pickups and other hard working type vehicles while you can observe that the cars parked at the dealership on it's property are sports cars and not commonly found in industry. These I think are customers or sales people who hav e made a nice living and can afford these nicer sport's cars.

I dont see any kind of piping, conveyors or underground transits between the silos or the dealership. Therefore I decided that we are looking at two seperate businesses. The Silos certainly have access for big trucks as a semi driver I can visualize in my head that I can pull into one drive to the silo load or unload and pull out the other driveway without too much trouble. This is reinforced by large clear areas that are kept clear by employees parking vehicles AWAY from the drive way and particulary with the valubale moble homes being tucked far far away as possible from the silo operation while they await space to be freed up on the fenced and secure dealership property.

I may come back to this picture later on and expand it to look for the sea. If this place is near a coast then it is export/import if this place is near a alot of FARMS then we are dealing with crops inbound and outbound.

The trackage shows a straight several track storage yard next to the silo. There are no apparent spots along the back wall of the dealership ( for boxcars of parts etc) so that rules out a factory.

It is a fairly good distance inland. It is also a fairly good distance from farms. It is possible that it was around way back when the area was rural. The red thumbtack is the location of the industry.
Satellite photograph showing location in LA area
I have driven by in Interstate 5 before. I seem to recall a sign on the silos but I do not remember what is said.

[ericsp]

Something else to note is the lengths of the covered hoppers. Notice there are short and long hoppers there. I wonder if that yellow to the right of the hopper by the silos is a trackmobile.

I think the sign said CPC. Presumably this is CPC International (fromerly Corn Products Company (before 1969), now Bestfoods (Since 1992)). By the way, Bestfoods is now a subsidiary of Unilever.

[Anonymous]

Just on a hunch, I decided to try to find out if the RV lot was Mike Thompson's RV Supercenter in Santa Fe Springs, CA. When I checked the page below, I determined that, in fact, it is. You can see the silos to the right of the first photo:

http://www.mikethompson.com/Locations/locations.shtml

I don't know what the silos are, but they are not part of the RV distributorship. They sell RVs, but don't manufacture them in this facility. They do have a repair facility, however. Is it possible that they import materials that are used for repair of RVs? For instance, pellets that could be turned into roofing material? I tend to think that these are separate businesses, as was stated above. Perhaps a call to Mike Thompson's could clear up what is next door!

[Anonymous]

The place is probably El Monte RV
12818 Firestone Blvd
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670
Main Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Toll-Free: 800-337-4075
You could call them and find out what the rail cars carry

[Anonymous]

ANd tell him about this thread on trains.com so they dont get all suspicious and worried.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by aardvarknav

The place is probably El Monte RV
12818 Firestone Blvd

For what it's worth, Mapquest says that address is about a mile and a half away. Plug the address into Terraserver & you'll see it's a different place.

It's next to the Mike Thompson place. Terraserver confirms it. Now what's in the hoppers?

I think it serves redi-mix plants in the area with cement. There is a large plant a few blocks away with no rail siding.

Wayne

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Muddy Creek
...I think it serves redi-mix plants in the area with cement. There is a large plant a few blocks away with no rail siding.
Wayne

Perhaps...but I thought cement was carried in shorter hopper cars because of its density?

[Anonymous]

I still maintain you cannot carry cement in those great big hoppers. Too heavy.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by KenLarsen

QUOTE: Originally posted by Muddy Creek
...I think it serves redi-mix plants in the area with cement. There is a large plant a few blocks away with no rail siding.
Wayne

Perhaps...but I thought cement was carried in shorter hopper cars because of its density?

That may well be. But cement is only one part of the mix.. Could sand be carried in longer hoppers?

Dang. As much as I hate to leave the cold and the snow, I think I may just have to go to Southern California and see for myself!

Wayne

~Added: Took another look at the photo. There is a mix of hopper lengths, some short, some long.

[Anonymous]

Quote:
"The place is probably El Monte RV
12818 Firestone Blvd
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670"

Actually, it's Mike Thompson's RV in Santa Fe Springs. I posted a link to their site in my earlier post above, and if you click on it, you'll see the silos in the first photo showing their dealership. Address and contact info is on their site.

I don't believe that the silos are part of the RV dealership, but rather are a seperate business. I am not sure about this though.
-Joe

[trolleyboy]

Just a hunch but the mix of hoppers would sugest to me an aggregate dealer of some sort. I have a plant in my city which ships kitty litter they ship in just about any size shape of covered hopper known to man 40/50 loads a day in and out.This could be a similar facility,the silos look about the same. Just a thought. Rob

[ericsp]

I have not been able to find any more information on the industry. However I have found a Trackmobile dealer
http://www.wliinc2.com/cgi/foxweb.dll/wlx/dir/wlxdirecatn?catid=4986&cc=SFSCA
http://westernrailanddock.com/

[Bob Hayes]

Recently while in L.A. I talked with a fellow live steamer who has a business in Santa Fe Springs. He thinks the industry is a cattle feed processing company. Those of you who have lived in the area a long time will remember that there used to be a lot of dairys around(which is why Bandini Fertilizer is where it is). Over time they were forced out of the area toward Ontario, but the processing plant stayed behind. The hoppers probably bring the raw product to the plant and may carry the result out to the dairys too.

Bob Hayes

[ericsp]

I think I may have found out what this place is. It must be a Corn Products International/Corn Products US "Break Station".
http://www.cornproductsus.com/companies.html (scroll to bottom of page).
http://www.cornproducts.com/
In an early post, I wrote that is seems like the silos had CPC on them when I drove by on Interstate 5. This company is a spin off of CPC.
Corn Products International 10K (scroll down to "Item 3 Legal Proceedings")
Corn Products International 10K

[Anonymous]

"Breakstations?"

We call those "Break Bulk" in the east. That means someone gonna be lifting boxes or bags. Are we looking at the same type of operation?

[ericsp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by HighIron2003ar

"Breakstations?"

We call those "Break Bulk" in the east. That means someone gonna be lifting boxes or bags. Are we looking at the same type of operation?

Judging from their description of Breakstations, I would say it is not the same as break bulk. This is their description of a Breakstation, "A breakstation is a facility where railcars have ingredients waiting to offload to trucks."

[XG01X]

I believe this is California Portland Cement (CPC)

[ericsp]

California Portland Cement's map does not show any transfer stations in the area. Also, some of those hoppers are too large for cement. It is also way too short of a haul from the Colton plant for to make rail shipment likely.

http://www.calportland.com/locations_map.aspx 

[XG01X]

The larger hoppers look like Pd-3000s and Pressure flows to me and I bet this plant might get flyash in regular cov. hoppers also. But I don't know what else gets shipped in hoppers like this.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=13940+E.+Firestone+Blvd,+Santa+Fe+Springs,+California,+90670&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=45.8712,86.835938&ie=UTF8&ll=33.887248,-118.036903&spn=0.001476,0.003669&t=h&z=19&iwloc=addr&layer=c&cbll=33.887548,-118.036927&panoid=HGidhU_gEdBiMS-OJEEfeg&cbp=12,209.35211459977444,,0,2.3479889658354813

The guys at west coast rail forums refer to it as CalPortland cement also so that's where I was taking my info from(see image #4 down on the page)

 http://www.westcoastrailforums.com/view_topic.php?id=1950&forum_id=14

However Metrobot refers to this address as PACIFIC EXPANDED METALS INC

 

 

[pike-62]

Here is a different view of that plant.

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=pxpbg25ycyr6&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27299045&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1#JnE9eXAuMTU5MDArTWFycXVhcmR0K0F2ZSUyYytDZXJyaXRvcyUyYytDQSs5MDcwMyUyYyU3ZXNzdC4wJTdlcGcuMSZiYj00My44NjYyMTgwMDY1NTY0JTdlLTEwNS4zODA4NTkzNzUlN2UzMS4wOTA1NzQwOTQ5NTQyJTdlLTEyNy44MzY5MTQwNjI1

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=pxpbg25ycyr6&style=b&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=27299045&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1#JnE9eXAuMTU5MDArTWFycXVhcmR0K0F2ZSUyYytDZXJyaXRvcyUyYytDQSs5MDcwMyUyYyU3ZXNzdC4wJTdlcGcuMSZiYj00My44NjYyMTgwMDY1NTY0JTdlLTEwNS4zODA4NTkzNzUlN2UzMS4wOTA1NzQwOTQ5NTQyJTdlLTEyNy44MzY5MTQwNjI1

[f-unit]

After looking at the birds eye views looks like we have a cement unloading plant. If you look at the semi trailer to the far left side of then the photo thats the kind of trailer they use to haul dry cement. Theres also a tandem truck and trailer pulling up under the silos to load. Then to the right of those two nice palm trees, there are two or three whale belly hoppers these look like tank cars but are almost always used for hauling cement. It look like there many be a couple of WC hoppers. These carry a super high grade of silca sand thats loaded on their line (the old Greenbay and Western ) in Talyor Wis, this sand is used alot as a additive in cement.

[pike-62]

The silo's do have the CPC lettering on them.

Interesting shot as it shows a motorhome in the parking lot appearntly using the exit. I see an opening in the fence between the two lots.

[Ibflattop]

"Holy Crap Batman! Thats alot of Covered Hoppers in one place!!!!!!!!!!!!!"                       Kevin

[BerkshireSteam]

trolleyboy

Just a hunch but the mix of hoppers would sugest to me an aggregate dealer of some sort. I have a plant in my city which ships kitty litter they ship in just about any size shape of covered hopper known to man 40/50 loads a day in and out.This could be a similar facility,the silos look about the same. Just a thought. Rob

70 tons of cat poop gravel? 40-50 loads a day? 4-50 loads of cat poop gravel a day? Thats a lot of fricken cats!!!!

I know it sounds kinda gross but I just got an idea of using fresh unused, uncolored although scented may not be a bad thing, cat poop gravel used as like blast aggregate or larger aggregate in a hopper/gondola for some use. Course I realize scaled up the sizes of rock pieces would range from motorcycle to a small end table.