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News Wire: CSX focusing on operational improvements, intermodal profitability

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Posted by Brian Schmidt on Thursday, June 14, 2018 11:13 AM

NEW YORK – CSX Transportation is likely to set service-measurement records in the second quarter as the railroad continues to refine its operations, Chief Financial Officer Frank Lonegro says. “It’s really fun to watch the service ...

http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2018/06/14-csx-focusing-on-operational-improvements-intermodal-profitability

Brian Schmidt, Editor, Classic Trains magazine

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Posted by caldreamer on Thursday, June 14, 2018 2:48 PM

Sure they will with Bernie Madoff doing their books from his cell at the federal prison in Buckner, North Carolina.

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Posted by matthewsaggie on Thursday, June 14, 2018 10:53 PM

Butner, NC

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Posted by daveklepper on Friday, June 15, 2018 12:14 AM

"It is really fun to watch the service?"   What, is precision railroading running the real thing like a model railroad?

Instead of "watching the service," should not he be out beating the bushes for more customers and responding to shipper complaints?

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Posted by oltmannd on Friday, June 15, 2018 6:11 AM

What goes around, comes around.  When EHH put CSX into the ditch, NS reaped some traffic.  Now, a year later, NS is in the ditch and the pendulum is swinging the other way.

It seems everyone knows how to operate a railroad when things are going well, but nobody knows how to size crew pools to keep every little bump in the road from throwing operations into the ditch.

That's twice now in four years that NS has had operations go into the ditch.  

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Posted by PJS1 on Friday, June 15, 2018 8:38 AM

Does the statement, "shippers are coming back", mean that they are coming back from trucks, other railroads, barges, pipelines, etc.?  

What type of shipper would have the greatest flexibility in leaving a railroad and then coming back?

Can a shipper that has a car picked-up on his warehouse siding that connects with CSX, for example, state that he wants it to go via Norfolk Southern if it is possible to do so?

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Posted by Euclid on Friday, June 15, 2018 9:17 AM

Can someone provide a detailed list of the shippers that actually left?

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, June 15, 2018 9:52 AM

Euclid
Can someone provide a detailed list of the shippers that actually left?

Propritary Information.

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Posted by oltmannd on Friday, June 15, 2018 10:09 AM

BaltACD

 

 
Euclid
Can someone provide a detailed list of the shippers that actually left?

 

Propritary Information.

 

+1  You betcha!

 

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Posted by 466lex on Friday, June 15, 2018 12:21 PM

Euclid

Can someone provide a detailed list of the shippers that actually left?

Chemicals:  CSX: -20,000 CLs, YTD.  NS: +20,000 CLs YDT.

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Posted by Euclid on Friday, June 15, 2018 3:40 PM

That's what I thought.

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Posted by rrnut282 on Saturday, June 16, 2018 5:48 PM

The whole point of that article was,"we hit bottom, and have no where else to go, but up."

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Posted by BaltACD on Saturday, June 16, 2018 5:53 PM

rrnut282
The whole point of that article was,"we hit bottom, and have no where else to go, but up."

They think?  It has yet to be proven.

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Posted by tree68 on Saturday, June 16, 2018 6:02 PM

daveklepper
Instead of "watching the service," should not he be out beating the bushes for more customers and responding to shipper complaints?

That would be a reasonable response if CSX were trying to grow the business.  As has been discussed, there are those who feel that CSX is simply trying to push money to the bottom line where it can be harvested by those looking for the big payday.

Growing the business and providing new service both cost money in the short term.  That's money that doesn't end up on the bottom line right away.

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Posted by SALfan on Saturday, June 16, 2018 10:03 PM

caldreamer

Sure they will with Bernie Madoff doing their books from his cell at the federal prison in Buckner, North Carolina.

 

It's Butner, NC.

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Posted by Euclid on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:05 PM

tree68
 
daveklepper
Instead of "watching the service," should not he be out beating the bushes for more customers and responding to shipper complaints?

 

That would be a reasonable response if CSX were trying to grow the business.  As has been discussed, there are those who feel that CSX is simply trying to push money to the bottom line where it can be harvested by those looking for the big payday.

Growing the business and providing new service both cost money in the short term.  That's money that doesn't end up on the bottom line right away.

 

Growing the business can also be accomplished by cutting costs and improving efficiencies.  Some of this can make way for new business, and then the new business will cover the cost of its required capital.  Cutting costs will also make the current business more profitable. 

Why do some feel that this is a sinister conspiracy by people looting the company?

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:12 PM

Euclid
Growing the business can also be accomplished by cutting costs and improving efficiencies.  Some of this can make way for new business, and then the new business will cover the cost of its required capital.  Cutting costs will also make the current business more profitable. 



      No it can't. Cutting business and growing business are the exact opposite of each other. Sears/Kmart is trying to cut its way back to prosperity. By the time they close all the stores they'll have cut their expenses down to zero. Think how profitable they will be then!

     Cutting business may add more dollars to the bottom line- in the short run. Where have you seen that any of that money CSX saved by cutting back business is being used procure new business?

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Posted by Euclid on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:29 PM

Murphy Siding
 
Euclid
Growing the business can also be accomplished by cutting costs and improving efficiencies.  Some of this can make way for new business, and then the new business will cover the cost of its required capital.  Cutting costs will also make the current business more profitable. 

 



      No it can't. Cutting business and growing business are the exact opposite of each other. Sears/Kmart is trying to cut its way back to prosperity. By the time they close all the stores they'll have cut their expenses down to zero. Think how profitable they will be then!

     Cutting business may add more dollars to the bottom line- in the short run. Where have you seen that any of that money CSX saved by cutting back business is being used procure new business?

 

 

Who said anything about cutting business?  I said that growing business can be accomplished by cutting costs and improving efficiencies.

Who said anyting about cutting expenses down to zero in an attempt to make a profit?  These plattitudes sound like slogans from Occupy Wallstreet. 

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Posted by tree68 on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:30 PM

Euclid
Growing the business can also be accomplished by cutting costs and improving efficiencies. 

Well, yes, and no.  

If the money gained by cutting costs is used to improve capacity (and thus service to the customer), absolutely.  If it goes straight to the bottom line, no.

I don't think there's any question that improving efficiency should bring in new business.  However, as Shadow has noted, the "efficiency improvements" effected so far have been more efficient at driving business away than attracting it.

Euclid
Why do some feel that this is a sinister conspiracy by people looting the company?

Because hedge funds like the one that seems to be running the show at CSX right now have a history of doing exactly that.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:34 PM

Euclid

Why do some feel that this is a sinister conspiracy by people looting the company?

Because all this is at the behest of a hedge fund manager, and that is what they do.

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by Euclid on Sunday, June 17, 2018 1:36 PM

How many people were laid off due to the transformation undertaken by EHH?

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Sunday, June 17, 2018 2:48 PM

Sigh

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Posted by BaltACD on Sunday, June 17, 2018 9:48 PM

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE!

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Posted by Euclid on Monday, June 18, 2018 7:38 AM

BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE!

 

Is that good or bad?

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Posted by BaltACD on Monday, June 18, 2018 8:18 AM

Euclid
 
BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE! 

Is that good or bad?

It depends.  

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Posted by Euclid on Monday, June 18, 2018 10:07 AM

BaltACD
 
Euclid
 
BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE! 

Is that good or bad?

 

It depends.  

 

On what?

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Posted by BaltACD on Monday, June 18, 2018 10:35 AM

Euclid
 
BaltACD
 
Euclid 
BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE! 

Is that good or bad? 

It depends.   

On what?

On what you are trying to accomplish.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Monday, June 18, 2018 11:11 AM

BaltACD
Euclid
BaltACD
Euclid 
BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE! 

Is that good or bad? 

It depends.   

On what?

On what you are trying to accomplish.

And who you are, I'm sure Paul Hilal is laughing maniacally in his money bin.

All those who were laid off/fired and the customers who are suffering from poor service, not so much.

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by Euclid on Monday, June 18, 2018 11:36 AM

BaltACD
 
Euclid
 
BaltACD
 
Euclid 
BaltACD

When I retired (12/19/2016) CSX employment was reported to be about 30K employees - current management is shooting from 21K at the end of 2018.  Almost 1/3 of the pre EHH total - GONE! 

Is that good or bad? 

It depends.   

On what?

 

On what you are trying to accomplish.

 

Well considering what was trying to be accomplished by the CSX layoffs, were they good or bad?  

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Posted by tree68 on Monday, June 18, 2018 1:04 PM

Euclid
Well considering what was trying to be accomplished by the CSX layoffs, were they good or bad?  

Presumably, they were good - cash was moved from the payroll line in the financial statements to the profit line, where it could be extracted by the "investors."

OTOH, it's hard to believe that one third of the employees were "deadwood" that needed to be pruned...

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