theDispatch The newsletter for Watco Companies, LLC and Watco Transportation Services, LLC October 2013, Volume 14, Issue10

Dedication of the 1023 Steam Engine

OctoberCarona, 12 - Carona Kansas Depot theDispatch page 2 October 2013

Watco Senior Vice President, Gary Vaughn, makes history by Travis Herod be held not by an officer of a Class 1 railroad, but a very high level of teamwork between the Class 1, Director of Safety by a member who has spent the last several decades short line, and passenger railroads who have adopt- working tirelessly on behalf of the short line indus- ed the General Code of Operating Rules. On October 18, 2013, in Jacksonville Florida, try. While the interests of short line railroads and Since coming to Watco in 2003, Gary has been history was made at a meeting of the General Code Watco have been well represented by Gary and other continuously driven to ensure that short line rail- of Operating Rules short line committee members, having a chairman roads are as safe and efficient as possible, and his Committee. It was elected from the ranks of the short line industry is efforts have continuously led to a higher level of vis- time again, to vote new a first in its long history, and a testament to how the ibility, both for Watco, and the short line Industry as officers to helm the com- industry has grown, not only in size, but also in vis- a whole. Through his work not only on the GCOR mittee that writes the ibility and recognition by the entire ral industry. Committee, and the numerous Rail Safety Advisory operating rules that gov- For the next three years, Gary will serve as chair- Committees he serves on, the short line industry has erns over 300 railroads man of the committee, working with the interests achieved a much higher level of respect, and atten- and holding companies of all GCOR railroads, to ensure the operating rules tion, by our Class I partners, as well as by those in who have adopted the we live by are clear, concise, necessary, and effec- Washington, when considering changes to not only General Code of Operat- tive. Throughout Gary's time as a member on the Operating Rules, but also in the regulatory environ- ing Rules (GCOR). In committee, he has helped protect the interests of the ment of Washington. This honor of being elected an unprecedented move, short line railroads who have adopted the General Chairman of the General Code Committee, contin- one of our own, Gary Code, while also helping to enact operating rules ues this trend, bringing greater visibility not only of Gary Vaughn, Watco's C. Vaughn, senior vice that are effective for all member railroads in this dy- Watco, but to the short line industry as a whole, and senior vice president of president of transporta- namic and ever changing industry. He will have his is an amazing achievement. transportation rules and tion rules and regula- work cut out for him, as during his tenure as chair- This is not the first time Gary has brought credit regulatory compliance. tory compliance, was man, the next version of the General Code, Version and recognition to Watco, he was also named as the voted Chairman of the 7, will be finalized and released to the industry. The 2010 American Shortline and Regional Railroad GCOR Committee. For the first time in the history leadership required in preparation for issuance of an Association’s Safety Professional of the Year, the of this committee, the position of chairman would entirely new book of Operating Rules will require inaugural year for that award.

Port San Antonio’s East Kelly Railport Congressman Ryan on breaking logistics records rail industry visit Port San Antonio's East Kelly Railport is break- handling of unit trains (approximately 100 railcars at U.S. Congressman Paul Ryan, Wisconsin 1st ing logistics records, with a little help from Watco's a time with the same type of cargo). These additions District, recently visited Nordo – a manufacturer San Antonio Central Railroad (SAC) and the Eagle have grown the Railport’s capacity four-fold—from of railroad maintenance of way equipment and Ford Shale play. Railport Manager German Rico 5,000 railcars a year before expansion to a current rail inspection services and technologies based stated that for fiscal year 2012 the SAC moved 5,167 limit of up to 20,000 railcars a year. out of Oak Creek, Wisc. While at Nordco’s Oak railcars and that number is expected to reach ap- The San Antonio Central Railroad, brings railcars Creek Headquarters, Congressman Ryan at- proximately 10,000 from Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway tended a briefing from Norco executives followed railcars by the end trains outside the Railport and delivers them to by a tour of the facility. The visit showcased the of 2013. Customers’ property within the Railport. Nordco headquarters and maintenance-of-way About two-thirds “The San Antonio Central Railroad has been a facility and highlighted the importance of the rail of the volume is success story for 2013, nearly doubling its rail vol- contractor and supplier industry. frac sand which umes year over year. I credit our fantastic Custom- Representatives of the Canadian National Rail- arrives by train and ers and first class operations team for our success," way and Wisconsin and Southern Railroad were is transloaded onto said Ryan Williams, Watco marketing manager. also present to discuss the continued challenges trucks for delivery "Raul, Mike, Jeff and Mario from our Operations facing our nation’s railroad infrastructure. The Pictured (l-r): German Rico, to oil and gas well team along with Tina and Felicia from our Cus- event was hosted by the National Railroad Con- General Manager East Kelly sites throughout tomer Service struction and Maintenance Association (NRC). Railport, Port San Antonio; the Eagle Ford team have Lupe Salinas, Director of Busi- Shale region. done an out- ness Development, RLI; Loy Garcia, President, RLI; and “Success at East standing job Ryan Williams, Watco Market- Kelly Railport is working with ing Manager. the result of having and finding the right location at creative solu- the right time and working with the right partners tions for our to capture market opportunities,” said Rico. “When Customers. the Railport was launched a few years ago, we saw It’s amazing to Pictured (l-r): Ryan Williams, Watco steady, moderate growth. Eagle Ford has been a think this is Marketing Manager; Caroline Diaz, game-changer and provides logistics firms at the only the start. Executive Assistant Port San Anto- Railport a strong future.” I’m looking nio; Celia Gonzalez, Railport Opera- Watco and the SAC has played an essential role forward for tions Coordinator Port San Antonio; in the Railport’s growth. Starting in 2012, Watco what’s to come Raul Ramos, General Manager San Antonio Central Railroad; and Ger- Pictured is Congressman Ryan accompanied by a doubled track at East Kelly from four to eight miles, in 2014 – stay man Rico, General Manager East brand new Spike Pulling Machine manufactured by including a recently completed spur that allows the tuned!” Kelly Railport, Port San Antonio. Nordco. theDispatch page 3 October 2013

success and growth of our company does not de- pend so much on the strength, talent, and quality of our managers as it does on the strength, quality, and the crossing talent of our front line team members who supply a where learning meets leadership service to our Customers. “The TS&IC helps us make sure that we are doing what we say we will do to support and serve the Upcoming Watco U Courses: “front line” team members who support and serve 101 October 8-10 our Customers,” said Webb. 201 October 15-17 He added that he envisions the role and function One responsibility of the TS&IC is finding community of these groups to grow and evolve as the company RAIL Course of the Month: service projects to get involved in. Team members on expands, and as the needs of our Customers change. “Leading Innovation” the WTPS Stroud Team collected donations for the lo- In a recent interview, Watco’s CEO explained that cal firefighters last year. Pictured are (l-r): Marty Rob- as important as social and community events are Watco University Completions bins, Joel Reeder, Jeremy Shepard, Craig Long, Jason in improving location morale, and as focused as we 101 - Jennifer Beattie, human resource manager, Moore, Chet Ackerman, and Tommy Dervin. should all be on company safety, the TS&IC needs to Corp., Petersburg, MI; Heath Covey, trainmaster, expand its role in assisting managers to support and SKOL, Cherryvale, KS; Claude Childers, general the answer to many questions and problems. The serve their internal and external Customers. Manag- manager, TIBR, Silsbee, TX; Jose Saavedra, Supervi- TS&IC is not just charged with finding problems ers should use these groups to stay in touch with the sor, Mech., Hockley, TX; Ruben Rodriguez, supervi- at its location. Instead, the group’s members and needs of their internal and external Customers. sor, mech., Coffeyville, KS; Troy Sickle, corporate leader are charged with discovering creative and In addition to serving managers and Customers, mechanic, WTS, Houston, TX. innovative solutions to problems that are identified the TS&IC also helps support Watco’s “promote 201 - Terri Klapperich, Customer service man- at their location. The TS&IC leader then meets with from within” policy. By training TS&IC leaders in ager, WSOR, Milwaukee, WI; Tom DeLafosse, VP the manager on a monthly basis to offer and discuss the Watco way of leadership and management, the of compliance,Corp., Pittsburg, KS; James Sullins, those solutions. program helps ensure a steady supply of potential trainmaster, SLWC, Stroud, OK. When Terry Towner, Watco president, first con- company leaders who know, believe, and manage ceived the idea of each location having a TS&IC to according to the Customer First Foundation Prin- by Bob McElwee support and assist the location’s manager, he en- ciples. Training and Development Specialist visioned a group whose existence would assist all team members in being engaged in the company's What Watco group is designed and obligated to progress and vision. This team member engage- Improve Customer Satisfaction, Improve Company ment is essential to our continuous improvement Profitability, help establish long term relationships, and constant growth. Towner wants Watco’s team improve the work climate at all locations, decrease members to think of their working at Watco not just turnover, improve communications within Watco, as a job, but as a career. All team members as well improve Watco’s safety record, improve commu- as their ideas and creativity are important to Watco. nity relations, plan company social and community The existence of the TS&IC is a physical and power- events, and help train Watco’s future leaders? An- ful symbol of that reality. swer: Each location’s TS&IC (Team Safety & Im- The Team Safety and Improvement Committee provement Committee). According to Rick Webb, at each location is designed to enhance communi- Watco CEO, this often undervalued and misunder- cation between our company and our Customers, stood group is an important and permanent tool among our team members, and between our team in supporting Watco’s commitment to “continuous members and the communities in which those team This new depot in Jerome, Idaho was one of the improvement.” The local TS&IC is intended to be members live and work. Webb is convinced that the projects coordinated by the EIRR TS&IC. Grand Opening held for new Idaho Customer

Cives executives say they looked around half of the country before choosing to build their plant in Ucon, noting the community’s strong family val- ues. The 52,000 sq. ft. plant could have the ability to expand to a staff of 150. The Roswell, Ga., company employs about 1,000 people at six plants in six states, all east of the Mississippi River. This is its first plant The Eastern Idaho Railroad Team is excited to in the West. welcome a new Customer on board, Cives Steel. In order to receive carloads at their site, the com- Cives produces custom steel structures for proj- pany built track coming in from the main line and ects such as high rises, stadiums, power plants and will be bringing in inbound carloads of I-beams and hospitals. manufactured steel. The new steel plant in Ucon recently held their The EIRR brought in a locomotive for the open grand opening with Gov. Butch Otter and several house with Rob Rolph serving as engineer and Hen- other community and business leaders on hand to The EIRR locomotive sits under the beams of the Cives ery Dannahl as assistant trainmaster. Other EIRR join in the celebration. The facility began operations Steel plant in Ucon, Idaho. Team Members that were on hand for the event the following week, with 39 employees manufactur- were Dustin Korell, trainmaster, Idaho Falls; Garrett ing materials for a power plant in the Midwest. The the local economic development to bring this new Bolyard, assistant general manager; John Anderson, Eastern Idaho Railroad (EIRR) Team worked with Customer to the area. roadmaster and Dusty Tenney, marketing manager. theDispatch page 4 October 2013

The University of Wisconsin-Madison and WSOR “Team Up” to offer courses The Wisconsin & Southern Railroad (WSOR) Engineering Program. “The WSOR gave our recently hosted a group from the University of students the opportunity to visually see part of Wisconsin-Madison Engineering Program to the maintenance process and how the strategies learn about general maintenance and railroad we learned in the classroom are practiced in the inspections. Approximately 60 students attend- field," he added. ing the university course - “Maintaining, Reha- The University of Wisconsin-Madison College bilitating and Upgrading Conventional Railroad of Engineering provides curriculums each year Track” were at WSOR’s Johnson Street Yard for that help attendees gain a working knowledge a site visit and field demonstration on track of the basics of track structure performance, tamping, surfacing and regulating track infra- causes of common problems, and cost-effective structure. The pieces of equipment used for the maintenance and rehabilitation techniques. The demonstration were: Mark IV Tamper, Kershaw courses also teach how axle loads, traffic density Regulator and a Geismar Bolt Machine. and operating speed affect your choice of reha- WSOR’s Ben Meighan, superintendent of bilitation and upgrading plans. maintenance of way, and Chris Jacobson, road- A big thanks to Ben Meighan, Chris Jacobson, master, led the group by starting out with a Art Gurney, Gary Westphal Brian Baker and safety briefing followed by a brief presentation the entire team at WSOR for making this event about the WSOR. The group was then escorted possible. into the yard where they observed the process of track tamping and surfacing. Top photo: WSOR’s Ben Meighan, Chris Jacobson “This field demonstration was an invalu- and Brian Baker welcome the group to the WSOR. able part of our course learning," stated Dave Bottom photo: A WSOR Team Member demon- Peterson, Program Director of the UW-Madison strates the use of the Geismar Bolt Machine. WWAR's "Crane" event First WWAR distributed power A "crane" event was recently held in Western Australia by Watco's Mechanical train travels to Cranbrook Rolllingstock Group. A call was placed to WWAR by major rail transporter SCT (Spe- cialized Container Transport) to aid in replacing a wheelset at a remote siding location WWAR made history on Sept. 20th when they operated their first east of Perth named Grass Valley. distributed powered train to Cranbrook for loading from Albany for Watco Team Members Bruno Ottaviano and Mike Sutton, who head up our Mechani- our grain Customer CBH. cal Rollingstock Group, put their expertise to work and assisted SCT in the change-out. Distributed power units (DPU) give us the ability to place the loco- Several large cranes from motives at intermediate points on a train , the most common would be Boom Logistics were hired in the middle or on each end of the consist, instead of on the head end and with the assistance of of a train. DPU locomotives are remotely controlled from the leading Watco Field Service Techni- locomotive . cians Rob Mansell and Craig There are many benefits to implementing DPU power in Western Southerland, a successful lift Australia. Most of the traffic WWAR moves in WA is generally consits and change-out was com- of 52 or more wagons (railcars) in each train therefor, efficiencies in pleted. cycle time and man hours will be gained with a locomotive placed on The change-out was a joint each end of the consist. Switching and set-up time will be reduced be- venture with Downer Rail, cause they can now pull in and load or unload and then have the driv- the SCT's service provider. ers walk to the other end and pull out. They can also set up the DPU The recovery went exactly locomotives with one on the head end and one in the middle when as planned with no injuries co-loading a train which would alleviate shutting. and Downer Rail, who is now Distributed Power technology carries fuel benefits as well because one of our Customers, was when longer trains are created with DPU there is reduced drawbar pull very pleased with the rapid which will reduce the lateral force between wheel and rail on curves, response. thus minimizing wear on various components. Lower friction results in Sutton, said, "We were glad fuel savings when running heavier trains. to assist our new Customer SCT and get their big AC traction loco back into ser- vice at the same location that it failed at. I'm pleased with our Mechanical Rollingstock Group and how they are making a name for them- selves in third party work. News travels fast in the rail industry and this opportunity will help us approach other possible Customers with our WWAR Team Members performing the change-out on the SCT locomotive wheelset. capabilities." theDispatch page 5 October 2013

Leadership Kansas class visits Excursion train Watco Companies traverses the EIRR One thing that Pittsburg, Kansas has that September 2nd was a special day for railroad fans many towns the same size don't is an abun- in Idaho. High Iron Excursion, a railroad excur- dance of entrepreneurs. Just like Dick Webb, sion company, rolled into Idaho Falls with four cars Watco Founder, other Pittsburg companies were and 38 passengers to enjoy the scenic view in East- started in the homes of the owner and choose to ern Idaho. The train traveled on the Amtrak line to continue to operate out of Pittsburg once they Idaho Falls on September 1 and the next day the cars became successful. Miller's Professional Imag- were hooked up to Eastern Idaho Railroad's (EIRR) ing, Pitsco, and Names and Numbers are just a power. few of the successful area businesses that are a The passengers on the train rode from Idaho Falls good example for young leaders to learn from. The Leadership Kansas class was in Pittsburg north to Ashton and back again. There were a total on September 25, 26, and 27 to visit the area and of four pieces of equipment on the excursion trip; learn about things going on in Pittsburg and the Caritas, an open platform business car; Cimarron Kansas that will effect the business world. The River, a 14 rmte-4 bdr. sleeper; Big Dome, ex-Santa 40 students came from as far away as Goodland Fe; and Pacific Sands, a 10 rmte-6 bdr. sleeper. and Garden City to participate in the three day The Leadership Kansas panel: "Moving Forward Jim Fetchero, manager of passenger car operations, event. on Rails and Roads; Transportation Infrastructure said, "Thanks for the great job of handling the High While in Southeast Kansas the class had a and the Kansas Economy" moderated by Blake Benson, Pittsburg (Kan.) Area Chamber of Com- Iron excursion train on the Eastern Idaho Railroad. chance to tour Historic Fort Scott, visit Big Bru- merce. The panel (l-r): Sen. Jake LaTurner, Watco I can't tell you how much we really appreciate how tus, shoot sporting clays at Claythorne Lodge, CEO Rick Webb, and Mike King, Secretary of easy it was setting up the trip and how great the tour Pittsburg State University and for those Kansas Department of Transportation. who really wanted to venture out, check out the crews were that actually ran the train. Our passen- casinos just across the Missouri border. panel discussed Kansas transportaion issues and gers thoroughly enjoyed their ride to Ashton and the Rick Baden, Watco COO, welcomed the group answered questions from the audience. trip was considered a major success! The parking to Pittsburg, and gave them a quick slide show The panel was made up of Sen. Jake LaTurner, spot in Idaho Falls was perfect as well. It had great talking about Watco and how the company was Watco CEO Rick Webb, and Mike King, Secre- access, water, and nice passenger landing. We will started. Following the welcome, a transportation tary of Kansas Department of Transportation. look forward to working with you and Watco again in the future on similar trips." Improve your health through better time management What could you accomplish if you had an extra hour in your day? Maybe you’d be able to fit in a workout, go to bed a little earlier, or spend more time with your friends and family. With better time management skills, you’ll have more time to accomplish goals like these, and you can improve your health too. Here are some helpful tips to get you started.

1. Assess your current habits Use an activity log to track how you spend your time. Start by writing down everything you do. Rank the importance of each task and record start and end times. Review your activ- ity log after several days to see if you can identify areas for improvement. The High Iron excursion cars wait while the Eastern Idaho 2. Keep track of your responsibilities locomotive circles around to connect to the cars for the ride Start carrying a day planner or use a smartphone application back to Idaho Falls. to record dates and deadlines. Break large projects down into smaller tasks and spread them out on your calendar. 3. Prioritize tasks Make a “to-do” list and organize it with the the most important things first. When Dispatch you have too much on your list, don’t be afraid to say “no” to new projects. The Dispatch welcomes and encourages input from 4. Improve your focus all readers. If you are interested in submitting Put away your phone, shut off your email, and articles, story ideas, photos and announcements limit other distractions during the time of day (wedding, birth, etc.) e-mail them to: when you are most productive. Make sure to take a break if you need one—you’ll be more focused when you start working again. [email protected] or mail to: Tracie VanBecelaere If you have a goal in mind but never seem to have time to spend working Watco Companies towards it, follow the tips above. With the time you save, achieving your 315 W. 3rd Street goal could be easier than you thought. Pittsburg, KS 66762

*Information provided by Coordinated Health/Care theDispatch page 6 October 2013

San Antonio RR fulfills 103 year-old's dream by Eddie Arredondo he surprised me by saying, “I would love to drive a was so excited that he wanted to know why he could Vice President, Human Resources, Mechanical train like you and blow the horn. " I never had the not go now, time is wasting. heart to tell him before that I am not an engineer/ What trainmaster Raul Ramos and trainmen Jef- My grandfather Eduardo Arredondo Sr. is 103 conductor. fery Pacheco and Mario Salinas did that day was years young. He is still very active, feeds himself, As I was telling this story to my co-workers I was extraordinary and the experience was more than bathes himself and loves to talk about almost any- reminded that we (Watco) have a railroad in San I could ever have thing, although, most of the time he prefers to talk Antonio, Texas, where he often spends time visiting imagined for my about what happened 50 years ago. My Dad started his daughters. grandpa. As my telling me about 15 years ago, “I don’t know how I spoke to the leadership team at the San Antonio grandpa stated with much longer your grandpa will be around." Well, I railroad and they were very supportive about allow- a grin after the train guess he had a couple of more years. ing my grandfather to take a small ride on a private ride during lunch, Every time I would visit him, he would ask me lot. I was nervous because of the safety concerns “The engine was where I worked and when I joined Watco six years with my grandfather and talked to the local team in loud, but the horn ago, he was fascinated with trains. One day I brought San Antonio. I was stunned by their response. They was the best." him a Watco cap and he would not take that cap said, "Don’t worry about your grandfather, nobody Thank you San off, others would give him caps but he only wore gets hurt on our railroad - nobody." I continued to Antonio Railroad the Watco cap. He would ask me what it was like remind them that my grandpa was 103 and although team members, Raul, to ride on the trains and said how exciting it would he could walk by himself, he was still very fragile. Jeffery and Mario; be to see the countryside and blow the horn. One They replied, “Eddie, this is not about how old you gave my grand- day he asked me how much coal it took to move a your grandfather is. We own the safety on the San father a huge treat. Eduardo Arredondo, 103, train, I had to explain to him that we now use diesel Antonio Railroad and nobody, and we mean no- But more impor- rides in a San Antonio Central engines. body, gets injured on our railroad, no matter what tantly, for setting the locomotive. During my visits with my grandpa he would talk needs to happen to prepare, we will be prepared. stage for safety, there to me about where he had been and what he had Because nobody gets injured on our railroad and we is no doubt that your team owns their Safety and done; how President Roosevelt did this or that and take that responsibility very seriously”. they demonstrated that to me that day what the true about the assassination of President Kennedy and It was then that I realized that no matter what, my meaning behind safety is. who he felt was responsible. It was during this grandpa was in good hands. I told my dad that in a This is a true testament to the great leadership and conversation that I asked him, “So with all the things couple of weeks I would be taking my grandpa to the execution of the Watco Foundation Principles. that you have done and places you have seen, what railroad. He called me back the next day and told On behalf of Eduardo Arredondo Sr. and III - would you like to do that you have not done?” Then me he had shared the news with my grandpa and he thank you. Watco's oldest shop getting new features Dick Webb purchased what was the old Darby Dion Wilkens, Coffeyville shop manager, said, First Principles and listening to our Customers railcar shop in Coffeyville, Kansas in 1985 and "We saw this coming down the pipeline. When you needs and working to find solutions for them." with a contract to repair coal cars in hand, Watco's calculate the age of the tank cars and the inspections In order to meet the demand for old and new Mechanical Division was born. Things have changed and certifications needed, we knew that in order to services the location plans to hire 14 new team quite a bit since then, Watco now operates 16 meet the Customer demand we had to make some members. mechanical shops and the emphasis is changing to adjustments." "We've got a few people hired already but would repairing a different type of energy related railcar. The adjustments that Wilkens is talking about like anyone interested to visit our website at www. With huge shale plays being discovered across the included tearing down the original shop in order watcocompanies.com and fill out an application," states, crude by rail has become the new coal move to replace it with a new building to accommodate a said Nicole Kirby, Watco recruiter. "There are incen- and with that comes the demand for tank cars to four-car spot. The original building, or "heavy barn" tives available for current team members who refer transport the crude and crude products in. As the as the team called it, was built in the early 1900's. job applicants who get hired on at the location." demand for tank cars is increasing so is the need for "Seeing some of the team members reactions who The Coffeyville shop completed its Tank Shop shops that will perform tank car certifications to en- have spent a majority of their careers in the old Qualification Audit and should receive its Certifica- sure that the cars carrying the black gold to market "heavy barn", you could tell they had a flashback on tion in October 2013. have met all qualifications needed for a safe trip. their careers and all the memories that will never be forgotten," said Bubba Lundy, management trainee, Central Region railcar and grandson of Dick Webb. "You could tell that there was sadness but yet a lot of excitement to see the improvements being made to the shop. I know my grandpa would be very proud of all the accomplishments that his first mechanical shop has made and this is one of the most exciting ones." In addition to the space in the building, there is track space available for 170 cars. The tank car capa- bilities will be an add-on to what the shop is already doing for current Customers. "We will keep providing the same service to the Customers that we have served for many years," said Wilkens. "This is just a an additional service that we The old "barn" in Coffeyville, Kan., was the location Demolition of the old "barn" was completed to of Watco's first mechanical shop. are providing brought on by following the Customer make room for the new four-car spot building. theDispatch page 7 October 2013

AT C O W OCTOBER ANNIVERSARIES

Congratulations to the following team members Donald Savage, James Shoop, Bryan Welker, Douglas celebrating their anniversaries! Wolnik 6 Years: Jana Austerman, Billy Barton, Gumaro Castillo, W 1 Year: Christopher Allen, Crispin Bartley, Rebecca Ryan Gordon, Roger Howard, Richard Johnson, Brad O R L D Beaudry, Jordan Bennett, Roger Blaker, Shane Botts, Peck, Rikki Rainville, Steven Roland, Amanda Santana, Brandon Briggs, Jean Camphort, Peter Christy, Gerald Jason Seger, Joseph Skitz, Sterling Teague This section is dedicated to the Watco Team Clark, William Cooper, Tyler Crawford, Heather 7 Years: Greg Baker, Jocelyn Garrett, Curtis Hanna, members to give you a chance to share what’s Dunagan, Billy Estes, Justin Finley, Horace Frazier, Jo- Christopher Henning, Cody Johnson, Teri Kinyon, happening in your corner of the Watco World. seph Freeman, Michael Galligan, Jesus Garcia, Daniel Jesse Lambert, Karl Meyer, Michael Minnich, Valerie Griffin, Mark Hagen, John Harrigan, Samuel Herrera, Powell, Keith Reed, Michael Richardson, Matthew Graduations Quentin Jones, Clinton Kerkman, Victor Klapperich, Stover, Asa Walker David Lawson, Jeffrey Liggett, Larkland Linton, 8 Years: William Bouse, Christopher Brotzman, An- Brenda Caruthers, Stillwater Central Railroad's Charles Littlefield, Brant Littrell, Timothy Lundy, nette Lane, Scotty Presley, Jose Saavedra, Diana Schef- Customer Service Representative recently trav- Carlton Lynch, Carlneil Maxie, Brian Morgan, Austin fel, Thomas Scherzer, Delia Winegarner eled to Illinois for a special graduation ceremony. Osborn, Justin Phillips, Anthony Plathe, Yvonne Rich, 9 Years: Venson Bell, Galen Dyck, Bo Fox, Travis Brenda's son, Anthony Caruthers, 19, graduated Gabriel Smith, Patrick Smith, Jerrold Thurman, Alvaro Herod, Christopher Nielsen, Christian Reid, Jereud from boot camp at the Naval Station in Great Lakes, Ill., on August 30th. Tovar, David Wagnon, Timothy Wallace, Richard Uscola Out of 11 divisions, his was the only one that re- Wheeler, John White, James Zimmerman, Michael 10 Years: Marvin Albritton, Jeff Baum, David Ham- ceived the Battle Efficiency Ziviello brick, Kyle Kozman, Charles McGinn, Michael Welch, Award. The criterion for 2 Years: Joseph Abrahamson, Tyler Bennett, Peter Ber- Ricky Wilcox the award is the overall cier, Wesley Bounds, Bryan Brooks, Jeffrey Buck, Mario 11 Years: William Czapla, Kevin Nugent readiness of the command Cardoza, Brandon Crawford, Jonathan Dennis, David 12 Years: Scott Lynas, James Wren to carry out its assigned Doiron, Terry Dunklebarger, Joseph Dziabo, Joseph 13 Years: David Clapper wartime tasks. Entrekin, Lonnie Evans, Thomas Everson, Douglas 14 Years: Lisa Berry Anthony served as the Frazier, Charles Frerich, Roland Gardner, Shane Gillett, 15 Years: Norman Neal Athletic Petty Officer of his Gabriel Grad, McKenzie Green, Joseph Hartley, Travis 16 Years: Donald Brau, Becky Fearmonti, Heath Mor- division. He also played Ivy, Trenton Jones, Timothy Joyce, Roy Killman, Brian gan trumpet in the band during Manning, Tomas Martinez, Nicholas McMillan, Jarrett 17 Years: Ivan Ferrin, Phillip Lee, Edward Moore his graduation ceremony. Anthony Caruthers McPherson, Erik Mitchell, Juan Montanez, Marilyn 18 Years: Rodney Daugherty, Johnny Guthrie, Steven Anthony is currently at- Moore, Michael Morales, John Mullen, Paul Ortega, Korell, Roosevelt Robinson, Steve Sommers tending the “A” school in Tanya Paley, Arturo Perez, Jason Pierre, Bryan Pitts, 19 Years: Richard Heverly, Lori Magee, Christopher the Great Lakes and will soon be moving on to the Leonel Ruiz, Salvador Sanchez, Keith Schepp, Michael Smith Naval Station in Norfolk, Va. Sepulvado, Steven Smoke, Robert Sullivan, Michael 20 Years: Cirilo Bueno, Albin Harris, Michael Lavender Anthony graduated from Baxter Springs High Tucker, Jeremy Veley, Derrick Williams 21 Years: Brian Daentl, Bruce Huerter, Craig Stansbury School in May of 2013. 3 Years: Miguel Auces, Corey Black, Timothy Dykes, 22 Years: Tony Clark, Jamie Swaynos William Gray, Joshua Knisley, Charles Montgomery, 23 Years: Kevin Welshans Deaths Valerie Petocz, Kenneth Pettit, Jonathan Randall, Dale 24 Years: Eddie Bennatt, Kelvin Matthews, Rogers Robert Virgil "Bobby" Kuehnel Jr., 53, died unex- Scalisi, William Sorensen Waddy pectedly at 11:31 a.m., Saturday, August 3, 2013 at 4 Years: Bryan Anderson, Rebekah Bolton, Edward 25 Years: Michael Allen, James Filegar, Franklin Miller his residence. Bobby worked at Watco's Mechanical Brien, Earl Bruce, Joseph Carlucci, Lynn Clark, Chad 26 Years: Earl Holt, Michael Tappy, Paul Tickner shop in Wood River, Ill., since 2005. Davis, Joseph Degenstein, Tommy Dervin, Mark Dryer, 27 Years: James Moore He was born in Jerseyville, Dale Dunn, Kevin Flammang, Donovan Hudson, Elvis 28 Years: Keith Lacaze Ill., on June 9, 1960, to Rob- Johns, Todd Johnson, Gerry Knutson, Dennis Neufeld, 29 Years: James Nichols, Clarence Parrie, Mark Turner ert Virgil & Norma (Inger- Peter Pappas, Melissa Parker, Aaron Pattee, Brian Pitt, 30 Years: Phil Penner soll) Kuehnel Sr. Joel Reeder, Larry Richardson, Jeremy Sepulvado, 32 Years: Lonnie Joyce, Dave Turner He grew up in Jerseyville, Michael Toler, James Walker, Dion Weichel 33 Years: Bernard Meighan and graduated in 1978 5 Years: Sherrie Baykowski, Mark Bowen, David Cain, 38 Years: Robert Parker from Jersey Community Bert Clover, Lucas Conrad, James Culbertson, Guy Ev- 39 Years: Ricky Hicks High School. He was played ans, Troy Forbis, Michael Harris, David Heller, Justin 48 Years: E O. Erickson baseball with the Khoury Huguenin, Jon Johnson, Sharon Novotni, Justin Ray, League as a youth, and Robert "Bobby" was an avid softball player participating in the Jer- every minute participating and socializing amongst ews; three nieces; along with numerous aunts, uncles, Kuehnel seyville City League, Farm them. cousins and friends. Bureau League, and the "Old Bobby truly personified "Living life to the fullest" He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Timers" League. He also coached his son's Khoury and will truly be missed by all who knew him. Richard & Dorothy Ingersoll and William & Viola League teams through the years. He enjoyed golf- Surviving are his parents, Rob & Norma Kuehnel of Kuehnel. ing, hunting, Nascar racing, but his true passion Jerseyville; two sons, Joshua Kuehnel of Godfrey and Funeral Services were held at the Crawford Funeral was participating in various Demolition Derby's Justin Kuehnel of Jerseyville; a brother & sister in law, Home in Jerseyville, with the Rev. Ted Engelsdorfer throughout numerous county fairs. His Demo Tim & Ann Kuehnel of Pawnee; a sister & brother in officiating. family, the "Brew Crew" was his life and he enjoyed law, Beth & Mark Eldridge of Jerseyville; two neph- Burial was at the Oak Grove Cemetery in Jerseyville. PRST STD the US POSTAGE Dispatch PAID The newsletter for Watco Companies, LLC and Watco Transportation Services, LLC PRADMAR CORP October 2013, Volume 14, Issue 10

315 W. Third Street Pittsburg, KS 66762 www.watcocompanies.com

Switching Division Managers Meeting Thirty years ago Dick Webb attended from the Pittsburg, Kansas Russian Railway delegation sought to provide a level of service office to provide instruction on a to Customers that was unheard of couple of the topics. visits the Wisconsin Southern at that point in time. With this in “The meeting was very productive The Wisconsin and Southern Railway (WSOR) Team considers every visitor mind, he began serving the switch- and beneficial for our entire team," special but on October 19 the team had some special visitors from quite far away. ing needs of Boise in DeRidder, La. said Keith LaCaze, vice president of Five managers from Eurosib – a Russian railway company visited the WSOR to Because of his commitment and that switching operations and locomo- learn more about the U.S. Freight Rail Industry. Eurosib Chief Executive Officer of our team members, Watco now tive leasing. "The meeting focused Dmitri Nikitin was the special guest and with him were Mikhail Ivanov, director serves 27 switching locations includ- primarily on upcoming policy department of develop- ing that first Customer, Boise. changes and continued focus on ment; Rodan Senekl, The managers of the Gulf/East our safety culture. With the entire director of Eurosib; Ilya Region switching locations recently Gulf/East Switching Team together Mezhevoy, head of legal met in Houston, Texas for an annual we were able to cover a lot of topics department, and Liliya Managers Meeting. The purpose of and get a lot of items addressed in a Robinson, Russian / the meeting was to review informa- short period of time.” American translator. tion on several topics such as: safety, Artis McGinnis, location manager at Hosts from the upcoming policy changes, perfor- Monroeville, Ala., said, "I've attend- WSOR were Dabry mance evaluations, financial per- ed a few switching manager meet- Destromp, assistant formance, card reconciliations, and ings and found it to be a necessity general manager;Ben sexual harassment training. Keeping when managing my team to work Meighan, superinten- the managers updated on the chang- safely and efficiently. It's also a great dent of maintenance ing policies and regulations is key time for team building and interact- of way; and Ken Lucht, in enabling them to better serve our ing with other managers learning director of government Pictured from left to right is: Ilya Mezhevoy, Dmitry Niki- tin, Rodan Senekl, Mikhail Ivanov, and our own Rich Man- Customers and team. from their experiences managing relations. Penny Wood and Tim Enayati switching locations." ning of WSOR Dispatch. Shown in part behind Mikhail is Driven by Rus- Liliya Robinson. sian National Railway reform efforts, Nikitin was interested in learn- ing how major U.S. Railroads balance privatization with national economic goals and regulatory standards. The vertical integration of the U.S. Railroad Industry was of great interest to Nikitin and the delegation. More importantly, the delegation was fascinated with how our industry is based on the free market – supply/demand of goods and services. In Russia, the infra- structure & assets are owned by the national government and service and rates are set forth by the government. Learning how successful the U.S. Freight Industry has become since passage of the Staggers Act will help Eurosib prepare itself for complete privatization of the Russian Railroad System, which is currently under discussion. Eurosib is one of the largest Russian railway operators and logistics providers, Attendees at the Switching Managers Meeting were: front row (l-r) Keith LaCa- owning 14,000 freight railcars, operating two terminals (Saint Petersburg, Novosi- ze, David Doiron, David Larch, Lewis Barlow, Danyale Norman, Bernardo Cue- vas, Keith Johnson, Ronald Perkins, and Tony Clark. Middle row (l-r) Patrick birsk), and operating approximately 20 million tons of freight and container trains Holden, Cornelius Jones, Brandon Eddleman, David Bader, Bob Devillier, Artis across Russia. Eurosib also provides logistic services cooperating closely with McGinnis, and David Gibson. Back row (l-r) Don Rudd, David Hambrick, Tony Russian state railway company RZD. Kirkland, Benny Coward, John Snow, Roger Easterling, Ernie Austin, and Tim After a series of morning meetings, Eurosib Executives took a tour of WSOR’s Enayati. Not pictured (taking the picture) Penny Wood and Danny Barrington. Headquarters in Milwaukee, stopping at WSOR’s dispatch center for a bit.