Gold Spike Award Nominations Due Nov. 14 FTA
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Sept/Oct 2019 All Aboard is a news bulletin for employees/retirees of the Alaska Railroad. The emailed version includes short briefs with links to longer stories or more information, most of which are posted on our employee website, Inside Track, https://insidetrack.akrr.com/. EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION Gold Spike award nominations due Nov. 14 Gold Spike award nominations are due Thursday, Nov. 14. Awards will presented in early and mid-December. Please think about your co-workers and Railroaders in other departments who have clearly gone above and beyond in 2019. “Above-and-beyond” may mean extraordinary efficiency, smart cost-cutting actions, developing and /or implementing programs or projects, consistently exceptional customer service or job performance, and remarkable problem-solving to address safety or operational challenges. Get Spike Award program details and forms at Inside Track > PEOPLE > Recognition > Spike Awards. Complete an Individual Gold Spike Award form or a Team Gold Spike Award form and submit it to Stephenie Wheeler ([email protected], or company mail) or via [email protected] REGULATORY NEWS FTA Review: Insights for planning and improvement In addition to proving our regulatory compliance, the 2019 Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Triennial Review also offered insight that can help us with our annual strategic planning. Although we passed the early August review with no deficiencies an excellent achievement! we can always improve. FTA reviewer comments, along with observations from our own review preparation team, can help direct our continual improvement efforts, said Grant Administration & Asset Management Director Shawnessy Leon. She noted several focus areas and actions that may inform company goal-setting, as ARRC finalizes 2020 Strategic Goals and next year’s budget: expand subject matter expertise in Finance and Grant Administration departments through succession planning and training update project management guidance documents and ensure consistent use by project managers company-wide pursue an electronic asset management solution strengthen asset tracking and control procedures from initial capital investment to proper asset disposition. continue to mature our Transit Asset Management system, formalizing processes to enhance decision-making and resource efficiency. meet new Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) compliance requirements improve training documentation and tracking request updates to metropolitan planning organization (MPO) agreements The final FTA Triennial Review report is available on Inside Track > REFERENCES > Grant References. OPERATIONS NEWS Locomotive incident prompts fruitful investigation, fix Last spring, Railroaders and guests were enjoying breakfast aboard a static passenger train, where onboard staff and caterers were testing their service skills before the summer season began. Seemingly out of the blue, a fire broke out in the rear compartment of the train’s Locomotive, No. 4318. As smoke billowed from the compartment, the Anchorage Fire Department responded with vehicles heading down the North C Street hill to the Anchorage Historic Depot, where the train was parked. The incident posed a mystery, launched an investigation, and ultimately led to some new inspection tasks to prevent a repeat. All in all, some decidedly positive things evolved from a completely unexpected event. Positive #1: Quick Response Even before firefighters arrived, Mechanical Division personnel aboard the static train quickly abandoned breakfast to attend to the locomotive. Finding flames inside the engine compartment, Mechanical Supervisors Rusty Pochatko and Jerry Mooney grabbed a fire extinguisher from the locomotive cab and quickly doused the compartment, gaining some control over the fire burning inside. Positive #2: Mystery Solved SD70MAC locomotives have three Head End Power (HEP) capacitors that ensure an even, surge-free flow of 480-volt electrical power to passenger railcars. Locomotive 4318 was supplying electricity to support onboard breakfast service training on May 5, when one of these capacitors failed. All Aboard – Alaska Railroad employee news bulletin — September/October 2019 Page 2 Crews towed 4318 to the Anchorage yard Locomotive Shop to assess the damage and look for clues. 4318’s compartment innards were a mess. The failed capacitor had damaged the other two capacitors, and insulation on the capacitor wiring had burnt off in addition to other wiring and cabling. The blast had bowed compartment walls, and yanked wiring, causing contactors to break. Fire suppression chemicals coated everything. Mechanical summoned representatives from Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD), the locomotive manufacturer, and Siemens, the locomotive’s HEP unit designer, to help find the failure’s root cause. Once the unit was professionally cleaned, the inspection launched in earnest, focused on finding the “smoking gun.” Steve Schoonmaker, a 20-year veteran journeymen mechanic, led the effort with the assistance from fellow mechanics Steve Conlan and Dave Mckinley, and from the manufacturer’s representatives. Inspectors carefully analyzed system components, removing each to test for damage and proper function. Through this process, mechanics discovered several capacitors in the fleet had incorrect cable connections, an error that had occurred as the units were built at the factory. Inspectors also concluded that the capacitor had been going bad before it finally failed outright. “We now know that these capacitors may fail and that there are warning signs,” said Motive Power & Equipment Manager Ed Hills. Positive #3: Preventive Recourse With this knowledge, Locomotive Shop mechanics proactively swapped out the faulty capacitor hardware, eliminating this potential risk. Moreover, the Mechanical Division implemented a number of preventive inspection tasks. This includes adding routine capacitor checks, implementing a process to change out any capacitor that may go bad in the future, and correcting the cable connections. The ARRC Mechanical Division continues to work with Siemens to determine future preventive measures. Positive #4: Remarkable Repairs Initially, hopes for a timely rebuild were dashed with news that replacement capacitors were on a lengthy back order, translating to a 10-12 month delay. This meant Locomotive 4318 would be out of commission for a year, or more. The remedy? A little luck and a lot of experience. Siemens was able to secure loaner capacitors that arrived within a few weeks. Meanwhile, Schoonmaker, aided at times by fellow mechanic Troy Welch, undertook the locomotive repair mission. They replaced damaged cabling and wiring, and ensured each component underwent rigorous testing. The Locomotive was methodically put back together, component by component, wire after wire, while troubleshooting and confirming each repair was done properly. Within a couple of months, the locomotive was ready for testing. After every type of test was performed, and after both Siemens and EMD concurred, Locomotive 4318 was ready to be released for service. “The four-month repair turnaround time was a remarkable feat and quite the accomplishment,” according to Hills. “it just goes to show the outstanding skills, knowledge, and the dedication of the people involved.” BUSINESS NEWS Mid-week winter service: Finding the sweet spot The 2019-2020 Aurora Winter Train schedule reflects an effort to find the sweet spot in terms of mid-week train operations. Last year’s winter season (mid-September 2018 to mid-May 2019) featured a significant boost over previous winter seasons with 14 more mid-week trains operating compared to the 2017-2018 winter schedule. Despite more trains, passenger numbers grew only slightly from 11,822 in 2017-2018 to 11,938 last winter. After analyzing ridership on specific dates, and taking stock of popular community activities, our Marketing Department adjusted the number of mid-week trains to 30 for the winter season just underway. This is six fewer than last winter, but still eight more than the year before. All Aboard – Alaska Railroad employee news bulletin — September/October 2019 Page 3 “We believe the slower rate of growth last year is attributable to two factors. First, the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and Chinese leaders is taking a toll. Second, we lack non-stop air service between Harbin, China, and Anchorage, which we had hoped would become a reality in 2019,” said Marketing Vice President Dale Wade. “Even so, market factors suggest the Thanksgiving week service has more potential, and it will operate again this November.” Although growth leveled off in 2018-2019, winter season ridership has increased rapidly over the last few years. Ridership grew 56% in just four years from 7,660 passengers in winter 2015-2016 to 11,938 passengers in 2018- 2019. Before March 2014, the Aurora Winter Train ran only on weekends. The railroad introduced round-trip mid-week service during each of the two weeks of Spring Break 2014. That 4-train experiment has grown eight-fold to serve residents and visitors who prefer greater flexibility in the winter train schedule. The graph below shows the growth in mid-week train service over the past six winter seasons and the season that just started. All Aboard – Alaska Railroad employee news bulletin — September/October 2019 Page 4 EMPLOYEE HAPPENINGS 4th Quarter Employee Gatherings With fall comes several employee-centric events and programs, offering ample chances to connect and appreciate one another. Keep an eye out for flyers,