Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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AARR
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Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Service started in the late 90's when I acquired the line (approximately 1 mile) from CN/GTW. I use an ex-GTW SW9 (7010-7015 series) and it is still working fine.

Started with three customers (Produce Transload, Schlaffer Iron & Metal (now Ferrous Processing) and EQ Detroit (now US Ecology). FP and USE remain good customers.

Over the years I have added Vesco Oil and recently City Recycling.

One interesting customer that I serviced shortly after start-up until it closed was the Detroit Incinerator (later Greater Detroit Resource Recovery). From around 2000 to 2006, CN would bring in 4-6 cars of trash, six days a week, from Toronto for burning. I would spot them quickly (due to odor) and pick up as soon as they were empty.

FP started out slow but after a year has been shipping 3-6 cars a week. Recently, Ferrous Processing moved some metal scrap shipments from NS to CN. Both CN and NS have access to a large steel factory east of Chicago. The steel plant is dissatisfied with NS's inconsistent service and their customer response. The transportation rate will be a little higher but with better service predictability it will cost less in the overall supply chain process and savings in storage/emergency truck service. Carloads will increase from 3-6 per week to 10-16 per week. The metal scrap yard will be switched three times per week instead of two. There remains a big upside for additional metal scrap shipments from here. Hopefully, if this new movement works out there will be more opportunities to grow the business.

USE has been a steady shipper from the beginning receiving 3-5 cars per week of liquid waste and shipping out 6-9 cars of clean oil. At one time they even received a few gondola's of dirty dirt. When EQD announced they would be building a large complex to handle dirty dirt we made our best effort to get them to locate on our line but they need more space than we had and ended up building along CSX in Romulus. About 2015 they picked up a big contract to ship their oil to a refinery out east. They now ship out 17-23 cars per week and with only four loading spots often require six days of service.

Vesco Oil is a relatively new customer. They originally received their cars in the Cold Storage yard but recently moved it to a fenced in location next to its building (on the main line). They average 2-4 cars a week.

City Recycling is a new customer. When we started operating the line in the late 90's they shipped a few cars then stopped. However, with the closing of the furnace at the steel mill on Zug Island their product is now going longer distances so they are willing to try rail again. To start they are shipping 1-2 cars every other week. When they require service the tank cars for Vesco have to be moved and re-spotted after CR is switched.

There is a persistent rumor of a logistics company looking for space to build a large produce terminal and receive large blocks of refrigerated box cars. Like those in Boston, Chicago and New York. DIND has space at the end of the line and the ability to give them immediate service day or night. We will see what happens.

Several times DIND has tried to gain interchange access with Conrail by getting trackage rights on CN for 1 mile but has been denied. Most recently, when Pole Town Assembly reopened, and it was clear CN would not be switching them, we tried to get trackage rights to the plant and to Conrail. With our plan, CR would not have to build a new spur from their Belt Line Industrial across a major road to the plant. We could switch the plant and use one mile of CN trackage rights to interchange with CR. But, even that was denied and CR built the spur.

If DIND can get trackage rights to CR, we believe that the additional connection and options would improve business prospects. For now CN is our only interchange partner.

I know some are not fans of Precision Railroading, and I understand their POV, but CN is on schedule most days and our customers like their service (although it costs more). So DIND has to stay focused on providing good service to justify the cost.

The 70 year old SW9 continues to run fine. We are in the market for a second unit because we can't afford to be down even for a day. I was offered a pair of MP15ac's which might be a little too much power and I don't need ac's on this line. I would consider straight MP15's or perhaps a later version SW maybe with flex coil trucks.

For now DIND's future is fine.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Because US Ecology requires service five to six times a week and even though trains, even on heavy days, seldom are more than 10 cars, it was determined that a second engine was needed for back up. DIND has acquired ex Lansing Board Water & light (LBWL) 796 (nee- GTW 7262) SW900. Built in 12/58 in an order of 7262-7268 it will service along with the SW9 (7010-7015) unit. With a second unit available, operations will be evaluated to see if a push/pull operation creates any efficiencies of operation.

Keep in mind that currently Vesco's tank cars are unloaded off the "main line" so when City Recycling needs switching (currently every other week but expected to grow) Vesco's cars have to be pushed out of the way first. A single unit handles this just fine for now due to a double ended siding by City Recycling but the entire operation will be checked.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Engine Roster and updates:

Owner: Detroit Industrial 7017
Model: EMD SW1200 Built As: GTW 7017 (SW1200)
Serial Number: 20381 Order No: 4300
Frame Number: 4300-1 Built: 4/1955
Notes: Acquired from GTW 1997
Other locos with this serial: GTW 7017(SW1200)
Image

Owner: Detroit Industrial 902
Model: EMD SW900 Built As: GTW 7262 (SW900)
Serial Number: 24973 Order No: 4424
Frame Number: 4424-1 Built: 11/1958
Notes: Acquired Lansing Board of Water & Light 2022
Other locos with this serial: LTEX 902(SW900) GTW 7262(SW900)
Image

In other news, Ferrous Processing has moved the additional scrap traffic back to NS (and loaded at their other scrap yards...they have 11 locations in Detroit). Turns out NS went back to them and promised better service and a reduced price. FP hasn't officially said anything to DIND representatives but the cars being loaded at their site along DIND's line is back down to the 3-6 cars per week prior to. This is a loss of 7-10 cars a week.

The other three customers continue to ship as forecasted for 2022 with US Ecology still shipping out 17-23 cars per week and receiving three to five per week requiring service five to six times per week.

With Great Lakes Works on Zug Island shuttering its furnaces (but still performing processing of steel) more Detroit area scrap is being shipped longer distances. This means that both Ferrous Processing and City Recycling remain candidates for additional shipments.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Business continues to operate steadily. After a few experiments with push-pull operations DIND has settled back into one engine handling the daily job. Although, both engines are alternated to keep them active.

At roughly the halfway point carloads are on schedule to be somewhere between 1,346-1,885 for the year. US Ecology will account for 1,033-1,378 of those (172-230 inbound and 860-1,148 outbound).

US Ecology receives contaminated liquids such as spent oil, leachate, etc. At this time 90% of their outbound product is clean oil that is shipped to a refinery out east. A small percentage of outbound product is various refined fluids.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

Unread post by AARR »

Business remains steady.

US Ecology is detailed in the above post.

Ferrous Processing, after moving a significant amount of traffic back to NS (and loaded at other FP sites), still ships 3-6 cars per week. They are usually switched twice a week but sometimes just once.

Vesco Oil receives 2-4 cars per week at their unloading site on the mainline (fenced in).

City Recycling is shipping 1-2 cars every other week. When they require service, the tank cars for Vesco have to be moved and re-spotted after CR is switched.

Both engines, SW1200 7017 and SW900 902, operate reliably and are liked by the crews.

DIND is a railfan friendly railroad as long as you check into the office first and stay off the equipment and tracks.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Ferrous Processing (FP) signed a long-term contract to provide scrap metal to American Iron and Metal (AI&M). AI&M has several huge locations on CN in Canada, so the single carrier routing is attractive and cost effective. AI&M has a large fleet of high-top and standard height gondolas (black and gray) that will be used in this service. Scrap from both FP’s Detroit and Pontiac locations will be the staging yards for AI&M’s shipments of 17-26 cars per week that will be shipped to AI&M’s foundries. DIND will switch FP daily, five days per week and deliver to CN in their Detroit East Yard.
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FP will continue to ship 3-6 cars a week to Chicago mills in addition to the new business for AI&M.
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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DIND now belongs to the TOAD family of railroads including TOAD, WDIN, DIND, PHIN, LIND, PONB, JAIL and CHIN.

Both the SW1200 and SW900 (transferred to LIND) were removed from the roster and replaced with:
Owner: Detroit Industrial
Model: Rebuilt EMD SW900 Built As: CRIP 836 (SW8)
Serial Number: 18865
Order No: 4245
Frame Number: 4245-1 Built: 11/1953
Notes:
Other locos with this serial: DIND 901(SW900) ADBF 836(SW900) Checker Motors 1(SW900) CRIP 836(SW900)
Image

Unlike CSX and NS, CN has a cold and hot relationship with the scrap metal industry. The AI&M traffic stopped within 30 days of starting and traffic from Ferrous Processing (FP) is back down to 3-6 cars per week for Chicago mills. There was a long-term contract in place for the AI&M traffic so something very compelling must have happened for them to back out so quickly.

After a year or so of very heavy traffic US Ecology has reduced shipments significantly. They were shipping 17-23 cars per week of clean oil to a refinery out east. Outbound traffic is now 4-6 cars a week. Inbound traffic was 3-5 per week but now it is 1-2 per month.

DIND operates Monday and Thursday. Their crew also works PHIN on Sunday, TOAD on Tuesday and Friday and both LIND and PHIN on Wednesday.

DIND is forecasting 575-805 carloads in 2023. Boomer Construction, who has an inactive spur between Vesco and City Recycling, has indicated they might resume rail service in 2023 (after over five years without). They could potentially get 1-2 cars a month of steel construction materials on bulkhead flatcars and gondolas.

Even at the reduced traffic levels DIND is very profitable.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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US Ecology (USE) will begin shipping 20 cars per week of recycled oil to the Marathon Refinery in Robinson, ILL. CN will take the cars from their Detroit East Yard to Lis ILL then INRD will take them to Robinson. DIND will switch USE five to six days per week. USE has four loading docks. The crew that switched DIND on M & Th, PHIN on Sun, LIND and PHIN on W and TOAD on T & F, will focus on switching DIND daily. This will affect the crew assignments at other TOAD railroad lines. See each respective railroad for crew changes. USE’s last large contract was for 20 cars a week to Marathon in Clairton, PA which ended 12/31/22.

Boomer Construction is scheduled to receive its first two loads of steel rebar by the end of January. Boomer is a major provider of rebar to the concrete industry. The rebar is originating at Gerdau’s Manitoba Steel Mill and will ride CN exclusively to Detroit.

2023’s new forecasted carloads is 1,200-1,680.
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AARR
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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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Another engine has been acquired:
Owner: Toledo & Adrian
Model: EMD SW900 Built As: DEEX 214 (SW900)
Serial Number: 22705
Order No: 4372

Frame Number: 4372-1 Built: 10/1956
Notes:
Other locos with this serial: TOAD 904(SW900) DEEX 214(SW900) DTE 214(SW8)
Image

It will be renumbered 904 series along with the other four SW900’s owned by the TOAD family. It will be swapped out with the other SW900’s when maintenance or mechanical requires so. The other SW900’s are assigned to DIND (901), LIND (902), PHIN (903) and PONB (905).

Operations remains the same with US Ecology getting switched five to six times per week, Ferrous Processing twice a week, Vesco Oil once a week, City Recycling every other week and Boomer Construction once a month.

The same crew works Monday-Thursday. On Friday, and as needed on Saturdays, it could be the same crew or from another one of the TOAD lines.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

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Re: Detroit Industrial (DIND)

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DIND has accepted an offer from a new company, Transportation Holdings, LLC. under their Adrian & Toledo (ADTO) division. This will include CHIN, JAIL and LIND.

LIND worked hard to meet the 100 cars per one mile of track per year profitability level and felt that it would be in better hands with a professional short line company that has more operational experience and finances to invest. The transition dates is forecasted for 10/1/23.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

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