Evening star., 1933-08-21
RAIL EQUIPMENT
INDUSTRY HOPEFUL
Predicts Additional Gains as
Locomotive Orders Be-
gin to Climb.
BY JOHN A. CRONE.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, August 2l.-The rail-
way equipment industry, which has re-
ceived more locomotive orders to date
this year than il all of 1882. tnougn
only about one-ninth as many Ireignt
car orders. predicts gain IN oroers
for the rest of the year.
Freight traffic trends will have to
continue upward and equipment makers
will have to win over manufacturers
of maintenance-of-way supplies, sucn
ass rails. switches and signals, in the
race for the first spending money OF
railroads, if equipment sellers see the
future correctly.
Equipment executives base their pre-
dictions on the following facts:
/. Equipment buying since 1929.
2. Condition of present equipment.
3. Changing character Of equipment
requirements.
4. Equipment purchases following
previous depressions.
s. Government aids In financing
equipment needs.
Fourteen locomotives were ordered
and 102 built last year, or the feWest
since 1901 and 1905, respectively. This
distinction is necessary because a 10
connective is under construction for sew
eral months, so locomotive manufac-
turers in any one year naturally IN
clude some engines ordered in closing
months Of the preceding year.
Freight Car Total Lags.
Orders in the last three years aggre-
gated 6S7 of which 235 were booked
in 1881 and 440 in 1880. Production
ef locomotives for domestic use in the
last three years totaled 1855. accord
ing to statistics of Railway Age. with
18l in 1881 and 972 in 1880. Up to and
including August 19 this year locomo-
tives ordered numbered II.
Freight cars ordered and built last
year aggregated 1868 and 1884, re-
spectively, the lowest since 1901. Car
builders, however, obtained only $50
cars ordered, the rest being booked by
railroads and other car users from their
own shops. Freight cars ordered and
built in the last thee years numbered
59.2O8 and 81 SAT. respectively. Pas
senger cars ordered and built last year
in each case totaled 80. Orders in the
last three years were tit and manufac-
lures were 1901 cars.
Condition of passenger cars, in view
OF immediate requirements. probably
rates excellent. Surplus freight cars
on class l roads July IA. latest avail
able figure OF the car service division
of the American Railway Association,
numbered 4O4414. AS of the end Of
June. of the 5l.3888 locomotives owned
by class l roads IL, ,203 were awaiting
repairs.
This equipment condition showing.
based purely on statistics. is Satisfac
tory, but-take this from railroad
shop foreman-these figures are unduly
optimistic After a locomotive is re-
paired it is put on a side track and
stored in white lead. ready for service.
''Shopmen don't revise statistics" ex-
planned a foreman today. During the
depression we were not permitted to
buy new materials When a mechanic
needs a locomotive wheel he just steals
one from stored locomotive so he can
complete his present repair job. Some
times locomotives ordered out on service
are found jacked up. all wheels miss
ing, though reported as serviceable.
This is true Of freight cars and their
parts"
More Than 20 Years Old.
Serviceable locomotives look even
less promising when it is considered
that of the country'S 81, 1888 engines, so
psr cent. are more than 20 years old.
Engines less than 10 years old account
for only Is per cent of the total, COM
pared with 81 per cent in 1929, % in
1925, 80 in 1920 and so in 1915. Never
has average locomotive age been higher
than today At the 1920-1929 replace
ment rate the engine woud have to reach
an average age of As years. Replace
ments of the last three years indicate
q locomotive life expectancy of 81 years.
Passenger and freight demands today
are greater than in 1920. In that year
the Twentieth Century Limited from
New York to Chicago required seven
steam locomotives. each averaging 1873
miles Now an electric engine is used
from New York to Harmon, the first
33 miles, then steam engine takes the
flyer to Cleveland, 588 miles. where the
second engine takes the train to Chi
cago, 341 miles.
Locomotive orders closely follow
freight traffic. The relationship as
shown in 1919 averaged 803 900 cars
weekly. in 1920 were 862 900. in 1921
dropped to $4,000. and in 1929 were
$4,000 Engines ordered in 1919 were
214, in 1920 were 1893 in 1921 were
239, and in 1922 totaled $500, the
largest since 1917.
This showing in the previous depres-
sion perhaps causes the equipment trade
to estimate prospective locomotive or
ders at from 200 to $50 units, most Of
which will be placed before the year If
freight traffic keeps up.
Realizing the size and diversity Of
railroad buying power, the Government,
through several of its agencies, is ex-
pected to make some detailed announce
nent soon about its plans for financing
new purchases of carrier equipment.
(CODvriCht 1O33