Brookville Locomotive Company
Encyclopedia
Brookville Equipment Corporation, based in Brookville
, Pennsylvania
, United States
, manufactures railroad locomotive
s for industrial and light capacity switching needs. The company used to be known as Brookville Locomotive Company.
trucks. The company soon began building gasoline-powered locomotives of their own following World War I
.
In order to keep up with technological advances through the 20th century, Brookville has had to constantly improve their products. Brookville's locomotives were the first to include planetary drive axles rather than chain drives.
, this provides the highest rail adhesion.
Brookville currently manufactures equipment used in mining
, tunnel
ing, and industrial and switching applications and remanufactures streetcar
equipment, such as the PCC streetcar
s for Route 15
in Philadelphia. In 2008, Brookville built its first road switchers for Shore Line East
and the Metro-North Railroad
. The locomotives are given the model designation of BL20-GH.
Brookville also offers exhaust after treatments for its underground diesel locomotives that reduce emissions by 85%. BEC's Railwalker re-railing devices can also put its locomotives back on-track without the risk of injury to the operator.
On 14 September 2011, Brookville announced plans to develop a low-floor articulated tram.
41.152°N 79.065°W
Brookville, Pennsylvania
Brookville is a borough in Jefferson County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, 100 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. 2,472 people lived in Brookville in 1900, and 3,003 people lived there in 1910. The population was 4,230 at the 2000 census...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, manufactures railroad locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s for industrial and light capacity switching needs. The company used to be known as Brookville Locomotive Company.
History
The company began in 1918 by installing flanged railroad wheels on FordFord Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
trucks. The company soon began building gasoline-powered locomotives of their own following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
In order to keep up with technological advances through the 20th century, Brookville has had to constantly improve their products. Brookville's locomotives were the first to include planetary drive axles rather than chain drives.
Products
In 2007, BEC unveiled its CoGeneration locomotives with up to 2100 hp, generated through the use of three low-emission diesel engines. The use of three clean-burning Tier-3 engines offers a "Power on Demand" feature where engines come on-line as power needs are realized. This feature minimizes emissions and fuel consumption. CoGeneration locomotives also offer the most advanced traction drive system. Equipped with individual, water-cooled IGBTs for each traction motorTraction motor
Traction motor refers to an electric motor providing the primary rotational torque of a machine, usually for conversion into linear motion ....
, this provides the highest rail adhesion.
Brookville currently manufactures equipment used in mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
, tunnel
Tunnel
A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...
ing, and industrial and switching applications and remanufactures streetcar
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
equipment, such as the PCC streetcar
PCC streetcar
The PCC streetcar design was first built in the United States in the 1930s. The design proved successful in its native country, and after World War II was licensed for use elsewhere in the world...
s for Route 15
Route 15 (SEPTA)
SEPTA's Trolley Route 15, the Girard Avenue Line is a streetcar line, operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority , along Girard Avenue through North and West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. , it is the only surface trolley line in the City Transit Division that is...
in Philadelphia. In 2008, Brookville built its first road switchers for Shore Line East
Shore Line East
Shore Line East is a commuter rail service operating in southern Connecticut, USA. A fully owned subsidiary of the Connecticut Department of Transportation , SLE provides service seven days a week along the Northeast Corridor from New London west to New Haven, with continuing service to Bridgeport...
and the Metro-North Railroad
Metro-North Railroad
The Metro-North Commuter Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, or, more commonly, Metro-North, is a suburban commuter rail service that is run and managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority , an authority of New York State. It is the busiest commuter railroad in the United...
. The locomotives are given the model designation of BL20-GH.
Brookville also offers exhaust after treatments for its underground diesel locomotives that reduce emissions by 85%. BEC's Railwalker re-railing devices can also put its locomotives back on-track without the risk of injury to the operator.
On 14 September 2011, Brookville announced plans to develop a low-floor articulated tram.
2008
- Metro-North Railroad ordered 12 Model BL20GH locomotives destined for the New Haven and MNR lines. The order also includes two multi-engine CoGeneration locomotives for MTA Capital and four (115ton) locomotives for the Staten Island RailwayStaten Island RailwayThe Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority, publicly known as MTA Staten Island Railway or SIR, is the operator of the lone rapid transit line in the borough of Staten Island, New York City, USA...
.
2010
- Brookville was involved in the building of a low-emissions gensetGensetGenset may refer to:*Engine-generator, a machine used to generate electricity*Genset locomotive, a railway locomotive using multiple engine-generators per vehicle for traction power.*Genset Corporation, a French biotechnology company...
locomotive for the Buffalo and Pittsburgh RailroadBuffalo and Pittsburgh RailroadThe Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad is a Class II railroad operating in New York and Pennsylvania.The BPRR is owned by Genesee and Wyoming Industries. Its main line runs between Buffalo, New York and Eidenau, Pennsylvania, north of Pittsburgh. Here, connections are made to the city center via the...
that was commissioned in July 2010. The single locomotive was built through a partnership with several local and federal agencies, as well as the railroad and BEC. A second genset was produced for the Buffalo and Pittsburgh, which entered service on 10 December 2010, as well as one for the Ohio Central Railroad, both of which contained an engine kit from Brookville.
2011
- Tri-RailTri-RailTri-Rail is a commuter rail line linking Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach, Florida, United States. It is run by the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority. The system has 18 stations along the South Florida coast...
, a commuter rail line in Miami, ordered 10 BL36PHBrookville BL36PHThe Brookville BL36PH will be a four-axle diesel-electric locomotive for commuter trains, currently being designed by Brookville Equipment Corporation. It will utilize a MTU 20V4000 V20 engine rated at 3,619 horsepower and will meet EPA Tier 3 emissions standards. Head end power will be generated...
passenger locomotives from Brookville on 25 February 2011, at a cost of $109 million.
External links
41.152°N 79.065°W