US Steel part of gondola car fabrication effort

Pittsburgh-based United States Steel Corp. has formed an alliance with Norfolk Southern Corp. and Oregon-based equipment fabricator Greenbrier Cos. Inc. to design what they call a new, more sustainable steel gondola railcar.

The cars will use a high-strength, lighter weight steel developed by U.S. Steel, reducing the weight of each car by up to 15,000 pounds compared with conventional models. Norfolk Southern initially will acquire 800 of the Greenbrier engineered gondolas, according to a news release prepared by the three companies.

Scrap processors are likely to call for a greater number than that, as for several years shippers in the ferrous scrap sector have pointed to a lack of gondola cars and long waits for them.

Veteran trader and consultant Nathan Fruchter of New York-based Idoru Trading Corp. tells Recycling Today some shippers are being told the arrival of additional or new cars is on a one-year-out timeline. As things currently stand, he adds, some processors are leaving up to $50 per ton “on the table” because they cannot get sufficient cars to serve specific destinations.

The three companies refer to a “recognition that North America’s aging gondola fleet will soon require substantial replacement with a more sustainable design.”

Regarding the new model, U.S. Steel President and CEO David B. Burritt comments, “This remarkable collaboration with our partners at Norfolk Southern and Greenbrier is helping realize the full potential of U. S. Steel’s continued product innovations as sustainable solutions for the steel and transportation industries. This joint initiative proves that point with an innovative railcar that is stronger, lighter and more capable, with the planet being the ultimate beneficiary.”

James A. Squires, chairman and CEO of Norfolk Southern, adds, “The use of lightweight, high-strength steel is a real revolution for railcars. Not only will each gondola carry more material, they will do so by using less energy, making our operations, and our customer’s operations, even more environmentally friendly.”

“The work done by U. S. Steel, Norfolk Southern and Greenbrier promises significant benefits to all three companies and the freight transportation industry as a whole,” says William A. Furman, Greenbrier Chairman and CEO. “The three partners on this next-generation transportation equipment have deep roots in industrial America. Together, we are leading the way to a net-zero carbon economy. I look forward to our continued partnership,”

In addition to sustainability and increased capacity benefits, the three companies say the new car should have an extended life cycle, “potentially extending the useful life of each gondola to 50 years.”