IDOT Spearheads HrSR Diesel Procurement (Amtrak LD Options)

Link:

http://www2.illinois.gov/cpo/dot/Docume ... rement.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It's not a contract award, per se, but IDOT saying they agree with the others in the selection of Siemens-Cummins (heh)

Wonder how happy Amtrak is with the ACS-64 so far, and if any of that was a factor (though some elsewhere are saying it was purely on price. I can believe that, given Siemens has most of the engineering 'pre rolled'. In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised if their offering has parts compatibility with the ACS-64...)

So, only question, are the new locos going to have huge Cummins stickers on them, chrome upright pipes behind the cab, and a lift kit?

Fan Railer wrote:

Rockingham Racer wrote:We can put aside the EMD F125 for a while. IDOT announced today that Siemens is the winning bidder.

Link, or it didn't happen.

It turns out he is correct. Letter from the Chief Procurement Officer for IDOT.

Here is the link to documents and presentations for the Multi-State Locomotive Procurement.

So Amtrak is going to run Siemens electric and diesel locomotives? That is a surprise.

Anyone want to place bets that Siemens sends out a press release in the next 12 months announcing an ALP45-DP competitor based on one or both of these platforms? They'll be shooting for the hat trick.

Rockingham Racer wrote:We can put aside the EMD F125 for a while.

It will be interesting to see how the F125 performs on Metrolink when their 10 (20?) or so units are delivered, tested, and in revenue service in comaprison to Siemens' product.

F-line to Dudley via Park wrote:Anyone want to place bets that Siemens sends out a press release in the next 12 months announcing an ALP45-DP competitor based on one or both of these platforms? They'll be shooting for the hat trick.

That'll make for one heck of a homogenous fleet

afiggatt wrote:

Fan Railer wrote:

Rockingham Racer wrote:We can put aside the EMD F125 for a while. IDOT announced today that Siemens is the winning bidder.

Link, or it didn't happen.

It turns out he is correct. Letter from the Chief Procurement Officer for IDOT.

Here is the link to documents and presentations for the Multi-State Locomotive Procurement.

So Amtrak is going to run Siemens electric and diesel locomotives? That is a surprise.

And that's all I needed to see. Personally, I think it's interesting that the Siemens - Cummins partnership was announced not 2 weeks ago, and already, we are receiving word that they are the preferred bidder. It'll be nice to see the final breakdown of costs and points awarded in the bidding process, once that information becomes public.

Cummins as a prime mover? ,their Genset engines are not that realiable,and are basicly upgraded
(18 wheeler)truck prime movers,prone to destroy crankshaft bearings,tend to turn into shop queens
Hope Siemens does not get burned by this partnership!


Note:Was assigned a truck with a Cummins engine,spent almost 40-50 days a year stuck at a shop for repairs

You can't write off an entire engine manufacturer because of one generation of product.

Backshophoss, I'm not going to dismiss your experience, your posts on this forum have more than proved your extensive knowledge.
However, I'm wondering if the Cummins engine you had such negative experiences with was one of the early, "new fangled" EPA ultra-low emissions spec engines, cause pretty much EVERY diesel manufacturer had serious issues with their products in that period. The International/ Navistar 6.0L diesel that Ford put in their 2003-2009 super-duty trucks was an unmitigated disaster. However, I love the previous generation Powerstroke that's in my 2001 Ford super-duty and I haven't heard many complaints about the latest generation.

The Cummins ISL9 6-cylinder, EPA compliant, severe duty diesel engine is currently one of the most popular engines in the fire service for custom chassis fire apparatus, due to its reliability and power.
When I was spec'ing diesel stand-by generators for state mission-critical facilities, my preference was typically CAT, Generac or Cummins/Onan.
Now, when I spec generators for large outdoor entertainment festivals, I almost always go with CAT or Cummins.

Is there any manufacturer currently using a Cummins powerplant in ANY locomotives, or is this Cummins' first foray into this market?

Fan Railer wrote: And that's all I needed to see. Personally, I think it's interesting that the Siemens - Cummins partnership was announced not 2 weeks ago, and already, we are receiving word that they are the preferred bidder. It'll be nice to see the final breakdown of costs and points awarded in the bidding process, once that information becomes public.

The summary on the bids and points is available in the document links on the IDOT website in the Final Offer Evaluation Report.

There were 3 final offerors: EMD, Siemens, MotivePower. Siemens price on the base contract was $225.5 million versus $260 million for EMD and $260.9 million for MotivePower. Siemens got the most points for responsiveness category and life cycle costs. The total scores were 94.42 for Siemens versus 84.31 for MotivePower and 84.38 for EMD. So EMD came in last on points, but barely behind MotivePower.

If there are no protests from the other offerors or hitches in the bid audit and negotiations, then the Siemens facility in Sacramento will have 28 months after Notice to Proceed (NTP) to have a pilot locomotive complete testing at the manufacturing facility and then get turned over for independent testing. The plant will be building diesels as the production of the ACS-64s winds down it appears. The 35 locomotives are to be delivered by no later than 42 months after NTP or June 30, 2017 for IDOT and CalTrans. The schedule is in the appendix documents.

Then if Amtrak can get the funds,they could order Siemens locomotives to start replacing the fleet in late 2017 or 2018.

JoshKarpoff wrote:Is there any manufacturer currently using a Cummins powerplant in ANY locomotives, or is this Cummins' first foray into this market?

We don't know yet the specific engine to be used, but a new 4,200 hp, 16-cylinder, 95-liter diesel is getting ready for testing.

Cummins announced the ultra-low emissions engine will begin commercial operations next year with the Indiana Rail Road Company (IRR), enabling field test engineers to easily study the 95-liter engine as it powers a locomotive hauling coal and mixed freight across the IRR network.

It's the largest engine Cummins has ever built.
http://social.cummins.com/cummins-qsk95 ... rade-show/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

jstolberg wrote:

JoshKarpoff wrote:Is there any manufacturer currently using a Cummins powerplant in ANY locomotives, or is this Cummins' first foray into this market?

We don't know yet the specific engine to be used, but a new 4,200 hp, 16-cylinder, 95-liter diesel is getting ready for testing.

Cummins announced the ultra-low emissions engine will begin commercial operations next year with the Indiana Rail Road Company (IRR), enabling field test engineers to easily study the 95-liter engine as it powers a locomotive hauling coal and mixed freight across the IRR network.

It's the largest engine Cummins has ever built.
http://social.cummins.com/cummins-qsk95 ... rade-show/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It'd make sense if that was it. There does seem to be a bit of logic in there if it is. Beat the snot out of it in freight service, and if it doesn't chuck a rod, then it will likely be a shoo in for passenger service too.

Mr Karpoff,This was before the new emissions standards,memory fails me, believe it was the M-11 engine series or it's
2nd gen replacement. This was part of a test fleet slated for the Bulk(tank) fleet.
The normal Fleet standard was Detriot Diesel series 60,which has evolved with the emission standards,
Cummins and Cat were options on the Freightliner Century class.
Opinions at truck stops went from love to hate for the Cummins,but the spun crankshaft bearings was a common gripe
along with grade 8 bolts breaking at the block for the A/C and altenator brackets,ECM glitches to boot.
Cummins engines at the pickup truck (non-CDL) level was a mixed bag at best.
The timing was around the change to Ulta Low Sulfur Diesel fuel across the entire US,
Back then only Ca required ULSD fuel.

For what it's worth,I cannot recall a Cummins prime mover in RR service, till the use in Genset locos or
HEP sets.

When the Gensets UP(State of Texas $$)were put into service,it was MU'ed,but isolated, to a GP-38/-8-40B
as backup power if the Genset crapped out!

Possible new look of the locomotives...........

http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/trac ... order.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Smart on Amtrak's part to buy a locomotive that shares a majority of its parts with its new electric locomotives. Lower cost on parts inventory and enhanced familiarity with mx. Thinking like a corporation. Very smart Amtrak.

Backshophoss wrote:For what it's worth,I cannot recall a Cummins prime mover in RR service, till the use in Genset locos or HEP sets.

Many small General Electric critters used Cummins, the 44 Ton locomotive was the oddball with Caterpillar D-1700 Diesel engines.

Wow. I like the common design, both from an engineering and design perspective. If both designs prove to be successes, then we could see a point where every Amtrak train save for 150+mph NEC services looks the same from the front. (If I recall correctly, the F59s and the Dash-8s should both be up for replacement along with the P32/42s).

For branding, that's a great boost. For lack of a better description, these look *fast*. The AEM-7s and Dash-8s just look old; even the P42s still look pretty 20th century. These look 21st century - very much reminds me of the good-looking stock rolling around Britain. While how it looks has nothing to do with how it runs, making Amtrak's trains look modern is an important part of teaching the greater public that trains are still a very relevant form of transportation.