ACI

[nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org]

So, Harry, after ACI use was stopped around 1978, what
became of the ex-ACI Industries person?

I hadn't thought about tank cars being difficult to
read because of the curved surface.  Most of the
tankers I saw had a flat vertical plate attached near
an end catwalk with the ACI label affixed to that
--solving the problem you mentioned.

Good morning,

Frank Scheer
f_scheer at yahoo.com


Date: Fri, 3 Nov 2006 10:22:50 EST
From: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
Subject: Re: ACI Labels
To: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org

Circa 1976, Louis Newton left the Planning Department
and went to Transportation.  Mr. Claytor went outside
the company to replace Mr. Newton.  He selected the
leader of the then-foundering ACI Industries.  Despite
the imminent decline of the ACI system, the new leader
was determined to make car identification  
work.
 
ACI scanners were indeed rare, but Roanoke had two --
one at Park Street and one at "WB".  N&WHS member
Larry Hill and I were assigned to determine why the
labels failed to "read".  Standard practice was to get
a print out after a westbound passed the Park Street
scanner.  Fitted with a cleaning  rag 
and a bottle of Windex, one would locate the cars that
failed to scan passing Park Street and the other would
clean the label.  Not all cars had  the ACI label. 
Where the ACI label was attached to the curved side of
a tank car, they hardly ever "read".  Some labels were
just dirty.   After the westbound  
recrewed and departed,  the consist passing the Park
Street scanner was compared with the consist passing
the "WB" scanner.  As a rule, two or three of the ACI
labels cleaned at Roanoke would "read" passing the
"WB" scanner.  The best example of "reads"
we captured was on No. 77 --  about 85% of the cars
scanned  correctly.
 
And, no, I don't do windows.
                                                    
Harry Bundy