Utilco Railroad Services’ manufacturing facility is second to none. Much of our equipment is so specialized such as brush cutters, derricks, hi-rail lowboy transports, and, shown under construction, a crawler truck. We have found it more efficient to engineer and manufacturer it ourselves.

Utilco Railroad Services has designed and built an automatic wire welder that restores hi-rail wheels to their original specifications. Shown is the welding machine restoring a wheel for return to service for less than half the cost of a new wheel. Utilco operates the largest hi-rail crane in the Southeast and with its 70 MPH road speed it doesn’t take long to eliminate your problem. From over the side, from over the rear, or on the rail, it doesn’t matter. The 150 ton Mantis is a “can do” derrick.

We have the outer section of a Big John Derrick boom under construction. Notice the thickness of the walls and all T-1 steel. When the stringers, ribs, and inner walls are added this becomes an almost indestructible boom capable of tremendous side loads. This is an important factor when carrying a locomotive across ground that is not level. Though having only twenty eight feet of reach the total operating weight of the boom alone exceeds 15,000 lbs. In areas that are too soft to carry an engine the Big John Derrick booms were also designed to withstand the 300,000 lbs push of the boom extension cylinder. This feature allows the operator to tighten his hoist cable and by boom extension he is able to push and lift an engine in cycles of six feet until reaching the track or stable ground. Lifts of this magnitude rarely exceed two feet in height thus machine stability is never compromised.