Services
Inspections
Steam Operations Corporation is able to provide the following inspection services:
Pre-purchase inspections
Overall inspections to determine potential for operation
Detailed inspections for project scopes, grant proposals, and initiatives
Form 4 calculations
Accredited ultrasonic testing boiler inspections
Component inspections
Inspections for assessing in-tow or loaded movement
Project Scoping
As a result of our team's experience and wide-ranging skills, Steam Operations Corporation is uniquely suited to developing detailed and thorough scopes of work for restoration and rebuilding projects. Our scopes of work address issues ranging from detailed rebuilding or restoration steps, inventorying parts and addressing needed parts, incorporation of inspection results, project timelines, and detailed budgets. These scopes have been used for:
guiding projects
pursuing grants and funding
recruiting volunteers
developing boards of directors
creation of non-profit friends and volunteer groups
Project Management
Managing a project of the scope of most steam locomotive and turntable restorations and rebuilds requires extensive attention to detail, accountability, the respect and dedication of all concerned parties, and the ability to manage several concurrent tasks at any given time.
Steam Operations Corporation is able to provide management skills for projects in any location, of any size, and at any level of funding and staffing. Bringing together employees, volunteers, vendors, government agencies, and railroads can be a daunting task for anyone, but the experience of Steam Operations and the company's desire to achieve the end product can be a vital asset to any project. Historic preservation in any field is often an endeavor in which many different types of organizations play a role, and project management by an outside firm such as Steam Operations can help ensure the success of the project.
Engineering Services
Steam Operations Corporation provides a wide range of professional engineering services, including:
Calculation and re-calculation of Form 4 requirements for steam locomotives
Re-creation of missing or unavailable drawings for entire locomotives and tenders as well as components
Development of shipping and tie-down procedures for locomotive and rail car relocation
Engineering and design of spring rigging
Engineering, design, and application of revolutionary renewable hub liners.
Rebuilding
Steam Operations Corporation's experience in rebuilding locomotives to operational status is unparalleled, and the company's wide range of serices and offerings make it the only "one-stop-shop" in the industry. From complete rebuilds involving every aspect of a locomotive to operational overhauls to rebuilds of individual components and running gear, Steam Operations is able to deliver consistently superior and dependable rebuilding capabilities.
Restoration
Steam Operations Corporation recognizes that not every steam locomotive can or should be rebuilt for operation; in fact, many locomotives should be preserved or conserved rather than rebuilt in order to preserve as much of their historic integrity as possible.
Steam Operations has been nationally recognized for the quality of its locomotive restorations, many of which have been performed for railroad museums and for municipalities and historical societies. We are able to make a clear distinction between those projects that call for rebuilding locomotives and those that call for conserving and restoring them and endeavor to protect and preserve as much of the original locomotive as is safely and prudently possbile.
Operations
The hard work isn't over once a locomotive is returned to operating condition. At that point, a multitude of issues may arise, including:
- Crew training
- Negotiations with railroads
- Establishment of a maintenance and operating program
- Public relations
- Completing necessary FRA paperwork and inspections
- Maintaining insurance
Steam Operations Corporation is able to assist with or manage all these aspects of operations and many more.
Machining
Over the last six years, Steam Operations Corporation has greatly expanded its machining and fabrication abilities with a special emphasis on rebuilding bearings, axles, wheels, spring rigging, and brake rigging. Through a relationship with Lunar Tool and Machinery in St. Louis, Steam Operations has developed a group of machinists specially trained in locomotive and turntable repair and rebuild work. In coordination with engineering services, Steam Operations is able to achieve tolerances even smaller and more precise than when the locomotives were constructed.