The railroad isn’t just for traveling to work every day. If you’ve ever been unfortunately stopped by a long, seemingly unending line of rail cars while driving, you’re looking at a bevy of potential products, such as grains, cement, and many other materials you’ll read about below. These rail cars offer manufacturers a way to move products around the country unharmed. This list will detail seven types of rail cars and their uses so you can determine which one will help you the most.
Autorack
Obviously, when manufacturers transport cars across the country, they can’t just stick an SUV in the back of an Amazon delivery truck. This is where autoracks come in handy. This type of enclosed rail car specializes in safely and securely transporting automobiles—from cars to trucks and beyond. You might also hear autoracks commonly referred to as “automotive racks” as well.
Gondola
An autorack utilizes an enclosed space for transporting materials, but gondolas feature an open-top design. Gondolas transport bulk loads of raw materials such as lumber, scrap metal, sand, and steel. Again, these aren’t materials you can just throw in the back of a delivery truck; they require a bit more care and consideration than that.
Boxcar
A boxcar is one of the most common rail cars you’ll see around. Boxcars can carry crates and pallets of bulk goods, including lumber, metal, grain, and much more. This type of rail car gets its catchy moniker because it’s literally shaped like a large, wide box with doors on the side.
Flatcar
As with boxcars, the reason for calling this mode of transportation a “flatcar” is right there in the name. This flat, open platform carries materials that might be too heavy or bulky for storage units with less space. Flatcars transport materials such as large pipes, vehicles, steel billets, and heavy machinery.
Tank Car
This car is a cylindrical tank specializing in transporting liquids across the country. These liquids include but aren’t limited to chemicals, water, and various oils. Suffice it to say, storing water on a flatcar isn’t going to cut it.
Covered Hopper
Although you can open the top of covered hoppers to load the materials inside, these rail cars remain securely closed during transportation. Specifically, covered hoppers transport bulk loads of dry, free-flowing goods. Common examples of free-flowing bulk products you’ll find in this storage unit are grain, sand, cement, and roofing granules.
Open-Top Hopper
Open-top hoppers differ from their covered counterpart because, as you can probably guess, the top remains open throughout the trip. A similarity these two rail cars share is they both receive materials through an opening on top. This hopper is best for materials capable of withstanding the elements, such as coal, clay, and gravel, due to the open-top design.
As you can see, each of the seven types of rail cars and their uses can greatly benefit a diverse array of companies across the country. By reaching out to an expert who can design and manufacture rail car unloading systems, businesses can take full advantage of this material transportation method’s reliability.