GE Transportation Systems
GE Transportation Systems (GETS) was a manufacturer of rail vehicles , railcars, and rail infrastructure systems. GETS was part of the American General Electric group, one of the world's top-selling conglomerates . On February 25, 2019, GE Transportion Systems merged with the railway technology manufacturer Wabtec .
The company was based in Chicago. The main production facility is in Erie , Pennsylvania . In Germany, there was a location in Bad Dürkheim ( Rhineland-Palatinate ) until around 2011 .
As one of the largest suppliers to railroad companies, transportation and the mining industry, GE Transportation has developed freight and passenger locomotives, mining vehicles, electric drive systems for drill heads, and diesel engines for marine and stationary applications.
history
General Electric began entering the electric locomotive market in the early 20th century, and later diesel locomotives. Initially, only the electrical part of the vehicle was usually supplied, while the mechanical part (bogies, vehicle body, etc.) or the diesel engines were supplied by other companies. From 1924 onwards, there was a permanent collaboration with the locomotive manufacturer ALCo and the engine manufacturer Ingersoll-Rand . This cooperation lasted until 1935. After ALCo successfully produced its own diesel engines, a cooperation with this company took place from 1940 to 1953, which was marketed as "ALCo-GE". The electrical equipment was also supplied to other manufacturers ( Fairbanks-Morse ). The locomotives known as Erie-built were produced by General Electric in Erie due to the limited production capacities of FM.
From the end of the 1950s, General Electric also had its own self-developed diesel engine available. This began the successful production of diesel locomotives, which led to the company becoming the largest locomotive manufacturer on the American market.
In 2005, GETS had sales of over three billion US dollars with over 8,000 employees worldwide. Competitors are EMD , Siemens Transportation Systems and Bombardier Transportation .
From the mid-2010s, General Electric was eager to clean up its production portfolio. Therefore, a buyer was also sought for the locomotive division. In May 2018 it was announced that GE Transportation wanted to merge with Wabtec to form a new company.
See also
Web links
- GE Transportation (Engl.)
- GE Transportation short portrait (German)