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General Railway Signal

{{Short description|American manufacturer of railway signaling equipment}}

{{Infobox company

| name = General Railway Signal Company

| logo = GRS rail signal logo.JPG

| logo_size = 200

| caption =

| type = Private

| traded_as =

| genre =

| fate = Merged with Alstom[http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com/CustomerSupport/History/ "Alstom signaling history"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130109113147/http://alstomsignalingsolutions.com/CustomerSupport/History |date=2013-01-09 }}

| predecessor = Pneumatic Signal Company
Taylor Signal Co.
New York and Standard Railroad Signal Company

| successor = Alstom

| foundation = {{Start date and age|1904}}

| founder = John Taylor [http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com/Data/Documents/History.pdf "A Centennnial: History of Alstom Signaling, Inc., 1904-2004."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002122301/http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com/Data/Documents/History.pdf |date=2011-10-02 }}

| defunct = {{End date and age|1998}}

| location_city = Rochester, New York

| location_country = United States

| location =

| locations =

| area_served = Worldwide

| key_people = John Taylor, Wilmer Salmon, Winthrop Howe

| industry = Engineering

| products = Level crossing signals, railway signalling

| services =

| revenue =

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| aum =

| assets =

| equity =

| owner =

| num_employees = 350

| parent =

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| subsid =

| homepage =

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}}

General Railway Signal Company (GRS) was an American manufacturing company located in the Rochester, New York area. GRS was focused on railway signaling equipment, systems and services. The company was established in 1904 and became part of Alstom Transport in 1998. GRS was a member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average from 1928 to 1930.

History

GRS was founded in 1904 with the merger of three companies (Pneumatic Signal Company of Rochester, New York; Taylor Signal Co. of Buffalo, New York and Standard Railroad Signal Company of Arlington, New Jersey). In 1923 GRS acquired the Federal Signal Company of Albany, New York.

File:Grs railw formerlogo.png

General Railway Signal was one of the 30 stocks when the Dow Jones Industrial Average{{Cite web |url=http://www.cftech.com/BrainBank/FINANCE/DowJonesAvgsHist.html |title=Charles Dow, the History of the Dow Jones Averages |access-date=2007-12-19 |archive-date=2007-12-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213011954/http://www.cftech.com/BrainBank/FINANCE/DowJonesAvgsHist.html |url-status=dead }} was expanded from a 20-stock average on October 1, 1928. It was replaced in the DJIA by Liggett & Myers on July 18, 1930. In 1965,General Signal Corporation (GSX) was created with the intent to diversify into areas other than railway signaling. GRS was a wholly owned subsidiary of GSX.

File:GRS Model 2 Interlocking machine.jpg (1915)]]

In 1960, GRS opened the "General Railway Signal Company de Argentina" (GRSA) division in Buenos Aires, which provided manufacture, installation and technical support of GRS railroad signalling systems in Argentina. Some local railroad lines that were provided with GRSA products were Belgrano Norte, Belgrano Sur, Urquiza and Sarmiento. Most of the signals remain active. Among their products are railroad crossing signalling parts, branded with the GRSA logo, instead of the usual GRS. This facility was closed in the early 1980s.

In 1986, GRS joined with China National Railway Signal & Communication Group Corporation (CRSC) to form the Chinese-American Signal Company (CASCO) in Shanghai, China, which produces products and systems for railways in the People's Republic of China.[http://www.cn.alstom.com/home/jvs/cascosignal/profile/32456.EN.php?languageId=EN&dir=/home/jvs/cascosignal/profile/ CASCO Signal Ltd]

In 1989, GRS was acquired by the Italian company Sasib and joined the Sasib Railways group. From its founding until 1993, GRS main office and manufacturing facilities were located at 801 West Avenue in Rochester. In 1993, it moved to two new suburban facilities: administration and engineering to Sawgrass Drive in Brighton, and manufacturing to John Street in West Henrietta. In 1998, it became part of Alstom, when Alstom acquired Sasib Railways. The GRS name is no longer used. All products now use the Alstom brand.

Products

{{multiple image

|align = right

|direction =

|total_width = 350

|perrow =

|header =

|image1 = CSX Cap Sub-Ammendale 2011a.jpg

|caption1 = GRS color position light signal on CSX in Beltsville, Maryland, April 2011

|image2 = Pan calle roca.jpg

|caption2 = Argentine level crossing signals on Belgrano Norte Line, May 2014

|footer =

}}

= Carborne signaling equipment =

= Wayside signaling =

= Central control signaling =

Clients

= Railroads =

{{div col|colwidth=20em}}

{{Div col end}}

= Transit =

{{div col|colwidth=20em}}

{{Flagicon|TW}}Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation{{Div col end}}

Major accomplishments

  • First Centralized traffic control (cTc) machine, 1927.Elements of Railway Signaling, General Railway Signal (June 1979)
  • "NX" (eNtrance-eXit) systems (relay-based cTc), 1937.GRS (1937). [http://www.rrsignalpix.com/GRS_172_sec.pdf "Speed and Simplicity in Train Directing."] Bulletin 172. p. 7.
  • First fully automated freight yard, 1955.{{cite magazine |date=1955-02-07 |title=Automation: TV, Tickets & Trains |magazine=Time |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,823769,00.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107140633/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,823769,00.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 7, 2012 }}
  • Computer-based central control office, 1968.
  • First fully automatic computer-planned and executed train meet, 1981.
  • Microprocessor based Interlocking ("Vital Processor Interlocking"), 1986.Alstom Signalling Inc.(2010). [http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com/Data/Documents/Site_Brochure_Roch_Apr10_Final_Web.pdf "Rochester Signalling and Control Systems."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111002122444/http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com/Data/Documents/Site_Brochure_Roch_Apr10_Final_Web.pdf |date=2011-10-02 }}
  • Amtrak Northeast Corridor Improvement Project, 1980s.
  • 100th Anniversary, 2004.

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Commons category|General Railway Signal}}

  • [http://www.alstomsignalingsolutions.com Alstom Signaling division]
  • [http://www.railroad-signaling.com/mysignals/2A.html Photos of GRS Model 2A Dwarf Signal] - introduced 1908
  • John Street location {{coord|43|04|03|N|77|40|09|W|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
  • Sawgrass Drive location {{coord|43|06|49.42|N|77|36|13.63|W|type:landmark|display=inline}}
  • West Avenue location {{coord|43|08|56.54|N|77|39|43.35|W|type:landmark|display=inline}}

{{Railway signalling}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1904

Category:Railway signalling manufacturers

Category:Defunct companies based in New York (state)

Category:Former components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average

Category:American companies disestablished in 1998

Category:Alstom

Category:Manufacturing companies based in Rochester, New York

Category:American companies established in 1904

Category:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1998