This month, Siemens celebrated a production milestone at its Sacramento rail manufacturing plant by installing the first Cummins QSK95 engine with alternator that will power the new diesel-electric Charger locomotives. The 42,000 pound, power unit, the first engine to be installed at Siemens Sacramento manufacturing plant, was successfully lowered into the locomotive by overhead crane.
Siemens is manufacturing a total of 69 diesel-electric locomotives for the Departments of Transportation in Illinois, California, Michigan, Missouri, Washington and Maryland. The diesel-electric locomotives are also being manufacturing for Brightline, the express passenger rail service that will connect the major cities of Miami and Orlando. The diesel locomotives will be powered by the 16-cylinder, 95-liter displacement, and 4,400 horsepower rated diesel engines built by Cummins. The new state-of-the-art locomotives are designed to operate at speeds up to 125 miles per hour and, with the Cummins engine, will comply with the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) stipulated Tier IV emission standards.
The Cummins QSK95 engine, manufactured in the U.S. at its Seymour, Indiana plant, is engineered with modern technologies and design features that ensure the highest performance, lowest fuel consumption, cleanest emissions, and lowest total cost of ownership of any locomotive engine.
The diesel-electric locomotives are currently being built at Siemens rail manufacturing plant in Sacramento, Calif. The plant is home to over 800 highly-skilled employees, has been in operation for over 30 years and sources up to 80 percent of its energy from two megawatts of solar energy. The plant recently completed a 125,000 square-foot expansion to help accommodate its growing production needs.
