The 31,000 pound Cummins engine is lowered into the first Brightline locomotive. Photo: courtesy of Brightline.
Brightline, a commuter rail service that will connect Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando, has reached another milestone in the building of its trains, as the engine was installed into its first diesel-electric locomotive.
The Cummins QSK95 engine weighs 31,000 pounds. It was lowered into the locomotive by an overhead crane at the Siemens manufacturing facility in Sacramento, Calif., and took approximately six hours to install. The engine, which is certified to meet emissions required by EPA Tier 4 standards, also features reduced noise and low fuel consumption.
Brightline’s integrated trains are comprised of two bright yellow locomotives and four high quality stainless steel passenger cars and can be extended to include up to 10 passenger cars. The integration improves ride quality and makes for a much quieter ride. The locomotives will also feature an ergonomic cab design for the train’s engineers.
The 60-acre Siemens rail manufacturing plant, which is home to nearly 1,000 employees and sources up to 80 percent of its energy from two megawatts of solar energy, recently completed a 125,000 square-foot expansion. The company has also developed a base of U.S. rail suppliers to support rail manufacturing for Brightline, including components from more than 40 suppliers across more than 20 states with additional suppliers still being added.
Siemens will also be performing maintenance on the Brightline trainsets, supporting full-time employment for 36 Siemens and 40 Brightline employees at Brightline’s maintenance facility in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Delivery of the first trainset is expected later this year, and Brightline service is scheduled to begin in mid-2017.