ISO 9002 Certification for CANAC's Locomotive Remote Control Manufacturing Plant

Production of locomotive remote controls at CANAC's expanded 22,000-square-foot Remote Control Technology Center in Pittsburgh, PA has received ISO 9002 certification. "And I am particularly proud of the work done by our team," declared Frank Trotter, CANAC President and CEO. "Not only were all pre-audit requirements met ahead of time and below budget, but the certification audit was also passed on the first attempt."

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies. ISO has developed a series of standards relating to Quality Systems known as the ISO 9000 family standard. ISO 9002 is a framework for Quality Assurance in production, installation and services areas.

"Our own drive for higher standards of product safety and ever-increasing competition have led us to more stringent requirements for product quality. To continue to lead our competitors and to maintain good economic performance for our technology products, a company like CANAC needs to employ increasingly effective and efficient production, installation and customer support systems. That is why we submitted our Remote Control Technology Center to the strict ISO audit," said Frank Trotter. "In adopting the ISO standards - by far the most internationally recognized approach to Quality Control - the resulting system of checks and balances ensures the quality of CANAC's locomotive remote control products for our customers."

The CANAC family of remote control products consists of a range of locomotive remote control systems for industrial and railroad operations: from the fully upgradeable CANTRAC(TM) 450, 550 and 650 models, to the specially featured CANTRAC(TM) LT (Lead/Trail or push-pull); and, CANAC's flagship product and the industry gold standard BELTPACK(R) system.

First pioneered by Canadian National Railway (CN), remote control operation using the BELTPACK(R) system is a very mature technology in Canadian Class 1 railroads. With more than 125 BELTPACK(R)-equipped locomotives, CN is the largest single user of locomotive remote control systems in North America. Covering over 1.5 million yard engine hours, the extensive safety data recently published by CN clearly showed that the use of CANAC's BELTPACK(R) systems has resulted in a sharp drop in the number of reportable yard incidents, in general by more than 50% over the past six years.

And looking ahead, the next generation of CANAC's locomotive remote control units, due for release early in 2001, was designed through the collaborative efforts of CN management, independent ergonomists and kinesiologists, male and female employee representatives, and the CANAC development team. In the industry, many railroads have expressed their determination to move ahead and to participate in the positive results achievable from the evolution of the LRC technology available on the market today.

As the manufacturer of BELTPACK(R), the most advanced LRC technology available on the market today, CANAC is particularly proud of the safety benefits of this unique system, developed specifically for railroad operations and with safety in mind. CANAC has nearly 1,000 locomotive remote control products in use at about 300 customer sites throughout North America.

Founded in 1971 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of CN, CANAC provides knowledge-based products and services to railroads, rail-related industries, companies operating their own on-site railroads, and governments. From offices across the U.S., Canada and Mexico, CANAC is an industry leader in technology products, railway operations and planning services, training, engineering and mechanical services, and asset management.