Pennsy is a privately held engineering company based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Established in 1984, our focus is the engineering and sale of products into the freight rail industry. Pennsy’s products are known throughout the railroads to increase component life and improve freight car performance. The products we develop help meet the railroads continuing need to improve operational performance, increase safety, and reduce maintenance costs.
There are approximately 1.5 million freight cars in operation throughout North America and our products can be applied to all of them. Pennsy supplies the industry with wear liners, safety components, and custom engineered parts, all designed to meet our customer’s unique demands.
Pennsy Engineers are experts at combining the ideal design and material to fit the application. All Pennsy parts are designed to marry seamlessly into the specific application with special consideration to the system as a whole. Our engineers have had experience designing parts in both metals and plastics, utilizing a multitude of manufacturing processes including injection molding, extruding, stampings, fabrications, castings and forgings. Pennsy is able to provide solutions to fit any need, from single custom orders to mass produced high volume parts.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
Since Pennsy began developing its innovative product line, its operations have been guided by a core set of values.
Safety
Safety is always a concern. We promote products that increase awareness and improve safety. We make our products light, strong and when necessary, highly visible. Whether it is reducing the weight of a product, lighting dark paths, or even simple considerations such as adding reflective tape, Pennsy is dedicated to improving safety in the railroader’s environment.
Quality
Pennsy is certified to the latest revision of ISO9001 and we always employ strict quality controls when it comes to our design and manufacturing.
Throughout the design process, our parts undergo intensive scrutiny from the Pennsy engineering staff, the manufacturer and the customer. Pennsy collaborates with engineering departments from major car builders and railroads around the country to evaluate our designs at an early stage. When applicable, our parts undergo FEA (Finite Element Analysis) to search for weaknesses and to optimize performance. The part then is tested in our labs and in the field. The quality process does not always end with the finished product; field inspections are often used to fine tune the part.
Many of our products have been tested by the AAR and when applicable we have acquired the needed AAR approvals. We work with the various committees and organizations to ensure our parts meet the high railroad standards.
Customer Focus
Our customers drive our operation. Pennsy listens to its customers and prides ourselves on customer support. We have worked with every major railroad in North America to help freight car owners reduce the cost of ownership while improving overall performance. Our business has grown over the last two decades because we work closely with our customers to develop effective solutions that meet their particular needs.
Progressive Outlook
At Pennsy we believe that to be effective we need to nurture and encourage original, creative and critical thinking. Over the years, Pennsy has found solutions in technology outside mainstream and traditional venues. Occasionally, we’ll partner with outside experts to offer the best in product development, material choices and manufacturing processes. We recognize the complexity and the numerous factors that influence the performance of a freight car and we develop solutions which are often innovative and novel. We have attained and continually file numerous patents to protect our intellectual property and are dedicated to the advancement of the railroads.