The National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association(NRC) has awarded Bottom Line Company with its Small Project of the Year Awardfor its work to upgrade 26 railroad bridges on three subdivisions of Watco’s South Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (SKOL).

Funded in part with a Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program grant, the project modernized and revitalized the regional railroad in southeast Kansas and northeast Oklahoma. Bottom Line came in on schedule, with no safety incidents, and under the $2.78 million agreed-upon budget.

“Those of us who worked with Bottom Line can’t say enough about the work quality, and we told them as much,” noted Watco in its nomination. “Their team did an outstanding job on the bridge repairs. We were so pleased with the work quality that we hope to work together with them on another project in the future. “

Watco cited Bottom Line’s excellent planning, coordination, communication, and oversight, which made the contractor “stand out as experts and led to a successful project.”

“We appreciated the 24/7 field supervisor who managed two, six-person crews daily and kept them working efficiently together. This field supervisor submitted daily reports to us that included photos of work completed by each crew. He was very detailed in his planning, and he participated in weekly calls with our Watco and SKOL team to discuss upcoming challenges, coordinate extended outages where needed, etc.,” detailed Watco Manager of Bridges Mike McDermott and Project Manager Cameron Ginther.

When the field supervisor proactively recognized conditions at five of the locations that were not in the original project scope and provided a plan, with an estimated schedule and cost, to address these conditions. Watco hired Bottom Line to address those conditions as well.

Bottom Line worked at two adjacent bridges at the same time, so they were able to efficiently use resources and equipment. Their efficient material delivery stood out; by planning work in order to complete specific geographic areas together, it eliminated having to move materials and equipment back and forth.

As with many railroad projects, train traffic is a prominent challenge, so securing track time and work windows was challenging. The Neodesha Sub averages one train per day, and the Moline and Tulsa Subs average one to two trains daily. Bottom Line was able to work with Watco and the SKOL to arrange a safe, efficient schedule to allow for optimal train traffic and optimal bridge repair.

‍Supplier: Wheeler Lumber