In-spite of sluggish sales during the early years, the locomotive building newcomer has consistently saught to develop a niche in the industrial sector. Its business strategy has centered on using surplus reconditioned trucks and off-the-shelf components married to Tier 3 or 4 EPA-compliant diesel power plants.

In pursuit of that objective, FWDX (the Canadian builder's reporting mark) now offers rail operators four different models, two of which ride on a three-axle truck and one utilizing a pair of conventional B-B trucks. The four-axle TP90 model delivers 90,000 lbs of tractive force, while the three-axle versions TP56 and TP70 are rated at a respectful 56,000 and 70,000 lbs.

The builder's latest catalog offering is a six-axle heavy-duty TP130 version (a 130,000 lb tractive force) that has generated some initial interest with large industrial bulk processing companies; recent orders are for two of the dual-engine model.

TPC's future success will be determined by their locomotives' every-day performance in the field, along with the ability to deliver on a pledge of a lower first cost, fuel saving reduction, and ease of maintenance while still achieving EPA compliance.