Union Switch & Signal
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| Union Switch and Signal | |
|---|---|
| Type | part of Ansaldo since 1996 |
| Founded | 1881 |
| Headquarters | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Products | Equipment and services for rail transport |
| Revenue | N/A |
| Employees | 500+ |
| Website | www.switch.com |
Union Switch and Signal (US&S) is a supplier of railway signaling equipment, systems and services in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Now a part of Ansaldo, US&S traces its history all the way back to its founding in 1881.
Contents |
[edit] History
George Westinghouse founded Union Switch & Signal, abbreviated (US&S), in 1881, consolidating the assets of companies that had pioneered closed track circuits and interlockings. Operating as an independent company until 1917, US&S became a subsidiary of the Westinghouse Air Brake Company. In 1968, American Standard purchased the entire operation and reorganized US&S as a separate division.
In 1988, Ansaldo purchased US&S from American Standard. In November 1993, US&S became a publicly traded company with shares listed on Nasdaq. In December 1996, US&S merged with the other signaling investments of Ansaldo located around the world. As a result of that merger, US&S is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Ansaldo STS, a global supplier of signaling, control and automation systems with operations worldwide.
Throughout its history, US&S has been in the Pittsburgh area. Located in the borough of Swissvale for most of its history, US&S built and moved to new main facilities in 1995 on Technology Drive within the city limits. Other facilities include a manufacturing plant in Batesburg, South Carolina, and a service and repair shop in Kingston, Ontario.
[edit] Products
- Carborne signaling equipment
- ATC
- ATP
- ATS
- Wayside signaling equipment
- DC code systems
- electronic communication systems
- electronic interlocking
- relays
- signals
- switch machines
- track circuits
- Central Control signaling equipment
- computer-based Manual Control Systems
- computer-based Traffic Management Systems
- dark territory control systems
- electro-mechanical cTc machines
Union Switch and Signal was one of the four main contractors (including Colt, Remington-Rand and Singer Sewing Machine) to make M1911A1 pistols during World War Two. The production blocks assigned to them in 1943 was between SNs 1,041,405 to 1,060,000 and 1,060,001 to 1,096,494.[citation needed]
[edit] Clients
- Railroad
- Transit
- Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
- Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
- Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority
- NJ Transit
- New York City Transit Authority
- Port Authority of Allegheny County
- Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
- Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
- Chicago Transit Authority
- Copenhagen Metro
[edit] See also
- General Railway Signal, the other major US railway signaling company.
[edit] Major Accomplishments
- 125th Anniversary 2006

