Despite the fluid power theme of most of our recent issues of The Drive, Higginson offers many other product lines, even outside the industrial space. One such line is Aldon, our train rail safety and maintenance offerings, of which we are the exclusive Canadian distributors.

Aldon offers the industry’s best rail products, from chocks to signage and switch indicators to derails. Yes, I said derail. The average person may view a derailed train as undesirable. However, even the size and expense of train cars does not trump the freedom from harm guaranteed to rail line workers.

Persons at work absolutely take precedence over even $6 million locomotives. When workers are surrounded by the possibility of runaway trains – because they stop in hundreds of meters, not hundreds of feet – the only way to go is sideways. The derail mounted to the track causes the wheel to skip up and over the rail, avoiding the workers ahead.

A slow moving train will pop off the track and remain upright, in most cases. These derails are meant for use only below 16 km/hour, such as in a train yard. Any speeds higher will result in dangerous and unpredictable derailing. Even still, emergency track repair that may otherwise derail a train must be taken out with work safety the top priority.

Aldon’s new SaberTooth portable 2-way derail is bidirectional and mountable to either of the rails. They will derail in both directions, and by switching rail sides, the workers choose which direction the train derails to. Have a look at this video to see it in operation.

Higginson serves customers all across Canada, and railyards are still prevalent in many industries. If you have a rail yard, get in touch to see how we can help improve safety. Even if you never want to see a trail derail in your own yard, your team will be happy you have one there. Get in touch with our experts.