AI and Operations

There is a lot of discussion in the news and many other places about Artificial Intelligence. No matter how you feel about it, it is here and it is not going away. I decided to give it a try on creating some basic operations for my line. I know, I can barely get a train around on the main line and not much else, but I like looking ahead. I decide to see if AI could find traffic information for me for the American Standard plant the opened in 1958 in Plainfield CT. I used Microsoft Copilot to create the following:

 

Plausible New Haven Railroad switch list

American Standard Plant, Wauregan/Plainfield, Connecticut

Wednesday, October 15, 1958

This is a historically plausible operating document rather than a surviving company record. The plant had opened in 1957-1958, was a significant customer on the Norwich & Worcester line, and its siding divided into two tracks near the building. [researchwo...s.oclc.org], [norwichand...ogspot.com], [norwichand...ogspot.com]

Later government reports identify Wauregan as a vitreous-china plant producing toilets, lavatories and bidets from ground ball clay, china clay, flint and feldspar. That provides a solid basis for reconstructing its likely rail traffic, though the exact 1958 car numbers, origins and quantities below are modeled assumptions. [ntrl.ntis.gov], [osti.gov], [cdc.gov]

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Train assignment

Railroad: New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad
Job: Plainfield local switcher
Power: NH Alco RS-1
Home terminal: Plainfield Yard
Industry: American Radiator & Standard Sanitary Corporation
Industry station: Wauregan, Connecticut
Weather: Clear, cool
Call time: 7:00 a.m.

Plant track arrangement assumed

• Track AS-1, Shipping Track: Finished fixtures, cartons and miscellaneous supplies
• Track AS-2, Materials Track: Clay, feldspar, flint, glaze materials and fuel

The actual siding reportedly split into two tracks near the plant, but the precise use of each track has not been documented in the sources located. [norwichand...ogspot.com]

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Conductor’s switch list

Cars to spot

Sequence	Car	Type	Load	Origin	Spot
1	NH 31462	40-foot boxcar	Corrugated cartons and packing paper	Springfield, Massachusetts	AS-1, Warehouse Door 1
2	B&M 76543	40-foot boxcar	Wooden pallets, crating lumber and kiln supplies	Boston, Massachusetts	AS-1, Warehouse Door 2
3	ACL 88217	50-ton covered hopper	Ground kaolin/china clay	Georgia clay district	AS-2, Silo 1
4	SOU 92084	50-ton covered hopper	Ground ball clay	Tennessee/Kentucky clay district	AS-2, Silo 2
5	PRR 257614	40-foot boxcar	Bagged feldspar and flint	Pennsylvania distributor	AS-2, Materials Door
6	SHPX 10328	Tank car	Fuel oil	Providence, Rhode Island	AS-2, Tank Unloading Stand

The clay, flint and feldspar loads are based on the documented later production process at Wauregan. The 1982 survey states that these materials arrived already ground to production specifications, were mixed with water into slip, then cast, dried, glazed and fired. It is reasonable, although not proven, that the basic process and principal raw materials were similar in 1958. [ntrl.ntis.gov], [osti.gov]

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Cars to pull

Sequence	Car	Type	Status	Contents or disposition	Destination
1	NH 30187	40-foot boxcar	Load	Crated toilet bowls and tanks	New Haven classification
2	NYC 171945	40-foot boxcar	Load	Lavatories and assorted fixtures	Worcester interchange
3	PRR 604128	50-foot double-door boxcar	Load	Commercial chinaware fixtures	Cedar Hill classification
4	ACL 88106	Covered hopper	Empty	Residue: china clay	Return south
5	SOU 91873	Covered hopper	Empty	Residue: ball clay	Return south
6	SHPX 9841	Tank car	Empty	Fuel-oil residue	Providence refinery
7	NH 32904	40-foot boxcar	Empty	Carton and packing-material car	Plainfield Yard

The outbound products reflect documented later production of toilets, lavatories and bidets at Wauregan. Finished pieces were inspected, packed and shipped after firing. [cdc.gov], [stacks.cdc.gov]

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Cars found at the plant before switching

AS-1, Shipping Track

From switch toward bumper:

1. NH 32904, empty boxcar
2. PRR 604128, loaded outbound
3. NYC 171945, loaded outbound
4. NH 30187, loaded outbound

AS-2, Materials Track

From switch toward bumper:

1. SHPX 9841, empty tank car
2. SOU 91873, empty covered hopper
3. ACL 88106, empty covered hopper

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Required final placement

AS-1, Shipping Track

From switch toward bumper:

1. B&M 76543, crating lumber and kiln supplies
2. NH 31462, cartons and packing paper

AS-2, Materials Track

From switch toward bumper:

1. SHPX 10328, fuel oil
2. PRR 257614, bagged feldspar and flint
3. SOU 92084, ball clay
4. ACL 88217, china clay

This arrangement keeps the tank car at the assumed unloading stand and places the covered hoppers beneath or beside the raw-material unloading area. If the actual Wauregan plant lacked pneumatic covered-hopper unloading in its first operating year, substitute 40-foot boxcars carrying bagged material for one or both clay cars.

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Suggested switching moves

1. Arrive from Plainfield with the six inbound cars.
2. Stop short of the plant switch and protect the movement.
3. Pull all seven outbound and empty cars from AS-1 and AS-2.
4. Assemble the pulled cars temporarily on the plant lead.
5. Place the fuel-oil tank car on AS-2.
6. Spot the feldspar/flint boxcar at the materials door.
7. Spot the two clay covered hoppers at their respective unloading points.
8. Spot the two supply boxcars on AS-1.
9. Gather the seven outbound cars.
10. Perform the air-brake test and return to Plainfield.
11. Block the three loaded fixture cars for New Haven, Worcester or connecting-road classification.
12. Forward the empty private-owner tank car and foreign-road covered hoppers toward their owners.

Operating complication

The plant lead and two-track split could make this a substantial switching job. Depending on switch orientation, the crew might need to pull the entire plant before placing the inbound cars. On a model railroad, the job should take approximately 25 to 40 minutes, especially if only one plant track can be handled at a time.

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Daily traffic represented

• 6 cars delivered
• 7 cars pulled
• 13 total car movements
• 3 outbound loads of finished fixtures
• 3 inbound production-material loads
• 1 inbound fuel load
• 2 inbound supply loads
• 4 outbound empties

This represents a busy weekday rather than an average day. A more typical day might involve two to four spots and two to four pulls. A reasonable modeled weekly level would be approximately 20 to 30 carloads, with more inbound raw material than outbound finished-product cars because dense clay and mineral ingredients would weigh more than the relatively bulky finished fixtures. Exact 1958 traffic records have not been located, so these quantities should be treated as operating estimates rather than documented totals.

Optional waybill notes

• Clay cars: “Keep dry. Do not contaminate.”
• Finished fixtures: “Fragile chinaware. No humping.”
• Boxcars for loading: “Clean car required. Inspect floor and roof before placement.”
• Tank car: “Place at unloading connection. Set hand brake.”
• All plant tracks: “Do not couple at excessive speed.”

This version emphasizes a satisfying switching session while remaining consistent with what is known about the plant, its two-track siding and its vitreous-china manufacturing process.

 

At this point the program asked me if I wanted waybill created, and this is what it created:

I have not reviewed any of the material for accuracy including car numbers. But it is very cool start to create waybills and traffic. I like that it gives routings, and they seem plausible. I used the highest level of deep thinking mode for Copilot to use. It also reference this blog in one spot so it could be using data that I potentially have wrong to reinforce itself. 

I will continue to play around with it to see what I can use for my layout.