In the latest episode of the Bring It Home podcast, Stefan Loeb, Norfolk Southern VP of business development and first and final mile markets, discussed the role of railroads in America’s reindustrialization. 

Norfolk Southern is working to enhance its rail infrastructure to support industrial clients and present rail as an environmentally friendly and efficient transportation option. Loeb highlighted the Class I freight railroad’s efforts in partnering with economic development agencies and clients to facilitate new developments connected to its network.

Loeb explained Norfolk Southern’s strategy to grow its carload freight business and spoke on the importance of its industrial development group.

“When you look at the benefits and positives that rail brings to the overall supply chain and the economy in general, we can’t think of a better, more environmentally friendly, safer transportation mechanism than rail,” Loeb stated.

He said Norfolk Southern is working on over 450 projects, representing $9 billion in investments, and is making an effort to optimize interchange consistency with short lines.

“Providing the visibility on the inbound … is one thing that we’re doing through this program so that we minimize – and hopefully fully mitigate at some point – those loads getting lost to the alternative mode,” Loeb said. 

He said reliable and consistent service across sectors is necessary, and that rail also needs to incorporate technological advancements to compete with the trucking industry’s ease of access through apps.

Several manufacturing investment news stories were also discussed in this episode:

• Honda has decided to enhance its electric vehicle hub investments in Marysville, Ohio, from $700 million to over $1 billion.
• Diageo has invested $415 million in a new beverage production facility in Montgomery, Alabama, intended to create 100 jobs.
• GE Vernova has committed to investing $600 million in the U.S., focusing on gas turbines and nuclear fuel as part of a grander $9 billion global capital expenditure plan.

Bring It Home dives into emerging industry trends and the push for reindustrialization in North America. The podcast is available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

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