Safety Anniversaries
August 1 – Westlake Switching (LA) – 23 years
August 1 – San Antonio Central Railroad (TX) – 13 years
August 1 – Cherokee Switching (AL) – 9 years
August 1 – Savannah & Old Fort Railroad (GA) – 6 years
August 1 – Ontario Switching (CA) – 3 years
August 1 – Greens Port Mobile Repair – 1 year
August 1 – North Bergen Transload Terminal (NJ) – 1 year
August 6 – Texas Coastal Bend Railroad (TX) – 3 years
August 8 – Oklahoma City Transload Terminal (OK) – 6 years
August 10 – Mission Mountain Railroad (MT) – 9 years
August 10 – Port Neches Switching (TX) – 2 years
August 12 – Dore Transload Terminal (ND) – 2 years
August 13 – Austin Western Railroad (TX) – 1 year
August 13 – Freeport Industrial Rail Services (TX) – 1 year
August 17 – Deridder Ingevity Switching (LA) – 4 years
August 19 – Burley Transload Terminal (ID) – 3 years
August 20 – Baton Rouge Southern Railroad (LA) – 3 years
August 20 – Glendale Transload Terminal (AZ) – 1 year
August 25 – Hawesville Marine Terminal (KY) – 2 years
August 26 – McIntosh Switching (AL) – 5 years
Team members, get retirement planning advice from BOK at no cost to you
Schedule an appointment with BOK Financial Advisor Jessica Jones at jessica.jones@bokf.com or (405) 272-2557
Save Money with the Spousal Incentive HRA Plan
It’s almost time for open enrollment! Before selecting your 2026 benefits this fall, take a moment to learn more about how you can save with Watco’s Spousal Incentive Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) plan.
What is it
Rest easy knowing you’re 100% covered when you select Watco’s Spousal Incentive HRA plan and enroll in alternate group medical and prescription insurance.
On the Spousal Incentive HRA plan, team members can save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. On top of the coverage you receive from your alternate insurance, Watco reimburses you for eligible out-of-pocket expenses. That means office visit and prescription copays, coinsurance costs, and even deductibles can be covered by Watco, up to the annual limit of $9,450 for single or $18,900 for family coverage.
If your alternate coverage premium exceeds what you would have paid to remain on Watco’s medical plan, Watco will reimburse you the difference up to a maximum of $300/month for single coverage, $400/month for team member and spouse or child(ren), or $600/month for family coverage.
Who qualifies
If you’re currently enrolled in a Watco health plan and have access to health insurance through your spouse’s workplace or from a second workplace then you’re eligible. Or if you’re under the age of 26 and you’re eligible to sign up for your parent’s group health plan.
How it works
Once enrolled in the Spousal Incentive HRA plan and you complete your registration with NueSynergy, you’ll receive a Watco benefits debit card to pay for eligible out-of-pocket medical and prescription expenses for you and any family members enrolled in the plan.
Be sure to keep your Explanation of Benefits (EOB) for medical services and prescription printouts. For every expense paid using the card, you must upload supporting documentation to NueSynergy, the administrator of the Spousal Incentive HRA plan.
You also have the option to pay out of pocket and submit a claim online or by fax to get reimbursed by NueSynergy.
Learn more
Watch the video above or get answers to your questions with this FAQ document. Or contact the benefits team at benefits@watco.com
Watco Helps Charlotte Pipe Lay Tracks for Growth
Collaboration creates opportunity, and that was on display last month when the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (KO) welcomed its newest customer, Charlotte Pipe and Foundry.
Two years ago, the site of the new plastic plumbing and irrigation pipe manufacturing facility in Maize, Kansas, was a rural farm field waiting for development. Now, it’s home to an $80 million, 134,000-sq.-ft. investment that created 50 full-time jobs. And there are already plans to grow.
“We worked with Charlotte Pipe to help them find the right spot,” said Casey Harbour, sales director. “They started with a concept and wanted to serve a market. We helped them make that a reality by identifying the right site, with the right rail access, and matching their needs with room to expand.”
Charlotte Pipe already has facilities that serve the east and west coasts but were looking to expand into the central U.S. Harbour says the full scope of the collaboration came into focus during the initial site visit in Maize. The City of Maize had land to develop, Sedgwick County applied for a state economic development and rail grant, and the Greater Wichita Partnership, a local economic development group, led the charge to bring the investment to central Kansas.
Rail access was one key factor. That’s where Watco made its largest contribution. The KO, real estate, industrial development, project management, and sales teams all collaborated to design and build a new siding for the facility.
“As with any of our projects, we worked closely with the customer to ensure the design fit their immediate needs and vision for the future,” said Drew White, director of engineering. “We went through at least eight iterations before we settled on a design that work for Charlotte Pipe and the operations team on the KO. It’s always a collaborative effort to balance that what we build works for the customer and our team.”
The final design features turnouts on the east and west sides of the facility, directly off the KO main line. These connect to a double-track siding, with nearly 3,000 feet of rail and room for 28 cars to unload plastic resin at dozens of pneumatic connections. Charlotte Pipe currently receives about 40 cars per month, and the capacity for more is already there.
“Everywhere they’ve built, Charlotte Pipe has expanded capacity within a couple years,” Harbour said. “They built the facility with that in mind. Watco wants to support that growth, so the rail infrastructure we built matches that vision, and we’re prepared to provide the rail service they’ll need.”
Stay Warm with Railroad-Branded Sweatshirts and Hoodies
Get ready for falling temperatures with new Watco gear! Railroad-branded sweatshirts and hoodies from Comfort Colors are now available for purchase.
They come in a variety of colors and feature the railroad logo of your choice, in full- or one-color. Better still, the Comfort Color brand is known for its cozy, lived-in feel, making this sweatshirt or hoodie the perfect choice for chilly days and nights.
Watco Greens Port Delivers for Local Students
During July, the Greens Port team organized a back-to-school supply drive in support of Woodland Acres Elementary School. The team collected more than 1,600 essential supplies, including rulers, binders, paper, and scissors.
Peoples Services Manager Zelma Phillips remarked, “Supporting our local school represents a collaborative effort for our team—many of the team members have children attending, and we consistently seek ways to contribute, whether through supply drives, festival donations, or engaging directly with students.”
More Railcar Storage and a New Wash Rack at Freeport Industrial Rail Services
A new wash rack and additional railcar storage are expected to increase productivity and make operations at Freeport Industrial Rail Services more efficient. After breaking ground at the end of 2023, construction was recently completed.
The new state-of-the-art wash rack is located in Plant B, the work area where the team loads polyethylene pellets into railcars. Designed by Watco, the wash rack can wash and dry three railcars at a time and features a water recycling system that recovers, filters, and reuses 90% of previously used water.
It’s the second wash rack on-site. An older wash rack is located three miles away in Plant A. The distance, age, and lack of drying and water-recycling capabilities made it necessary to add a new strategically located wash rack.
Sales Director Caleb Dellasega said, “Polyethylene can be contaminated if exposed to water. Instead of waiting for hoppers to dry on their own, the new wash rack’s dryer will expedite the cleaning process without sacrificing the quality of the product.”
Storage has also been increased by 460 railcar spots at the B5, B9, and B94 rail yards to support the production and railcar cleaning facilities.
Throughout construction, Watco Logistics coordinated the shipment and delivery of all materials. Freeport Industrial Rail Services is located within a chemical facility with strict entry requirements. But the Watco Logistics team identified solutions to meet all challenges.
Senior Director of Project Management Mike McAllister said, “Thanks to Watco Logistics, the delivery of materials went seamlessly. They worked with suppliers, drivers, and contractors to ensure all entry requirements were met and deliveries were made on time.”
Experience Shapes Conductor/Engineer
Conductor/Engineer Logan O’Connell learns from his past mistakes. It’s a quality that makes him a valuable team member and peer trainer on the Fox Valley & Lake Superior Rail System (FOXY) in Wausau, Wisconsin.
Hours into his first shift as a conductor on the FOXY in 2022, had an incident as a result of personal oversight. According to FOXY Trainmaster Troy Kutella, the experience left him dedicated to meticulously following procedures by the book.
Kutella said, “Logan doesn’t shy away from any of his mistakes. He learns from it and moves on.”
Since then, O’Connell has become dual-certified as a conductor/engineer, and became a peer trainer last year. At the time, the FOXY had welcomed several new team members to the Wausau depot, many of whom had not yet started ground school.
Kutella describes O’Connell as a ‘good seeing-eye dog’ for team members just starting their railroad careers. He said: “Logan looks out for the new guys. He does a great job of showing them the ropes.”
As a result, new team members under O’Connell’s wing establish good habits starting Day 1. His mentorship has helped contribute to the overall safety of the short line railroad.
Another way he looks out for his team is by picking up extra shifts whenever necessary. Kutella said: “I can count on Logan. He goes out of his way to be accommodating, whether that’s to a new teammate or someone who needs time off. He’s a great team member.”
Team Member Anniversaries
Congratulations to the following team members celebrating September anniversaries:
1 Year:
Brian Beaty, Rafe Bolton, Stephen Borg, Rodney Bowie, Tracy Byrdsong, Noah Cardenas, Ellie Carpenter, Michael Cleaves, Nicholas Covarrubias, Austin Cutshall, John Deweese, Jordan DiBartolo, Dallas Dotson, Jacob Downum, Michael Ducette, Antonio Dunn, Kameron Edgar, Darik Ellington, Willie Everette, Daniel Farmer, Matheu Fortner, Michael Fox, Sally Fultz, Quinten Garcia, Jennifer Gardner, April Gelston, Bradley George, Kerean Hailey, Alan Hargreaves, Austin Herring, Gavin Hidalgo, Jagger Holmes, Charles Hoskins, Justin Huget, Micaela Ibarra Torres, Cadwallander Jackson, Christopher Johnston, Cindy Jones, Justin Lambert, Kadon Lehnert, Jonathan Matthews, Carlos Mayo, Cody Morrison, Christofer Mossberg, Jared Neufeld, Otwen Norberg, Luke Nowak, Kyle Nyman, Craig Pasenelli, James Phillips, Joshua Riggs, Abin Roy, Edgar Salgado, Ryan Smith, Ethan Statz, Talen Stiver, Timothy Swington, Mark Trosclair, Benn Tuttle, Robert Wagner, Darian Wallace, Lane Warren, Zeke Watson, Marcus Williams
2 Years:
Kevin Alicea, Miguel Armenta, Gregory Arndt, James Barrett, Mark Bourbina, Clarence Brown, Terence Campbell, Hudson Clark, Scott Culver, Mark Curtis, Chase Downing, Tiffany Doyle, Nathan Dunn, Cynthia Foley Mundy, Caleb Guillaume, Jeremey Harris, Zachary Harville, William
Jones, Jory Langevin, Wilbert Louis, Connor Matthews, Andrew Maxwell, Corey McBride, Thomas McCarty, Adam Minch, Dana Morgan, Austin Niehoff, Gary O’Donnell, Dalton Parent, Jarrad Pickford, Jacob Poage, Jesse Quintero, Garry Ritch, Mark Schroeder, Anthony Schuler, Jeremiah Scott, Julie Smith, Joel Stevens, Joaquin Villagomez, Ryan Wanamaker, Steven Weed, Daniel Winfree
3 Years:
Ross Acheson, Isaiah Allred, Tobia Almonte Velez, Gary Beauprey, Kervin Berry, Elliott Bramschreiber, Camden Bush, Mark Carman, Madison Caruthers, Juniors Clipps, Brian Davis, Charles Dillon, Dylan Elford, Adam Fitzpatrick, Taylor Fricke, Mary George, Michael Goodwin, Jacob Green, Trey Green, Teona Kingma, Mia Liu, Joseph Locke, Nicolas Marshall, Jacob McCafferty, Jared Mohler, Johansel Moronta, Francisco Olvera, Jaime Perez, Omar Perez, Nickolaus Pickett, Ryan Reyes, Logan Richter, Jeremy Schoville, Marco Sifuentes, Logan Smith, Daniel Stitzel, Antonio Vidal, Jonathan Wallette, David Waltz, Leslie Wilson, Derek Witsman
4 Years:
Nelton Allen, Calvin Aspinwall, Karla Avila, Patrick Billat, Jose Bocanegra, Dennis Breslin, Gregory Cina, Marcus Clark, Adilene Cortes, Zachary Davis, Michael De Leony Pena, Gunner Durrett, Andres Estrada, Justin Fortney, Scott Fricke, Stephen
Garcia, Brett Glynn, Quinton Gordon, Hailey Gray, Anthony Green, Kristopher Hawley, Derrick Johns, Nathan Jorgensen, Cody Liles, Colton Little, Juan Lopez, Alcides Magana, Brandy Malone, Dalton Mcfatter, James McGuire, Rodolfo Mendoza, Chase Mitchell, Joseph Munoz, Justin Murray, Eric Rangel, Mason Snider, Kameron Sutherland, William Tomasi, Jesus Tovar, Jesus Trevino, Mitchell Wastak, Tyler Whiteside
5 Years:
Christopher Austin, Brayden Boyd, Tosha Carlton, Hector Cibrian, Alicea Dawes, Andrew Dowler, Eduardo Garcia, Juan Hernandez Pliego, J Cruz Hurtado, Heath Irvin, Kerrie Larkin, Daniel Lopez Vela, Larry Matthews, David Palmerin, Esiquio Resendiz, Juan Rodriguez, Nigel Steedman, Jonathan Vasquez, Kevin Voll, Katelyn Wolfe, Amber Younger, Dario Zuniga
6 Years:
Jorge Ballesteros, Oscar Bolivar, Samuel Brandt, Randolph Burington, Joseph Clement, Scott Irvin, Carlton Lawrence, Robbie Ledet, Wesley Lollar, Michael Mazzone, Robert McLaughlin, Craig Nettles, Justin Ogle, Susan Rao, David Richards, Dontrele Smith, Ray Wright
7 Years:
Bruno Arias, Kody Blair, Kenneth Burns, Phillip Burrous, Craig Daley, Christopher Dalton, Derrick DeWitt, Malik Edwards, Richard Flowers, Jose Gonzalez, Sarah Hall, Jarell Harris, Brandon
Team Member Anniversaries
Heckler, Travis Hutchinson, James Karanga, Ryan Laverdure, Kenneth Lockard, Kean Martin, Michael May, Martin Mayes, John McCrossen, Nicholas Mora, John Moschella, April Potter, Rafael Rosas, Mary Saenz, Richard Serrano, Benjamin Smith, Henry Smith, Darrell Tolbert, Eric Vail, Quincy Wells, Turkson West, Brandy White, Adam Williams
8 Years:
Matthew Allen, Andrew Auriemma, Ramon Betancourt, Hayley Clark, Marquita Connor, Cameron Ginther, Chastity Gonzales, Mitchell Guenther, Milton Hernandez, Jimmy Jolivet, Austin Pursley, Daryle Rogers, Derek Sanchez, Chase Williams, Justin Wittenauer
9 Years:
Matthew Garrett, Travis Grose, Kourtney Hatch, Casey Mills, Nick Schwartz, Aaron Snow
10 Years:
Zachary Kachmar, Drury Kane, Chad Klopfenstine, Jeremy Lemarr, J Homero Medina, Daniel Mendoza, John Moriconi, Justin Morrison, Danny Queen, Robert Ross, Travis Schnelle, Michael Schoenherr, Juan Vasquez, Kelly Zulfer
11 Years:
Andrew Cordischi, Ta’Darius Dawson, Travis Gage, William Haynes, Jeffrey Kebert, Elliot King, Luke Lohrmeyer, Darryl Lovett, Brandon Parham, Hugo Sanchez, Nicholas Sanders, Ashton Speckman, Adam Underwood, Michael Williams
12 Years:
Jacob Cahill, David Callan, Jesus Carmona, Jace Fisher, Arden
Martinie, Christopher Porter, Michael Urness
13 Years:
Christopher Burns, Laramie Gahman, Juan Gonzalez, Christopher Hughes, Don Latimer, James Mobley, Jason Persson, Daniel Rodriguez, Floyd Schrock, Clint Woods
14 Years:
Justin DeWitt, Ernie Farrand, Linda Jordan, Adam Weddle
15 Years:
Damien Cantrell, Cedric Graham, David Mathews, David Miller, Andrew Moots, JaCorey Murray, Bradley Shows, Benjamin Tarran, Peter Tietjen
16 Years:
Michael Reeves, Chadd Thimesch, Cody Winkleman
17 Years:
Daniel Archer, Kevin Kennison, Lori Vaden
18 Years: Sergio Delgado
19 Years:
Nancy Huser, Bill Miller
20 Years:
Jonas Colley, Matthew Davis, Annetra Garcia, Mark Harrington, Kari Stephens, Reynaldo Vargas, Thomas Williams, Steve Yates, Carol Young
21 Years:
Brandon Craddock, Joseph Nazimek, Julio Parada
23 Years: Arnulfo Rangel
24 Years: Charles King, William Patterson
26 Years: Kara Bowman
27 Years: Eric Davison
28 Years: Richard Gruber
30 Years: Michael Moore
31 Years: James Smith
34 Years: David Tarwater
