Thinking about operations...

[3rdrail]

As Traffic Manager for a short line and a paper mill before I retired, I can tell you it is not as simple as Ed puts it out to be. The AN had 8 regular customers, but over 3000 originating profiles and 1500 terminating profiles for shipment from and to those 8 customers. The paper mill alone had over 1000 customers, and the chemical company more in all three countries served by our rail system. Even our smallest customer, a lumber mill shipping patio decking, had close to 100.

Paper mills receive 4 tons of fiber for every ton of paper made, so lots of wood and chips are received, along with scrap paper in boxcars. Chemicals come in both covered hoppers and tank cars, some of which, like chlorine and sulfuric acid, are quite hazardous.

I worked with our Manager, Infirnmation Systems to create the computer system to manage this, bill the customer, and split the revenue with the other railroads involved, which had to be compatible with the AAR standards.

But, that's a business, not a hobby. I have no intention of waybilling any freight on my road. It will either go Eastbound or Westbound to staging unless it is between industries on the railroad. The local grain elevator will ship to the terminal elevator, which will ship to the flour mill, it will ship to the bakery, and the bakery will in turn ship to the grocery chain warehouse on the layout. Thse will all flow though the "local" track in the yard. There are 3 yard tracks, Eastbound, Westbound, and local.

[cuyama]

But then the question remains, how much is too much?  I'm too visually oriented to use things like colored dots or pins on the cars themselves, but I'm just not (as) interested in writing up all those waybills for 300 pieces of rolling stock.  Somewhere in the middle is the happy medium, and I think that means preparing switchlists based on the equipment that's on the layout at the time of the session.  Again, more work, but more flexible than car cards which require you to know exactly where every car is and where it's going.  If something gets moved and the card doesn't get moved with it... (I'm guilty of this ALL THE TIME!) then I have to play hunt 'n peck to reset everything.

I've helped set up operationing schemes on several layouts and operated on lots more, and my view is that everyone needs to find their own comfort level of fun and challenge balanced by set-up and discipline. One can write up switchlists for each session ... or do car cards and waybills once. In my experience if a car moves and the car card doesn't, it's pretty easy for the two to find each other ... in fact, that's one of the best parts about car cards and waybills. Just establish a rule that any car found without paperwork gets switched to a known location (like a RIP track). Lost paperwork goes there too, and the two are happily reunited. Then the car just moves on automatically to its next waybill destination. No muss, no fuss.

For automating some of the routing decisions and the printing, I've had really good luck personally with Shenware's Waybills program (which can also print car cards). I've used it to set up sessions on a number of layouts so far.
http://members.aol.com/Shenware/waybills.html
Like most hobby programs, it's got a few quirks, but none are insurmountable.

I wrote an article on different waybill variations that also briefly mentioned the Waybills program in the July 2007 Dispatchers Office magazine of the Operations SIG.
http://www.opsig.org

I happen to like car cards and waybills the best, but I've also helped set up sessions using switchlists. Any of these methods add the specific challenge of moving a car to a particular destination, which I personally enjoy more than "Guess I'll switch the blue ones to the box factory today". But even that's more fun than just running 'em in circles (for me).

Byron

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Lee, you GOTTA check that software out.

My mac user butt is jealous.

[wm3798]

Thanks for all the feedback.  I'm thinking more and more about going ahead and proceeding with the waybills and car cards.  I think the piece I was missing was the process of reuniting car with card...  Having that in mind makes that seem a lot less cumbersome than what I have been doing.

I'll work on those switch list forms, Ed...   I like the half sheet partly because it saves on paper, and also it's more compact and fits on the half-size clip boards.  But if you want a full sheet, a full sheet you will have!

I'll check out the software...  Is it free? ;D

Lee

[Ed Kapuscinski]

It's not, but that integration with those industry lists is priceless.

[justTRAINcRaZy]

...  I hate the idea of putting stickers or pins on the rolling stock.  To me that's a total cop out, and completely obliterates the visual aspect of running the railroad.
Lee

It's a freakin' piece of plastic that runs thru your kid's bedroom. I would think that obliterates the crap out of some visual aspect.

KB

[SquirrelHollow]

I was trying to develope a succint reply with my thoughts of others' statements...
This blew that out of the water.

...  I hate the idea of putting stickers or pins on the rolling stock.  To me that's a total cop out, and completely obliterates the visual aspect of running the railroad.
Lee

It's a freakin' piece of plastic that runs thru your kid's bedroom. I would think that obliterates the crap out of some visual aspect.

KB

I probably wouldn't have been helpful, anyway.  It looks like everything has been covered pretty well.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

But there's a real difference. The bedroom aspect is "out of scene" (unless he's been hiding those monster trucks everywhere again...), the tabs would be "in scene". I think it makes a HUGE difference.

[wm3798]

Look behind the PIE trailer...


You've been Truck Rolled!

He got me, too...

Lee

[Puddington]

I don't know the optimum demarkation point between the "roundy roundy" approach and spending more time doing paperwork than running trains but I know what side I'm on of that question.

I work for a paper company; I've seen first hand the amount of movement paperwork and planning needed to bring in and out the loads that are generated by such a mammoth operation. I "had" to do it for a living; I sure as heck don't want to do it for relaxation.

Operations can be fun; that said, the activities involved in "operations" have to be fun; or at least tolerable. I think most of us like watching the fruits of our labours go around the fruits of our labours..... If the best way to accomplish this is to put efforts into an operational plan then so be it. I have operated on some "uber layouts" where operational paperwork was used and frankly, required but I never had the unbridled fun of highballing a 30 car freight hotshot down a long mainline without having to worry about filling out form 12B.... that's my reality not my hobby.

I think realistic operation can be obtained without bringing in the red tape that we almost all abhore in our real lives.... run trains and skip the paperwork, it's good for the soul....................

[NS-CRE]

Regarding the dots on cars, that is a method I've never been impressed with when seeing it documented in model publications.  However, having operated on this same railroad with Kevin, I can tell you that the dots virtually "disappear" once you start looking at them for what they are.  They are clearly placed routing information for cars and they are a heck of a lot easier to deal with than car cards and waybills or switchlists.

Do I do it on my railroad?  No.  In fact, I use the Shenandoah Software program mentioned in another reply and I am quite happy with it.  However, I wouldn't knock the dot system until you've tried it from an operations standpoint.  Sure, it's not for everyone but I actually find it very easy and amazingly non-distracting once you're in the thick of operations.

I was at an Ops session on Michael Pennie's Penn Central yesterday. He uses those round stick on dots from Office Depot and prints the destination on them. Sticks one on the top of each car. The paperwork for each train just lists the number, origination, destination and stops. The thru trains don't have the dots, just the orders.

All the yard guys have to do is look at the top of each car to see what stays and what goes. Very simple and nothing to mess up except when one of the dots falls off and you get a car with no idea where it's supposed to go.

KB