Charles Moorman was CEO and President of Norfolk Southern when insisted that railroads increase safety.  From Early 2000s to 2015.  He was very critical of unsafe class 3 tanker cars carrying Balkan crude without ECP braking systems.  Old technology brakes took much to long to react.  And of DOT 3 tank cars that were unsafe with that oil.

He left Norfolk Southern to save Amtrak in 2016 - paid $1 per year.

Alan H. Shaw is the current CEO and President.  An MBA with previous experience in marketing.  He immediately instituted programs to cut costs.  That included increasing the speed of trains by 10 MPH under a theory it would be safe with expedited planning. His business school philosophies are already creating problems. A disastrous crash in Ohio is now followed by another crash in near Bethlehem PA.

Trains are suppose to have a PTC system to averts collisions.  Each train must leave a block before a next train can enter.  Computers take over and stop a train if the engineer does not   A train was stopped on the tracks.  A second train crashed into its rear.  And then a third train, in the other direction, crashed into both.

85% of all problems are directly traceable to top management. MBAs whose solutions only cuts costs.  That's two recent crashes. Both directly traceable to failures that do not occur if safety features existed or were working.

A train doing 10 MPH more takes much longer to brake into the next block.

Bethlehem crash will not be a constant major story.  Since those material are not toxic chemicals.  But demonstrated is the same manamgement philosophy that has also created a Boeing 737Max.

Meanwhile, Boeing MBA from McDonnell Douglas, who replaced the product people from Boeing, are now resuffling more MBAs.  737Max probram was run by a man whose Masters Degree was for arts from DeVry University.   An internet only college to print degrees.  He was replaced by a girl whose entire history is business and marketing.  Her only experience in airplane is a few years in Boeing's corporate office.  Moved, from where the work gets done in Seattle, to Virginia. Hre previous experience appears to be Philadelphia real estate.

A classic example of why trained business school graduates can manage any business.  Business schools say so.  It must be true.

FAA has had enough.  Apparently Boeing is ordered to fix their management problems in 90 days.  Since MBAs from McDonnell Douglas, who so badly destroyed that company, are now top mamagement in Boeing.

Both companies are examples of problems.  Created because people who come from where the work gets done have now been replaced by MBA - who only understand cutting costs (and blaming the employees).

Boeing's problems started in 2001.  As a result, Boeing is now suffering a major drop in engineers - especially in the past five years.  Line workers have also been leaving.  Whereas a the average worker was once over 6 years experience.  That number (due to MBA management) is now decreasing; currently 2.5 years.

Norfolk Southern's president has only been doing harm for five years.

An additional note.  Many never learn this.  Quality Control means decreased quality.  Quality only increases with Quality Assurance.  Few (including reporters) do not understand a major difference.

And finally, why must massive regulations be created?  Because history requires it.  Once regulation are requred, regulations must not / are not removed.  A legacy.  Anyone complaining about excessive regulations should first learn / blame people who made them necessary - business school graduates.  Experts who know nothnig about how the work gets done.

Same people who murdered seven Challenger astronauts.  And then created a disasterious Artemis program - previously called Ares, Orion, and Constellation.
 

Last edited by tw (3/03/2024 10:34 am)