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Ideas For Industries On RR Layout
Edward wants some ideas from others in the hobby and asks:
“What industries are possible? I am modeling coal mines and electric generators. I can have empties go in the mine for loading and come out. I have an electric generator station through a tunnel in a mountain and unload coal for the generator and vice versa. What other things can I add and what other industries – lots of ideas please?”
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You don’t say what era you’re modeling, but if it’s transition era, you could add local coal distributors in small towns along the mainline. Kalmbach pubishing has three books about on-line industries.
Ed,
You can model just about any industry you care to. They don’t always have to be related though it’s a nice touch.
However, having said that, you might want to have a iron foundry to make the metal castings for the generator parts and you can even have a iron mine to supply the iron! The foundry will need coal to process the steel.
You’ll need a wire factory to manufacture wire for the generator plant, a plastic company to make the wire insulation for the wire factory, a chemical processing plant to make the basic plastic for the wire insulation, etc. As you can see, one industry feeds (or creates) another.
Hope this helps,
Geof
With an interchange and a team track you can have just about any type of rolling stock you can imagine.
A nice industy to model is a ready mix plant. Covered 70 ton hoppers bring in portland cement and open hoppers bring in the aggragate. I have even seen boxcars delivering supplies to plants like this.