Vol. 10 / 2015

THUNDER BAY YARD IS CP'S MOST NORTHERN PORT YARD.

It's also one of CP's longest terminals, linking nearly 10 yards that snake along the shore of Thunder Bay, bordered by a line of giant grain elevators.

Originally settled in 1683 as Fort Caministigoyan, Thunder Bay was one of northern Canada's economic rocks for decades. In recent years, the city has been through some tough times, yet the resilience, creativity, and pride of the people living and working there is lighting resurgence in the area, particularly along trendy parts of the waterfront.

Thunder Bay Yard business has been on an upswing. Always known for its hard-working character, the yard is setting an example for other terminals within the company as it posts increased performance statistics with every passing month.

"The execution by our people has been largely phenomenal," says Jay Cranney, Canada East Assistant Superintendent responsible for a large area of Northern Ontario, including Thunder Bay.

"We're bringing cars into the yard and sending them out in about 17.2 hours, as of October 2015. Doing our job well means cycling cars in and out in less than 24 hours, so this tells us our guys in the yard are executing to a tee."

In 2014, Thunder Bay Yard's process time (intaking and cycling out railcars) was 30.3 hours. By mid-fall of 2015, Thunder Bay had reduced that average to 21 hours.

"We take a lot of pride in these improvements," says Cranney, "from management, to the guys moving the cars, keeping the tracks straight and the lights on, to the people keeping the machinery running."

Cranney notes that employees in Thunder Bay Yard work hard and with passion, and it shows.

"They take pride in that, and I'm proud of it. These guys are delivering."