Southern's green light shines on golfing greens.
Southern rack cars carry golf carts to many parts of the country at a substantial savings. And the beneficiary is E-Z Go Car Division of Textron corporation, headquartered in Augusta, Ga. The country's largest builder of electric carts and the second largest producer of gasoline carts, the firm produces about 10,000 carts a year.
An occasional rail shipper since 1667, E-Z Go only recently swung heavily into rail usage.
In the first four months of the year, we've handled 10 times their previous business, said Ray Parker, Augusta sales representative. "We can send a tri-level car of carts to California for about half of what they've been paying to send them by truck."
Ray has been working closely with E-Z Go's Charlie Goodwind, administrative manager of operations, and Earl Aiken, traffic manager, to find the most efficient and economical method of shipment.
E-Z Go uses the Southern multi-level ramp for loading in Augusta. Permanent and portable multi-level ramps or " Yankee ingenuity," according to O.V. Otwell, manager, Customer Service Engineering, Washington, are employed on the destination end of the trip.
"Their distributors are part of E-Z Go," Mr. Ortwell said, "so they come up with unique ideas for unloading the carts. Fork lift trucks have been used several times. Savings go back to the shipper, who in effect is the receiver, too."
Carts are moved to distributors in Arlington, Tex.; Care, Ill.; Little Ferry, N.J.; Los Nietos, Calif.; and Pittsburg. Tri-level cars carry up to 66 carts, bi-levels 44.
