Trinity Industries history

Acquisition of Mosher Steel in 1973, after initially contracting work out to them, enhanced the company's structural business.

Other structural steel operations were acquired or built, including the Texas Metal Fabricating Company in 1976.

By 1977 bridge girders and other structural products generated 37 percent of Trinity's sales.

By 1980 Trinity was one of the top five rail car builders in the United States.

Tax regulations enacted in 1981 reduced the benefits of purchasing rail cars as a tax shelter, and orders for new cars plummeted to 5,300 from 96,000 just four years earlier.

In 1984 Trinity absorbed Quick Car and acquired the railcar designs and production facilities of the Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company, once the largest railcar manufacturer in North America.

However, while a steady flow of orders came in each year, massive reorders were not forthcoming, and in 1985 the company reported a $6 million loss on sales of $455 million--Trinity's first loss in 27 years.

In 1987 the Master Tank and Welding Company and certain operations of the Brighton Corporation were purchased, augmenting the container and metal components business segments.

In 2001 Trinity Industries acquired the designs and production facilities of Thrall Car Manufacturing Company, then North America's second largest producer of railroad freight cars.