To give you an idea of what the program can handle there are a number of shipments of interest in the demo database.
1) Cattle Ramps
The cattle ramps at each town on the branch lines must have their loads sent to the cattle transfer facilities in Orangeville. There the cattle are fed and watered and consolidated before they head to Toronto for slaughter. This was a common practice on the branch lines of Ontario.
Thus, for example, there is a shipment from the cattle ramp in Elora to the transfer pens. But not all of the cars from that ramp in Elora happen on the same day. Some the train must wait for the cars to be filled, picking it up loaded for the return trip to Orangeville. Others, the cars can be left for a couple of days but only on certain days of the week. Some again, are random (that ramp can load three cars at once).
Not all the ramps on the layout work the same way. For example, because the Teeswater mixed trains stay over night in Teeswater before returning to Orangeville, the empty cattle cars are dropped off when the train arrives. But not picked loaded up until the next morning when the train heads back to Orangeville.
This is also true at Fraxa that is on the Teeswater route. The empty cattle cars are dropped at the ramp by the train on its way up the branch line, but picked up loaded only by the train running down the line back to Orangeville.
The mixed trains are responsible for spotting the loaded cattle cars at the transfer. Thus, each of these mixed trains can switch just the transfer in Orangeville, and nothing else. Actually, when this is actually done during an operating session, the crews tell the Orangeville local upon arrival of the cars needing to be spotted in the transfer. There is a local switcher switch list provided to facilitate this.
2) Mount Forest’s Grain Elevator
Each of Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays empty boxcars sent to the grain elevator in Mount Forest need to have the doors boarded up at the team track first. The train is to go and do other work, returning to the team track on the way back to Orangeville to place the boarded car into the grain elevator.
This is accomplished as a cascading shipment. The first shipment is from the team track in Mount Forest to the elevator in the same town. The "load" is what was done to the car, boarded. The stay time of this was set to Train Must Wait for Car to be Filled (Thus on the switch list you will see "Train Must Wait for car to be Boarded.")
The next step in the cascade is the shipment from the grain elevator to Lambton (Toronto). The car stays at the elevator for two days to be loaded with grain.
3) Fuel Depot in Mount Forest
More carloads of fuel, of different types, are sent to this industry for unloading than there is space for. This is deliberately done. The location holds only two cars. But some days as many as three or four show up. Thus crews would have to place the over flow cars wherever they can find a spot.
They note that on the switch list, which is then edited in the program prior to terminating the train. These then show up on the next train’s switch list as a movement. Should there then be enough room, because a car or two is removed, they can spot the previously over flowed cars, otherwise they note again on the switch list where the car is located.
These over flow cars will continue to show up on the switch list until they are finally moved into place.
4) Consumer’s Glass, Elora
Every other day two loads of sand in covered hoppers are sent to this factory. There is room only for one car to be dumped. The other car is located on that siding, but not over the dump cute. This is noted on the switch list by the crews so that it can be adjusted as an over flow in the program.
The next day’s train removes the empty covered hopper car and places the loaded one over the cute. This move is noted on the switch list because of the previous notation.
5) Sifto Salt Mine, Fraxa
This mine tipple requires three covered hoppers dedicated to hauling salt. The frequency is set to random, but the load time is set to Train Must Wait. Thus the train that services this mine goes off to do other switching then returns to pick up the loaded cars.
6) National Silicates, Fraxa
Five to six cars every day move in and out. Three are always loaded boxcars. Thus there is a daily shipment of three loaded boxcars. Included in that are alternating inbound loads of chemicals or silica sand, or outbound loads of liquids. Occasionally, with six cars, there is not enough room, so overflow occurs.
7) Coal Bin, Teeswater
The coaling bin in Teeswater needs to get its coal from the engine coal tower in Orangeville. This is a random shipment of a modified flat car with wood sides. In those days, the coal was shoveled by hand from the flat car into the bin. (There are rumors that a cattle car was also occasionally used to do this.)
8) Express from each station
On Fridays, a single box car is used to pick up express from each station on the routes of the mixed trains. The trains drop these cars at the station platforms, often right on the main line, go and do other duties in that town, and pick up that car for the next town and so on until arrival back at Orangeville station. This is done with a series of cascading shipments from one station to the other. In the case of the Elora train, this means 3 towns before returning to Orangeville.
Each of these shipments from one station to the next is set to Train Must Wait for Car to be Loaded.
9) Commodity Train Movements
Because of the number of loads of fuel oils arriving on the layout from Toronto, a petroleum commodity train brings the cars to Orangeville. From there, the mixed trains deliver the cars. Thus the program is set up that only this commodity train can haul petroleum from Toronto to Orangeville, but the branch line trains can also haul this commodity.
Thus you can have local trains move a specific commodity, consolidating them at one location, then have a dedicated commodity train pick them up for delivery off the layout. The demo has a Xmas train to do this. Only in the Fall, the mixed trains pick up loads of Xmas trees from each of the towns. Once in Orangeville, there is an extra that comes up from Toronto, dead heading, to pick up all these car loads of trees.
This is just some of the possibilities of what the program can handle. The only limitation is your imagination.