Aldon® was founded in 1904 by Emil W.K. Roe, a railway supply salesman who decided to quit his job and start his own business.
Roe picked an excellent location to start his business. Chicago was the country’s rail hub, with more tracks radiating in all directions than any other city.
Roe searched for a name for his new firm and hit upon Aldon. It had the advantage of being at the front of the telephone book. According to family legend, the name was born when a friend of Roe’s asked if a new product had been completed. “It’s all done,” Roe replied. The name Aldon stuck and became a registered trademark of the company.
Until the 1950s, Aldon’s primary market was the railroads. The product line was limited to rail-cutting saws, rerailers, hand car movers, and railroad car stops. In 1955, seeking to diversify the product line, the company’s third president, Ralph Switzer, patented a new type of wheel chock for freight cars, one made in cast steel with replaceable steel spurs to keep the chock in place on the rail. This product line opened up the industrial rail-using market and led to substantial growth in our production of railway track repair tools.
The advent of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1971 increased the demand by industries for railroad safety tools & products. In 1975, the company built a new factory and offices in Waukegan, 40 miles north of Chicago.
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Products & Services
For 40 years, Aldon sold derails made by others. By 2008, our derail business had grown, so we began manufacturing our own. In 2010, we patented our lightweight Sabertooth® portable derail, which features tool-free installation and a safety hook that bites into the tie to keep the derail in place.
Even after more than 100 years in business, Aldon remains “remarkably youthful” in its desire for product innovation. We are continually surprised at the possibilities for new products that will make for safer railcar handling. We encourage our customers to suggest ideas to us.
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Marketing Strategy
Marketing is as important as product innovation. The Aldon website lists nearly 800 catalog numbers. Aldon supports an extensive national network of distributors. Even overseas, the Aldon brand is known.
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Keys to Success
The company’s business philosophy is simple: Be fair to your employees, customers, and suppliers, and you will have their loyalty. Management continuity has something to do with a company keeping its reputation and surviving.
Aldon believes in responding promptly to customer requests. We don’t use automated answering services here. Instead, when a customer calls Aldon, they are helped by a live person.
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Our Vision
is to become the principal manufacturer and supplier of railroad safety tools & products to the rail-using industry.
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Our Mission
is to provide outstanding customer service with a wide variety of solutions to ensure that your rail yard runs efficiently.
Company Timeline
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1904
The company begins in a one-man office in Chicago’s Loop. The first products were cast-iron rerailers painted black and delivered by horse-drawn wagon to the nearby railroad yards.
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1904-33
Aldon is awarded five patents for railroad track repair tools & products.
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1955
Ralph Switzer, Aldon’s third president, developed a cast-steel wheel chock with replaceable rail-biting spurs and opened a new market with the industrial firms the railroads served.
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1956-90
Aldon is awarded seven patents for railroad products for the industrial customer who uses rail.
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1970
The establishment of OSHA causes substantial growth for the company as new safety regulations require employers to provide more safety products for their railyard workers.
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1976
Aldon builds a 16,000-square-foot factory and office in Waukegan, IL to handle the increased volume of business.
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2008
After 40 years as a distributor of derails, Aldon began manufacturing its line of hinged and portable derails.
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2010-13
The company receives two more patents bringing the total to 14 since its inception.
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2017
Aldon introduces significant product developments for derails, trailer stabilizers, and switch stand safety.
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2019
Aldon introduces a new service: ASK ALDON. Our sales engineers are ready to advise customers regarding Aldon® products for Rail Yard & Truck Dock safety.
We use aerial photos of the customer’s plant site to guide the discussion.
We also introduced Enhanced Blue Flag signs, using words plus pictographic images to emphasize the meaning of the words.
