About Us

The Story and Team Behind RailState

Our Mission

Our mission is to provide rail network transparency to all users so they choose rail first, benefitting both the supply chain and the environment. RailState’s unique data, produced from our sensor network utilizing AI, gives rail users the impartial insights they need to optimize their supply chain.

The RailState Story

Founders Jamie Heller and John Schmitter spent years working with Class 1 railroads and with clients shipping virtually every commodity moved by rail. They are well-versed in the industries’ strengths and weaknesses. First-hand experience led them to realize shippers, regulators, traders, financial analysts, and others have no way of seeing the railroad as a whole.

Shippers, you can track your individual cars with railroad supplied CLMs, or your own GPS units; but you can’t see what’s ahead on the network. Regulators and others can’t even do that. Jamie and John wanted to build a tool to alleviate this pain point. The tool? RailState.

We’re a company of industry experts, who specialize in using big data to create quantifiable results.

Our Team

Jamie Heller

Co-Founder & CEO

Jamie is CEO of RailState, which he founded with John Schmitter in 2019. He’s also President of Hellerworx, Inc., which he founded in 2002. Jamie has been a consultant for the past 40 years in the energy and transportation areas, and has deep knowledge of the US and Canadian rail transportation markets. He lives in Chevy Chase, MD and enjoys swimming, hiking, and biking.

John Schmitter

Co-Founder & CCO

John is the Co-Founder and CCO of RailState, which he founded with Jamie Heller in 2019. He has over 30 years of experience in transportation, as well as deep consulting experience. John has two daughters and lives in Colorado with his wife, Pat. He enjoys skiing, golfing, and watching the Broncos.

Ondřej Pacovský

Chief Technical Officer

Ondřej Pacovský is CTO at RailState, where he oversees all things related to software. He formulates and executes the company’s development plans, taking into account customer and sales input, and manages RailState’s Czech team. He’s always up for a game of tennis, ice-hockey, soccer, squash, or badminton.

Charlie Mann

Chief Hardware Officer

Charlie Mann is Chief Hardware Officer for RailState, and is part of the management team. He oversees the design, testing, procurement and production of the RailState sensor hardware, and has also been active in defining the software’s tasks and quality assurance.

Kathleen Bostick

VP of Marketing

Kathleen is RailState’s Vice President of Marketing, where she led all marketing efforts across the company. She spent the first eight years of her career marketing for Class I Railroads, and has over 30 years’ experience leading marketing and sales teams. She and her husband live in Texas, and have two daughters, two granddaughters, and three rescue dogs.

Ron Farmer

Director of Operations

Ron Farmer is RailState’s Director of Operations. As such, he focuses on all things “sensors.” He extensively researches satellite imagery and other resources, to optimize sensor locations. He also hires for – and manages – the installation and maintenance of the entire sensor network, and is responsible for negotiating and managing contractual relationships.

Adam Nori

Business Development

Adam Nori comes to RailState with nearly 20 years of rail experience. He is currently the owner of Pacific Alpine Rail Advisors, a Calgary-based rail-focused consulting firm where he supports rail customers with fleet management, railcar procurement, and business development. Before creating Pacific Alpine Rail Advisors, Adam held key leadership roles with some of the most well-known companies in the rail industry, including Canadian Pacific Railway, Suncor, TrinityRail, and Standard Rail Corporation.

Nick Borders

Business Development

Nick Borders brings more than a decade of experience in the rail industry and is the owner of Sequoia Rail, LLC, a rail transportation brokerage and consulting firm. Nick previously served as a business development manager at Standard Rail Corporation, following engagements at Rocky Mountain Transportation Services and Progressive Fuels Limited.

e-book: The Importance of Quality Data for Managing Freight Rail Operations

Our new e-book is all about data. Specifically, the importance of using quality data to effectively manage freight rail operations. With true network visibility, planning can be optimized, opportunities seized, and losses minimized.

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