Roco, based in Bergheim, near Salzburg, Austria, is a manufacturer of model railway
equipment. Products include locomotives, rolling stock, track, signals, roadbed, buildings, vehicles and lights.
The company was founded in 1960 by Ing. Heinz Rössler and started out making plastic sand buckets and miniature
military vehicles. The first models consisted of a plastic 'minitank'
series. Only a few years later, the 'minitanks' were followed by Roco freight wagon models of American prototypes,
in N, HO and 'O' scale. Over the years the Roco product line of model trains has covered many European countries
including Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden and the Netherlands.
In 1963 Roco began manufacturing model railroad cars for the Trix MiniTrix line.
The original boom years for N scale of the late 1960's saw Roco at work with a number of freight cars imported into
Canada and the United States. In 1967 Roco manufactured N scale freight cars for Atlas Tool Co. The
Roco-produced N scale freight cars were also imported to the United States by Aurora (and Model Power) for their
Postage Stamp Trains brand. Roco cars were also imported and sold under the AHM, Con-Cor, E-R Models, Model Rectifier Corp.
(MRC), and Walthers brands. While some of those companies saw Roco items in their lines in more
recent times, the majority of these companies included some of the Austrian-made N-scale releases only from the late-1960's
into the 1970's. In 1972 Roco was making N scale Plymouth WDT locomotives for Atlas in Santa Fe, UP, BN, Illinois Central,
and Soo Line road names.
Atlas N Scale 1st Generation Freight Cars By Roco Circa 1967
Roco became a prolific producer of model trains
for the North American market during the 1960's. One of this Austrian-based manufacturer’s earliest efforts was
a Pullman-Standard PS-1 sliding-door box car model in HO for AHM, dating to 1962. The first HO gauge locomotives
were produced in 1976. Roco made HO gauge Diesel locomotives for Atlas that included a GP9, GP30, EMD GP-38 Low Nose,
EMD GP-38 High Nose, EMD GP-40 Low Nose, EMD SD-24 High Nose, EMD SD-35 Low Nose, EMD FP-7A, Alco S-2/S-4, and F9A.
The SD24 was the first Atlas loco made by Roco. It was followed by the SD35(same chassis), GP38, GP40 and FP-7.
Alco FA1 and EMD E7A locomotives made by Roco for Atlas were introduced in the late 1970's. The S-2 and S-4 switchers
that Roco made for Atlas were introduced in the late 1980's. Roco's production from those days is easily identified by
"Made in Austria" embossed on the bottom of the trains. Roco also manufactured FM H-10-44 engines in HO gauge for
Walthers, Alco C424 diesels in HO for AHM, and Baldwin Shark Nose A+B Units, Alco FA-1+FB-1's,
EMD E7A and EMD E9A's in HO for Model Power. A re-tooled version of the Alco Century 415 diesel was made by Roco for
International Hobby Corporation (IHC).
In the mid-1960's Roco commenced marketing a small range of HO scale freight cars in the USA under
their own brand name. Starting in 1967 Roco produced American style HO scale freight cars that were imported into North
America by Mike Tager and his American Train & Track Corp. (ATT) of Milwaukee, WI. After ATT ceased trading in 1971,
the remaining stock of Roco freight cars was sold off and repackaged by Precision Miniatures Inc. of Brooklyn, NY. The Roco
manufactured American outline freight cars were also repackaged and sold, initially in brown and yellow boxes, under the
Model Power trademark. Model Power of Farmingdale, NY was founded by Mike Tager following the collapse of ATT.
Parkway Industries Co. of Cleveland, Ohio continued to import the Roco manufactured former ATT
American style freight cars, repackage and market them as sets and individual models under their own name through 1974.
These former ATT Roco manufactured American outline freight cars were also marketed in the Associated Hobby Manufacturers
Inc. (AHM) range.
Roco began a line of their own European prototype railroad equipment under its own
name in 1967 with the first HO models. It started with an assortment of nicely detailed 4 wheel freight cars, plus some more
elaborately detailed equipment built with dies obtained from the collapse of model railway manufacturer Röwa in 1975.
This move helped Roco to make a definitive breakthrough on the European model railway market. The success was also due to the
fact that the finest detailed earlier Röwa models cost only 60 percent of the former Röwa price and were thus even cheaper
than the less well executed models of the
competition. In 1977, the Röwa models, which were mainly TEE cars, express trains, silver trains and express tractors, were
supplemented by Roco's
own designs, including the Eurofima cars and Corail cars of the SNCF, which were procured throughout Europe.
The first Roco locomotives based on DB originals (BR 110, BR 140) were released in the mid-1970's.
Roco's first locomotive for the German market included a model of the DB 215 diesel series, which was launched on the market
in 1973. This was followed by 1975 models of DB conversion cars. The DB 215 protoype and its 210, 216, 217, 218 and 219
family were the backbone of train support on the non-electrified railway tracks in Germany. Until Roco released its version
of the DB 215 series diesel locomotive, the company was not very widely recognized in Europe as a manufacturer of model
railways. In addition to DB models, models from ÖBB became a major focus at Roco.
The model rail product line expanded over time and covered many European countries,
including Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands, as well as the USA. The German market proved
to be a great success, surprising the competition both with the first class quality and the economical price.
TT scale was also subsequently added to the Roco product line. TT scale is a niche model railroading scale, whose name
stands for table top. Its 1:120 (1:130 in Russia and ex-USSR, 1:101.6 in UK) scale (from a common engineering scale where
one inch equals ten feet) and 12 mm (0.472 in) gauge sizes it almost halfway between HO scale (1:87) and N scale (1:160).
Its original purpose, like the name suggests, was to make a train small enough to be able to assemble and operate it on a
tabletop.
Early Atlas 'O' Scale Trains Produced by Roco Circa 1971-72
At the beginning of the 1970's, Roco was also
active in 'O' gauge. They produced Atlas' initial freight line, which consisted of an F-unit diesel, a 40' box car,
a 40' stock car, a 40' plug door box car, a 52' gondola, and a wide vision caboose for 2-rail operation. Many of the
selections in the early 1970's Atlas 'O' scale line featured counterparts offered by Roco in other scales, but the F9A
diesel was a unique tooling not duplicated elsewhere. In 'OM' scale ('O' scale narrow gauge), Roco issued an
Alpinline series that consisted of Swiss type Metropolitan electric and diesal locos as well as passenger coaches. However,
these activities were short lived due to lack of economic success and subsequently the 'O' gauge product line was
discontinued. Roco utilized the Röwa molds to re-introduce 1:100 scale long coaches in HO. During this period the other
German manufacturers Fleischmann, Märklin and
Trix only produced shorter coaches that were not to scale. Companies such as
Liliput and Rivarossi had attempted to sell large-scale wagons in
1971 and 1967, respectively, but they did not sell very well. Because of the narrow radii of HO track curves and points
commonly sold and used in model railway lines at that time, there were problems experienced with the cornering behavior of
these long cars. Roco replicated the SBB type coaches in the length 1:93.5, which later became the standard for Fleischmann
(1991) and Märklin since 2006. The first cars in the correct scale 1:87 made by Roco were released in 1983 as replicas of
Eurofima cars. Roco gradually expanded the product line for the long-scale wagons, including the DB-type express train
wagons, to test the market. From 1988 onwards almost all types of Roco coaches were produced using the correct scale. The
shorter passenger cars were only offered in beginner range starter sets.
The first Roco HO tender steam locomotive, the BR 58 of the DB, was issued in 1977. Over the years, as its range of
products expanded, Roco became known in Europe for extremely accurate and detailed scale models, which have won a number
of awards. Roco established factories in Austria (in Salzburg and Vienna) and across the border in Slovakia. Mr. Rossler
died in 1978. His widow Elfriede Rossler continued the business until she sold the company in 2002. 1979 saw the development
of the e-loco Rh 1044 in HO. In 1989 the first Roco track with track bed was developed. Other improvements that followed the
release of full-scale length coaches, included close couplings, and true-to-life track systems. In 1994 Roco launched its
universal coupling with pre-uncoupling capability, and in 1995 made their entry into digital technology. By 1999 Roco had
developed the high-end 310.23 steam loco.
Like other model railroad manufacturers, Roco was hit by economic difficulties. On July 15, 2005 Roco Modellspielwaren GmbH
was declared bankrupt. From July 25 the company continued as Modelleisenbahn GmbH, which also announced its purchase of
Fleischmann in early 2008. The two companies operated as separate brands under Modelleisenbahn
GmbH. However, the development and production of Roco N (1:160) gauge trains was abandoned after the acquisition of
Fleischmann by the joint parent company Modelleisenbahn holding. After the reorganization and modernization of Roco in 2005,
Roman and Company became their exclusive importer for the USA.
Roco, which was started as a family company, by Mr. and Mrs. Rössler, continued to grow into a multinational company with
close to 600 employees. By 2006, the sales figures crossed €30 million. The company was declared to be fully recovered by
2007 with sales of €34.6 million. On October 1, 2007, distribution of the 'Minitank' product series was assigned to the
German model car manufacturer, Herpa. By 2008, with a €55 million annual turnover, Roco became the third-largest supplier
in the European model railroad sector in Europe after competitors Märklin with €128 million and
Hornby with €70.6 million. Roco was now operating plants in Gloggnitz (Lower Austria), Banska
Bystrica (Slovakia) and Arad (Romania), as well as maintaining its headquarters in Bergheim near Salzburg under the
direction of Managing Director Leopold Heher.
Roco continued manufacturing 2-rail DC powered HO gauge trains, TT scale trains,
and HOe narrow gauge trains, offered separately or in ready to run sets. They also offered a full
line of track, parts and accessories. Trains are made of injected plastic via molds, or from metal die-cast molds.
In HOe (or OO9 format) Roco covered the 'main line' type of stock, as used on the
OBB in Austria, as well as the narrow gauge lines of the DR, down to the Feldbahn, or field railways, as used in industry
all over the world. The stock can be used on other manufacturer's tracks, and the couplings are a standard loop and hook type,
found on other HOe types. Roco eventually began to offer their locomotive models in three configurations. These were a 2-rail
conventional model, and both 2-rail and 3-rail variants that were fitted with digital sound decoders, controlling a range of
operating sounds as well as LED headlights. In 2010 Roco product sales took a dip, down to €47 million from 2009's €50.7
million. The company made a committment to digitization and modernization efforts, and to developing new markets in the far
east.
In 2012 Roco created the Z21 model railway control system that facilitated game play and operating trains via the SmartRail
application running on a smartphone or Tablet PC. The software provided the user with a photorealistic driver’s cab
perspective of the original locomotive. A camera mounted in the locomotive fed the view of the ride through the train layout
live onto the Tablet PC driver’s virtual cab screen. All digital locomotive and layout components such as speed, sound,
signal functions of the locos as well as turnout routes, motion and sound on the layout were controllable via the
touch-screen.
From 2007 to 2017 sales volume in the model train industry declined by a third. This had a huge impact on Roco and
parent company Modelleisenbahn GmbH. Announced combined sales of both Roco and Fleischmann products were €51 million in 2013
and €47.5 million in 2015. Sales rose slightly to €49 million in 2016. In January 2017, Gerhard Joiser, CEO of
Modelleisenbahn GmbH announced that in an effort to reduce costs some of its production was moved to Vietnam. 80 employees
in Vietnam assembled 200,000 wagons, representing five percent of total production. However, the know-how, the technology and
the construction would remain in Europe. Only the simpler models would be produced in Vietnam. The production sites
in Romania and Slovakia would remain intact. Roco and Fleischmann now had a combined total of 750 employees, 100 of which
worked in Bergheim. In August 2017 it was announced that Modelleisenbahn GmbH, the holding company for both Roco and
Fleischmann was seeking a new owner.
Link to Roco web site.
