CHICAGO, April 8, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The Greenbrier Companies Inc. (NYSE:GBX) has acquired American Allied Railway Equipment Company Inc. for $83 million in cash.

RSM EquiCo Capital Markets LLC initiated the transaction, led the negotiations and acted as the exclusive financial advisor to American Allied.

American Allied's business will become part of Greenbrier Rail Services group, headed by group president Tim Stuckey. Stuckey stated, "We are delighted to welcome American Allied to the Greenbrier network of shops. This company has a well-justified reputation in the industry for quality, reliability, on-time delivery, and putting the customer first, all core values in the way we conduct our business. In addition, its shops are some of the most productive and efficient in the industry. This acquisition is a great fit which will improve our offerings considerably and allow us to provide better service to large fleet owners. It will also strengthen our competitive position and create additional economies of scale in our network."

William A. Furman, president and chief executive officer of Greenbrier, said, "American Allied is an outstanding company that shares our commitment to quality and customer service. In today's market, customers require a seamless shop network with broad geographic coverage, close proximity to their operations, and consistently high quality of service. American Allied's shops complement our current network very well and help us fulfill this need. These shops give us more capacity in the higher demand central U.S. region and expand our geographic coverage in the southeast, where we have had difficulty meeting customer needs. Their parts business also fits perfectly with our current parts operations and will allow us to expand our offerings efficiently."

A team of RSM EquiCo Capital Markets professionals contributed to the successful close of this transaction. Brian Boyle, senior managing director, William Shiry, managing director, and Kipp Lykins, director, led the deal team.

About RSM EquiCo Capital Markets

RSM EquiCo Capital Markets LLC (www.rsmequico.com) is a global provider of investment banking services to private and public companies with annual revenues of up to $1 billion. The firm's services include mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, recapitalizations, capital raising and fairness opinions. RSM EquiCo Capital Markets, which offers in-depth expertise in 12 distinct industry sectors, brings together companies, capital and creativity on a national and international scale to help clients achieve their personal and strategic objectives.

RSM EquiCo Capital Markets is affiliated with RSM McGladrey Inc., one of the nation's largest providers of business and tax consulting, wealth management, retirement resources and payroll services to midsized companies.

RSM EquiCo Capital Markets is licensed by the SEC and all state securities authorities and is a member of FINRA and SIPC. The firm's international headquarters are located in Costa Mesa, Calif. It also has offices in Chicago, Boston, New York and London.

About American Allied Railway Equipment Company Inc.

Founded in 1960, American Allied is a leading remanufacturer and assembler involved in the refurbishment, repair and assembly of new and used railroad car wheel-sets and other rail parts, including couplers, yokes, side frames and bolsters. The company has built a strong reputation for superior quality and customer service to become a preferred supplier to many top tier companies in the railroad industry. American Allied operates from three facilities, two in Illinois and one in Georgia, located in close proximity to key markets for the rail transportation industry.

About The Greenbrier Companies Inc.

Greenbrier (www.gbrx.com), headquartered in Lake Oswego, Ore., is a leading supplier of transportation equipment and services to the railroad industry. The company builds new railroad freight cars in its three manufacturing facilities in the United States and Mexico and marine barges at its U.S. facility. It also repairs and refurbishes freight cars and provides wheels and railcar parts at 38 locations (following the American Allied acquisition) across North America. Greenbrier builds new railroad freight cars and refurbishes freight cars for the European market through both its operations in Poland and various subcontractor facilities throughout Europe. Greenbrier owns approximately 9,000 railcars and performs management services for approximately 138,000 railcars.