What Chicago Systems & Signals does

Chicago Systems & Signals (CSS) is a family-owned specialty engineering subcontractor headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, operating in the rail transit signal and train control sector. The company is structured as an LLC and certified as a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) in both Illinois and Massachusetts, granting it preferential access to public transit contract scopes. CSS employs six people and is led by siblings Zofia Freiberg (President) and Otto Freiberg (Partner, Project Director), along with partners Joshua Wyatt and Lorraine Prendergast. The team is anchored by senior engineering talent with decades of direct Chicago Transit Authority experience, including a Senior Design Engineer with 25+ years at CTA.

The company delivers three integrated revenue streams: (1) consulting services spanning construction management, systems infrastructure design, and testing and commissioning; (2) in-house manufacturing and distribution of signal masts and transit hardware; and (3) software products, notably the Vehicle Management System (VMS) providing annunciation, warnings, headway tracking, and non-vital controls for transit vehicles, and the Cab to Wayside Communications Solution enabling GPS/cellular train-to-control-center communications. CSS primarily serves as a subcontractor to prime contractors on flagship Chicago Transit Authority programs, including the $2.1B Red Purple Modernization Phase I (sub to Walsh Fluor Design Build Team), the $2.9B Red Line Extension (sub to Walsh Vinci Transit Community Partners), and the Belmont Crossover Track Replacement (sub to John Burns Construction). Its only disclosed end customer beyond CTA is the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, which procured the VMS through an innovation collaboration.

The go-to-market is enterprise field sales driven by direct business development relationships with prime contractors and transit authorities; pricing is project-based and not publicly disclosed. No external funding, acquisitions, or public listing are present. The company's growth lever is the combination of its DBE certification, specialty signal expertise, and proprietary software products applied to a deep pipeline of multi-billion-dollar U.S. transit modernization programs.

Name

Chicago Systems & Signals

Legal name

Chicago Systems & Signals, LLC

Website

https://chicagosystemsandsignals.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chicago Systems & Signals is a family-owned, DBE-certified specialty subcontractor providing rail transit signal design, testing, manufacturing, and proprietary software (VMS, Cab to Wayside) primarily to the Chicago Transit Authority and its prime contractors, with expansion into MBTA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rail Transit Engineering Services

NAICS

Power and Communication Line and Related Structures Construction (237130), Other Communications Equipment Manufacturing (334290)

SIC

Railroad Equipment (3743)

akta.pro primary industry

Centralized Rail Traffic Control (CTC) & Train Dispatching (TLAJAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Industrial I/O, Signal Conditioning & Remote Terminal Units (RTUs) (IMAGABAD)

Keywords

• Rail transit signal systems
• Train control engineering
• Transit construction management
• Signal mast manufacturing
• Rail systems integration

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Provides construction management, systems infrastructure design, and testing & commissioning services to transit and rail projects
2. Manufacturing & Distribution: In-house signal mast manufacturing and distribution of signal and systems hardware for transit projects
3. Software Applications: Customized software solutions including the Vehicle Management System (VMS) and Cab to Wayside Communication Solutions

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Chicago Systems & Signals provides design, construction management, and specialty manufacturing & distribution services for electrical, communications, and train control projects on rail transit infrastructure. The company acts as a specialty subcontractor to prime contractors on CTA projects, delivering signal systems design, testing & commissioning, Safety & Security Certification, and signal mast manufacturing. It also develops and supplies proprietary software products including the Vehicle Management System (VMS) and Cab to Wayside Communications Solution.

Product overview

Chicago Systems & Signals offers a portfolio of specialized software products and engineering services for the rail transit industry. Their core product offerings include the Vehicle Management System (VMS), which provides customized annunciation, warnings, headway tracking, and other non-vital controls for transit vehicles, and the Cab to Wayside Communications Solution, which enables train-to-control-center communication via GPS and cellular networks. These products are complemented by in-house signal mast manufacturing and distribution of signal and systems hardware, along with consulting services spanning construction management, systems infrastructure design, and testing & commissioning for rail transit projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Vehicle Management System (VMS) A customized software solution providing accessory and overlay systems for transit vehicles, enabling annunciation, warnings, headway tracking, and non-vital controls and indications. Has been supplied to the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA).
• Cab to Wayside Communications Solution A software and communications solution enabling transit vehicle communication with wayside infrastructure, using GPS and cellular networks to connect trains with control centers.
• Signal Mast Manufacturing & Distribution In-house manufacturing and distribution of signal masts and signal hardware, including sourcing, assembly, and wiring of signal components into configurations tailored to specific signal installation locations on transit projects.
• Rail Transit Engineering & Construction Management Services Specialty subcontracting services for public transit authorities and prime contractors covering systems infrastructure design, construction management, signal testing & commissioning, QA audits, Safety & Security Certification, and systems integration on major rail transit modernization and extension projects.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully performed commissioning services and tie-in circuitry cutovers of Addison Relay House and Barry Relay House on CTA RPM project
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Walsh Fluor Design Build Team (WFDBT)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCSS operates as a subcontractor to WFDBT on the $2.1B Red Purple Modernization Phase I project, managing testing & commissioning efforts, deficiency resolution, signal maintenance logs, QA audits, and safety & security verifications.
• Walsh Vinci Transit Community Partners (WTCP)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCSS is a subcontractor to WTCP on the $2.9B Red Line Extension project, performing signal systems design services, signal manufacturer field & resident engineering services, and signal and communications Safety & Security Certification support.
• John Burns ConstructioncoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCSS provides Signal South services as a subcontractor to John Burns Construction on the Belmont Crossover and Track Replacement project, performing signal tests per approved test procedures and managing discrepancies.
• Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInnovation collaboration enabled CSS to supply the Vehicle Management System (VMS) to MBTA. This partnership model involves working with transit authorities to commercialize product innovations.
• Innovation CollaboratorsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSS partners with innovators to assist with commercialization of their products, enabling supply of products like VMS to transit authorities. The company qualifies for the Small Business Innovation Research program.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Alstom: Global rail signaling and infrastructure provider (including former GE Transportation and Bombardier rail signaling); incumbent whose signaling systems CSS may install and integrate.
• WSP USA: Large engineering consultancy with extensive transit practice, providing systems design and owner's-rep services on major transit capital programs—comparable in services scope.
• Mott MacDonald: Global engineering consultancy with a substantial rail signaling and systems practice, providing design and PM/CM services to transit authorities—overlapping CSS's transit design and construction management.
• Hitachi Rail: Major global provider of rail signaling, train control (CBTC/ETCS), and communications systems—the incumbent whose products CSS integrates and supports on transit properties.
• HNTB Corporation: Large engineering consultancy with substantial rail transit practice, frequently serving as owner's representative on transit signal and systems projects. Overlapping with CSS's transit engineering services.
• Wabtec Corporation: Global rail equipment and signaling manufacturer with products spanning train control, signaling, and communications—the broader incumbent whose systems CSS helps install and integrate.
• Siemens Mobility: Major rail signaling and train control systems provider; the broader incumbent whose signaling equipment CSS commissions, integrates, and supports.

Direct peers

• STV Inc. Engineering and construction management firm with strong transit practice providing systems design, construction management, and inspection for transit authorities—closely overlapping CSS's services portfolio.
• RailWorks: National specialty contractor focused on rail infrastructure construction, including signal systems, track, and communications. Directly comparable as a rail-specialty subcontractor providing similar services.
• Aldridge Electric: Chicago-area specialty electrical and signal contractor with deep transit experience, including CTA projects. Directly comparable as a specialty sub on rail signal installations competing for similar CTA work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chicago-systems-and-signals

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chicago Systems & Signals