SMART TD Auxiliary

What SMART TD Auxiliary does

SMART TD Auxiliary is a non-profit fraternal membership organization affiliated with SMART Transportation Division (SMART-TD), the railroad labor union. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the organization has been in continuous operation since 1889 and serves spouses, children, grandchildren, step-children, step-grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of SMART-TD union members across a network of local lodges in at least nine U.S. states (MO, MT, NC, OH, IL, UT, TX).

The organization's service portfolio spans five core areas: (1) membership enrollment and lodge placement, administered online through smarttdauxiliary.org for a $10 one-time application fee; (2) educational training programs covering FELA (Federal Employers' Liability Act) injury response and hurricane disaster preparedness, delivered via YouTube and in-person workshops; (3) a Legislative Action Center (powered by Congressweb) that enables member engagement on bills affecting railroad families; (4) a $1,000-per-recipient scholarship program for dependents (random-drawing selection from full-time college students maintaining a 2.0 GPA and under 25 years of age, with annual applications January 1 through March 31); and (5) treasurer and lodge management tooling, including annual and semi-annual reporting forms. The technology stack is minimal — a Weebly-hosted site, online forms, and embedded third-party tools — with no proprietary platform disclosed.

The business model is membership-funded. Application fees ($10, one-time) and annual lodge dues ($60-$80) constitute essentially the entire revenue base; revenues are not publicly disclosed. Two core partnerships anchor the value proposition: UTUIA (United Transportation Union Insurance Association) provides fraternal insurance products (annuities, retirement, accident, life, disability, cancer), and a Designated Legal Counsel partnership offers free FELA consultations. Operations are run by a 9-employee Grand Lodge staff supplemented by elected lodge-level officers, with annual conventions institutionalizing governance (e.g., the October 20-22, 2026 convention at Hilton Cleveland Downtown).

Name

SMART TD Auxiliary

Legal name

SMART TD Auxiliary

Website

https://smarttdauxiliary.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SMART TD Auxiliary is a Cleveland-based non-profit fraternal organization affiliated with the SMART-TD railroad labor union, serving member families through lodge placement, FELA legal counsel access, scholarships, training, and insurance benefits across a multi-state lodge network in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: One-time $10 membership application fee plus annual lodge dues typically ranging from $60-$80 paid directly to the lodge. Revenue supports organization operations, scholarships, and member services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SMART TD Auxiliary is a fraternal membership organization for SMART-TD railroad union members and their families, providing lodge placement, designated FELA legal counsel access, fraternal insurance benefits (annuities, retirement, accident, life, disability, cancer), annual $1,000 scholarships for dependents, and training workshops on railroad injury response and hurricane preparedness. Operations are funded through a $10 one-time membership application fee and $60–$80 annual lodge dues, delivered through a network of local lodges across multiple U.S. states.

Product overview

SMART TD Auxiliary is a membership-based fraternal organization for railroad workers and their families, providing a suite of member services including membership enrollment with lodge placement, educational training programs on injury response and emergency preparedness, legislative advocacy access, scholarship awards for members' dependents, and financial management tools for lodge treasurers. The organization operates through a network of local lodges and hosts annual conventions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Membership Application Membership enrollment program with a $10 one-time application fee; applicants provide personal information and are placed into a local lodge. Members must additionally pay annual lodge dues of $60–$80 directly to their assigned lodge.
• Training Programs Educational workshops covering what to do when an injury occurs on the railroad (presented by designated legal counsel) and hurricane disaster preparedness training. Content is delivered as virtual video workshops on YouTube and is available to members and their families.
• Legislative Action Center Access to the SMART Transportation Legislative Action Center (Congressweb-powered) for staying informed about bills and issues affecting SMART-TD members and their families, enabling member engagement on political and legislative matters.
• Scholarship Program Annual $1,000 scholarship program for children, step-children, grandchildren, and step-grandchildren of Auxiliary members. Application period runs January 1 through March 31 annually; recipients are selected through random drawing from qualified applicants who are full-time college students maintaining at least a 2.0 GPA and under 25 years of age.
• Treasurer Tools Online tools and forms for lodge treasurers, including annual report forms, semi-annual report forms, assessment payment processing (online and mail-in options), and lodge officers roster management.
• Lodge Management and New Lodge Organization Organization and management of local SMART TD Auxiliary lodges across multiple U.S. states, including resources for opening new lodges and maintaining operations of existing lodges. Documented lodge locations include Missouri City TX, Forsyth MT, Asheville NC, Bellevue OH, St. Louis MO, Jefferson City MO, Cleveland OH, Chicago IL, Salt Lake City UT, and Hamlet NC.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• UTUIA (United Transportation Union Insurance Association)coreOthersUTUIA provides fraternal insurance benefits to members including annuities and retirement products, accident insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, cancer insurance, and scholarship programs. Recommended by SMART-TD union leadership.
• Designated Legal Counsel (FELA)coreOthersLegal counsel specializing in FELA (Federal Employers' Liability Act) for railroaders when injured. Offers free consultations to members and is recommended by SMART-TD. Conducts training workshops on what to do when an injury occurs on the railroad.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sons of Norway: Fraternal benefit society for Norwegian-Americans with membership dues, local lodge structure, insurance products, and scholarship programs for descendants of members. Closely mirrors the aux's family-lineage eligibility rules and combined insurance-plus-scholarship offering.
• SMART Union (Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, Transportation): Parent labor union of the SMART-TD Transportation Division that the aux serves. SMART-TD members are the qualifying family base for aux membership, making SMART the most directly comparable peer organization in terms of mission alignment and audience overlap.
• Knights of Columbus: Large Catholic fraternal benefit society with membership dues, local council structure, insurance products, and scholarship programs. Operates a near-identical model combining fraternal membership, insurance, and scholarship delivery that mirrors the aux's combined offering.
• International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM): Large North American labor union representing workers across transportation, aerospace, and manufacturing. IAM maintains similar member-benefit, lodge-style local structure, and auxiliary-family engagement models relevant to the aux's operating approach.
• Moose International (Loyal Order of Moose): Fraternal service organization with lodge structure, membership dues, fraternal insurance, and community programs. Comparable operating model to the aux in terms of member-funded revenue, lodge governance, and benefit offerings to member families.
• Fraternal Order of Eagles: National fraternal membership organization operating through local aeries with dues, member benefits, insurance programs, and community engagement. Mirrors the aux's lodge-based fraternal model, member-funded revenue, and benefit-bundling strategy almost exactly.
• Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET): Independent railroad operating union representing locomotive engineers and trainmen. BLET serves a similar railroad worker audience and competes with SMART-TD for members, making it a directly analogous peer for an aux serving SMART-TD families.
• Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks: Fraternal organization with local lodge structure, membership dues, and member benefit programs. Comparable to the aux in its lodge-based governance model and member-funded revenue approach, though at much larger scale.
• UTUIA (United Transportation Union Insurance Association): Fraternal insurance association that provides annuities, life, accident, disability, and cancer insurance to transportation union members and their families. UTUIA is already a strategic partner of the aux and serves the same SMART-TD family base with overlapping insurance and scholarship products.

Broad incumbents

• AFL-CIO: National labor federation representing millions of unionized workers across industries. As SMART-TD's parent federation, AFL-CIO is the broadest incumbent in the labor-fraternal ecosystem and a relevant higher-level peer for advocacy and policy engagement.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@smarttdauxiliary
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smarttdauxiliary

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 SMART TD Auxiliary