Graham Farish OCA Open Wagon
By 1967, the wagon fleet had fallen to about a third the size of that inherited in 1948. In an attempt at modernising itself, British Rail launched a fleet of new wagons for better bulk handling. The new air-braked vehicles were larger and could travel faster than before and spelt the virtual end of the 10' underframe of the past decades.
The first OBA was built in 1974 and had planked sides. In contrast OCAs, built in the early '80s, were of all steel construction. The OCA was, in fact, a development of the SPA plate wagon and had three drop-down doors on each side. They were the last air-braked open wagons built to a new design, as open vehicles of this type were no longer required for general merchandise by the end of the decade. 377-552A is in EWS livery and carries the number 112173.