As well as customer preference, timing might have been a factor in the choice of the Alco 12-244 (H-iteration) engine for the New South Wales (NSWGR) 43 class. As I understand it, the order was placed 1954 June. At that time GE may not have been ready to release the “B” version of the Cooper-Bessemer engine for use in a production model.
On the other hand the MRR order was announced in DRT 1955 October, with elaboration in DRT 1955 November. By then the C-B “B” engine would have been ready.
Also, the choice of the Alco engine meant that in large part, the NSWGR 43 simply followed established GE export practice, except for carbody and trucks. The carbody probably differed more in appearance than in fundamentals as compared with GE’s established shovel-nose form. And the trucks, of the double-swing-bolster inside-equalized type, came from local supplier Bradford-Kendall, whom I think followed Commonwealth precepts. GE itself had been using slab-frame trucks, initially with rigid bolsters, but had migrated to what looked like trunnion-mounted outside swing links in the early 1950s.
That said, GE built Alco 12-244-engined exports until quite late in the piece, relatively speaking. The NSWGR 43 class were the last actually built, but Chile had a late repeat order for broad gauge shovel-nose units. These were noted in the attached GE advertisement from DRT 1956 August.
DRT 195608 p.12.jpg
This Chilean order also included what was the first for the new Universal range following the Mexican UD18B order (which followed on from performance of the demonstrator pair) and also included some 70-tonners. These were delivered very late 1956 and very early 1957. Also delivered at the end of 1956 were a repeat 6 for IRCA Guatemala of their well-known –almost famous, I think - triple-truck (C+B+C) road switchers, which design was also supplied to Colombia.
GE Locomotives for World Railways p.05.jpg
Around the same time it was building the NSWGR 43 class, Goninans also built a repeat 3 of the Queensland Railways (QR) 1150 class, which was a 100-ton C-C road-switcher with C-B FVL-12T engine (original version) first built by GE in 1952.
The 43 class order, and probably the 1150 class order would have been placed with Australian GE, as it then was, and subcontracted to Goninans. Late in 1955, GE sold its interest in AGE to AEI (Associated Electrical Industries) UK, whereafter AGE was renamed as Australian Electrical Industries (also AEI). AEI (Australia) continued to build GE electrical equipment, as well that from as AEI (UK). Interestingly there were times when it was probably building both GE761 and AEI 253 traction motors, the latter being the AEI (UK) design that was developed when AEI was nominated as a second supplier of electrical equipment to Alco. AEI (Australia) claimed both GE- and AEI (UK)-origin designs in its advertising.
RT 195607 AEI Ad.jpg
By the way, both the NSWGR 43 and the Goninan-built QR 1150 appear not to have been issued with GE serial numbers.
Cheers,