Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on Commercial Vehicle Developments in India INDIA 1 www.truckandbusbuilder.com Serving the industry since 1978 T&BB News from Busworld India held in Bangalore in December 2016. Extracts from T&BB India Supplement No. 39. About Truck & Bus Builder: First published in October 1978, Truck & Bus Builder is the international monthly newsletter of commercial vehicle manufacturing developments. It is a subscription-based publication and is read by senior executives around the world involved in the manufacture, marketing, sale and operation of commercial vehicles. Areas covered include company performance, new products and technology, statistical information, environmental developments, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and agreements, new companies, contracts and orders, legislation, comments and analysis, appointments and events and exhibitions. In addition to the monthly publication, Truck & Bus Builder, each quarter produces supplements reporting on key regional news. These supplements include Truck & Bus Builder India, Truck & Bus Builder East Asia, Truck & Bus Builder South America and Truck & Bus Builder China. For more information about Truck & Bus Builder and its regional supplements visit: www.truckandbusbuilder.com Investment / Manufacture Austria - Safety seat belt manufacturing specialist for the commercial vehicle industry worldwide, Fasching Salzburg GmbH of Salzburg, Austria has announced plans to set up a production facility in India. At Busworld India 2016 in Bangalore, Harald Pessl, sales director and authorized officer for Fasching said that Fasching had been active on the Indian market for more than six years and during that time it had been monitoring closely the rules and regulations governing safety belts in the commercial vehicle industry. Pessl said it was now time to take a step forward and set Fasching contemplating production in India up a production facility in India. This would enable the company to manufacture its safety belts to its high standards but at a more competitive price for the Indian commercial vehicle and military markets. “Our production facility should be implemented and completed by mid-2018, so allowing full production to start in the second half of 2018”, said Pessl. Fasching aims to achieve its goals by partnering with an already identified but unnamed experienced local company and plans to form a joint venture to achieve its goals over the next 12 to 18 months. Production / Management Oragadam - To ramp up bus production in order to meet growing demand for its products in India, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles Pvt Ltd (DICV) in August assumed management control of the Wrightbus bus body production operations and supply chain in Oragadam, according to Jitesh Jain for DICV at Busworld India last month. While Wrightbus continues in its role in bus design, as Daimler has already a substantial supply chain in India, it seemed a logical step for Daimler to assume a closer management role, Jain explained. 2016 has been the bus operation’s ramp up year, explained Shina Satyapal, manager corporate communications at DICV. The company started with truck production in 2012 and recently passed the 50,000 total output mark (earlier this year it launched the next generation Bharat-Stage IV compliant 9t and 12t trucks), while output at its bus plant began with concept vehicles in 2015. Ms Satyapal said DICV has invested a substantial sum in its bus operations totalling INR 425 Crore (approx. EUR58m). The DICV bus division has a twofold strategy, Satyapal continued, with volume production under the BharatBenz name and top of the range products under the Mercedes-Benz name. Currently, it has three products - three vehicles at 9t gvw (school, staff and tourism). In the pipeline for 2017 introduction are 12t and 16t variants, announced Satyapal. Under the Mercedes-Benz logo it is offering its 2436SHD 14.5m high deck coach model. Bus sales have been focussed in markets of south and west India, Satyapal remarked and now the company is to expand its bus sales into the north and east of India. DICV has an extensive network (more than 80) of truck dealers and service partners throughout India. Daimler assumes management control of bus build operations to accelerate production On display at Busworld India 2016 in Bengaluru were two 9t gvw, 9.78m front-engine standard floor bus models – the Bharat-Benz School Bus and the Bharat-Benz Staff Bus. With previews of these models in June 2015 and sales having started in January, the company has already exceeded its targeted sales volume for the year, Satyapal stated. Both models share the same drivetrain of a locally produced 4-cylinder 4-litre in-line inter-cooled and turbocharged engine (4D34i) meeting either BS III or BS IV emission standards and rated at 170hp for the school variant and 140hp for the staff bus. Both models are fitted with ABS as standard. The highly visible yellow school bus uses the Wrightbus Aluminique body structure with R66 rollover strength and meets a 42 degree tilt angle in the tilt test, which more than complies with ARAI’s recommended tilt test angle of 28 degrees. In addition to the ABS, an electronic pressure sensor is used to monitor the air pressure in the brake chambers and the VOSS connectors minimise the leaking of air, thus leading to highly effective braking. Safety is further enhanced in the chassis design, which as a wide frame width, tubeless radial tyres, and front and rear anti-roll bars for improved cornering, stability and better handling. Additional safety features in include individual seat (lap) belts on the two person bench seats, the interior is made from fire retardant fabric and plastics, anti-slip vinyl floor and access is facilitated via a retractable lower step. There is an emergency exit rear door on the driver’s side as well as all windows offer an exit with the life hammer mounted on the vertical stanchions on each side. The driver’s area is fitted with a guard to prevent children accessing the driver’s area; a fire extinguisher and passenger announcement system. Product Zaheerabad - The MG Group used Busworld India 2016 in Bangalore last month to announce derivations of its Mammoth coach for the domestic market. The Mammoth premium luxury coach, which is built on a front-engine MAN CLA bus chassis supplied from the truck and bus chassis plant of MAN Trucks India Pvt Ltd in Pune, was on display in two versions for the domestic market; a double bunk sleeper (30 places with aisle offset and 1+2 configuration) and a tourism coach with reclining seats (44 seats in 2+2 configuration). Each seat comes with USB charging port and above in the luggage rack there is fitted a reading lamp and air conditioning control. The MG Group reminded its audience at the show that Mammoth had been designed with the biggest focus on safety and features no fewer than eight emergency exits, including the ‘EM – Secure’ Rear Emergency Exit, which is patented by MG: This offers an escape route through the rear of the coach via a top-hinged rear panel that opens upwards and using steps that fold down. The company said that it had managed to export 12 units since its launch at Busworld India 2015 held in Mumbai in March of that year with the majority being delivered to customers in Ethiopia. Anil Kamat, managing director, MG Group, explained the company’s plans for the Indian market, he said: “Celebrating our journey of 20 years in the bus building industry, the launch MG launches domestic versions of Mammoth
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Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on Commercial Vehicle Developments in India
INDIA
1
www.truckandbusbuilder.com Serving the industry since 1978T&BB
News from Busworld India held in Bangalore in December 2016. Extracts from T&BB India Supplement No. 39.
About Truck & Bus Builder:
First published in October 1978, Truck & Bus Builder is the international monthly newsletter of commercial vehicle manufacturing developments. It is a subscription-based publication and is read by senior executives around the world involved in the manufacture, marketing, sale and operation of commercial vehicles.
Areas covered include company performance, new products and technology, statistical information, environmental developments, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and agreements, new companies, contracts and orders, legislation, comments and analysis, appointments and events and exhibitions.
In addition to the monthly publication, Truck & Bus Builder, each quarter produces supplements reporting on key regional news. These supplements include Truck & Bus Builder India, Truck & Bus Builder East Asia, Truck & Bus Builder South America and Truck & Bus Builder China.
For more information about Truck & Bus Builder and its regional supplements visit: www.truckandbusbuilder.com
Investment / Manufacture
Austria - Safety seat belt manufacturing specialist for the commercial vehicle industry worldwide, Fasching Salzburg GmbH of Salzburg, Austria has announced plans to set up a production facility in India.
At Busworld India 2016 in Bangalore, Harald Pessl, sales director and authorized officer for Fasching said that Fasching had been active on the Indian market for more than six years and during that time it had been monitoring closely the rules and regulations governing safety belts in the commercial vehicle industry. Pessl said it was now time to take a step forward and set
Fasching contemplating production in Indiaup a production facility in India. This would enable the company to manufacture its safety belts to its high standards but at a more competitive price for the Indian commercial vehicle and military markets. “Our production facility should be implemented and completed by mid-2018, so allowing full production to start in the second half of 2018”, said Pessl.
Fasching aims to achieve its goals by partnering with an already identified but unnamed experienced local company and plans to form a joint venture to achieve its goals over the next 12 to 18 months.
Production / Management
Oragadam - To ramp up bus production in order to meet growing demand for its products in India, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles Pvt Ltd (DICV) in August assumed management control of the Wrightbus bus body production operations and supply chain in Oragadam, according to Jitesh Jain for DICV at Busworld India last month. While Wrightbus continues in its role in bus design, as Daimler has already a substantial supply chain in India, it seemed a logical step for Daimler to assume a closer management role, Jain explained.
2016 has been the bus operation’s ramp up year, explained Shina Satyapal, manager corporate communications at DICV. The company started with truck production in 2012 and recently passed the 50,000 total output mark (earlier this year it launched the next generation Bharat-Stage IV compliant 9t and 12t trucks), while output at its bus plant began with concept vehicles in 2015. Ms Satyapal said DICV has invested a substantial sum in its bus operations totalling INR 425 Crore (approx. EUR58m). The DICV bus division has a twofold strategy, Satyapal continued, with volume production under the BharatBenz name and top of the range products under the Mercedes-Benz name. Currently, it has three products - three vehicles at 9t gvw (school, staff and tourism). In the pipeline for 2017 introduction are 12t and 16t variants, announced Satyapal. Under the Mercedes-Benz logo it is offering its 2436SHD 14.5m high deck coach model. Bus sales have been focussed in markets of south and west India, Satyapal remarked and now the company is to expand its bus sales into the north and east of India. DICV has an extensive network (more than 80) of truck dealers and service partners throughout India.
Daimler assumes management control of bus build operations to accelerate production
On display at Busworld India 2016 in Bengaluru were two 9t gvw, 9.78m front-engine standard floor bus models – the Bharat-Benz School Bus and the Bharat-Benz Staff Bus. With previews of these models in June 2015 and sales having started in January, the company has already exceeded its targeted sales volume for the year, Satyapal stated. Both models share the same drivetrain of a locally produced 4-cylinder 4-litre in-line inter-cooled and turbocharged engine (4D34i) meeting either BS III or BS IV emission standards and rated at 170hp for the school variant and 140hp for the staff bus. Both models are fitted with ABS as standard.
The highly visible yellow school bus uses the Wrightbus Aluminique body structure with R66 rollover strength and meets a 42 degree tilt angle in the tilt test, which more than complies with ARAI’s recommended tilt test angle of 28 degrees. In addition to the ABS, an electronic pressure sensor is used to monitor the air pressure in the brake chambers and the VOSS connectors minimise the leaking of air, thus leading to highly effective braking. Safety is further enhanced in the chassis design, which as a wide frame width, tubeless radial tyres, and front and rear anti-roll bars for improved cornering, stability and better handling. Additional safety features in include individual seat (lap) belts on the two person bench seats, the interior is made from fire retardant fabric and plastics, anti-slip vinyl floor and access is facilitated via a retractable lower step. There is an emergency exit rear door on the driver’s side as well as all windows offer an exit with the life hammer mounted on the vertical stanchions on each side. The driver’s area is fitted with a guard to prevent children accessing the driver’s area; a fire extinguisher and passenger announcement system.
Product
Zaheerabad - The MG Group used Busworld India 2016 in Bangalore last month to announce derivations of its Mammoth coach for the domestic market.
The Mammoth premium luxury coach, which is built on a front-engine MAN CLA bus chassis supplied from the truck and bus chassis plant of MAN Trucks India Pvt Ltd in Pune, was on display in two versions for the domestic market; a double bunk sleeper (30 places with aisle offset and 1+2 configuration) and a tourism coach with reclining seats (44 seats in 2+2 configuration). Each seat comes with USB charging port and above in the luggage rack there is fitted a reading lamp and air conditioning control. The MG Group reminded its audience at the show that Mammoth had been designed with the biggest focus on safety and features no fewer than eight emergency exits, including the ‘EM – Secure’ Rear Emergency Exit, which is patented by MG: This offers an escape route through the rear of the coach via a top-hinged rear panel that opens upwards and using steps that fold down.
The company said that it had managed to export 12 units since its launch at Busworld India 2015 held in Mumbai in March of that year with the majority being delivered to customers in Ethiopia.
Anil Kamat, managing director, MG Group, explained the company’s plans for the Indian market, he said: “Celebrating our journey of 20 years in the bus building industry, the launch
MG launches domestic versions of Mammoth
INDIA
2 www.truckandbusbuilder.com
Show Report
India - The whole of India is moving to BS IV (Euro 4) in April 2017 and in just three years’ time, India is proposing to by-pass or skip adopting BS V (Euro 5) emissions regulations and move directly to BS VI (Euro 6) by April 2020, stated Chandramowli Kailasam, head of global commercial vehicles research for Frost & Sullivan in a presentation at Busworld India in Bengaluru last month. Kailasam said that the Indian government was taking huge steps towards enforcing cleaner emissions by introducing such low emission norms.
He said that the Nitin Jayram Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping had already instructed all state transport undertakings to make their fleets, comprising some 17 lakh (1,700,000) buses, either Euro VI or bio-fuel compliant by April 1, 2020. Kailasam has also stated that Euro VI fuel would be made available in metro cities much earlier than the deadline. By adopting BS VI norms, PM and NOx emissions from trucks and buses would, he said drop by 50% and 89%, respectively from BS IV norms – the latter comes into effect across the whole of India on April 1, 2017. A concern still remains that fuel quality will be an issue for effective operation of BS VI vehicles, but Kailasam stated that oil marketing companies were in a good position now to invest the necessary Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 crores (USD3.65 to USD4.35bn) in refinery operations in order to produce BS VI compliant (low sulfur) fuel. One of the key stakeholders is Society of Indian Automotive Manufacturers (SIAM), which has been supporting the Indian government in moving to BS VI. This will, however, said Kailasam, have a profound and costly impact, not just on Indian manufacturers, but also on international manufacturers setting up plants in India.
Kailasam stated that that in addition to legislation there were a number of key trends driving the bus market in India, namely Smart cities, rising income levels, safety and low cost manufacturing. He said there were 100 Smart cities in India, where action plans were being undertaken to address key issues for modern city dwelling; the top three issues are adequate water supply, sanitation and electricity, while the fourth is efficient and sustainable mass mobility.
Kailasam stated that the India customer was becoming a little more sophisticated because of higher levels of disposable income and as such were becoming more open to paying for safety features as well as comfort. The average Indian bus customer has started to ask for more safety features, he stated, especially in the luxury intercity bus segment where there have been some well publicized incidents involving fires resulting in fatalities. In addition to customer expectations, new legislation to improve safety standards has and will be introduced in the coming years to improve safety standards; this started with the Bus Body (fabrication) Code and compulsory ABS1 implementation from April, 2016. The Bus Body Code has seen the bus body building industry, which accounts for more than 90% of all buses and coaches built using this method (i.e. body on chassis), become reshaped, said Kailasam. 50 to 100 bus body builders are now compliant, however, the regulation has led to a fourfold (4X) increase in fully built vehicles, he added.
In the next two to five years, Frost & Sullivan believes that there will be vast improvements in safety both active and passive, some of which will be market driven and some will result from legislation such as seat belts, airbags and video safety devices.
The government currently does not have a fully
Outlook for bus and coach market looks positive as India pushes for cleaner emissions, says Frost & Sullivan at Busworld India 2016
Subsequently, Kailasam sees OEMs investing in hybrid buses, especially for transit and inter-city applications. Kailasam added that the Indian OEMs such as Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland have already developed hybrid and electric buses. “It is just a matter of time before they will be mass producing these vehicles {hybrid and full electric}. These vehicles are undergoing tests and they are on a technology path to be in a position to produce these buses in the next couple of years.”
Over the short term (five years) all the powertrain options are expected to become available i.e. diesel, CNG, hybrid, plug-in and electric. However, diesel engines will still be the preferred option for the OEMs’ customers. He said the European OEMs’ presence was expected to rise due to the market expansion of high-end buses and coaches, especially in metro cities. Kailasam said he fully expected to see key technology Chinese companies’ move into the market, and expects BYD to lead the way in full electric buses.
The Indian bus industry like many other industries is led by the truck business with buses being a secondary business, said Kailasam. Historically, the bus chassis has always shared the same architecture as that of the truck. So, in Kailasam’s view, there remains considerable time to go before the OEMs design and build purpose-built buses. So over the next five years, there will be little change in the general bus and coach architecture, stated Kailasam. The customer experience will change due to investment in the interior design and use of technologies to improve the passenger experience such as free Wi-Fi and infotainment systems. For the operator, the OEMs are expected to compete in the aftermarket by providing benefits that are practical in terms of track and trace and in the provision of various levels of fleet management systems. F&S expects driver Smartphone usage to increase from 1.8 times in 2016 to 2.8 times by 2020. This will enable fleet operators to empower its drivers and improve its fleet management. However, he does not see the highly sophisticated safety and fleet operator solutions now available in Western Europe such as driver fatigue and alko-lock systems, video monitoring and parking systems or lane departure warning systems coming onto the market for many years yet, unless the government introduces them through legislation.
1ABS made compulsory since October 2015 in M&HCVs, above 12t gvw in trucks and above 5t gvw in buses.
Bus and coach market forecast to grow steadily over next five years
The bus and coach market has fluctuated considerably over the last few years, but over the next four to five years, it is expected to see steady growth, stated Kailasam. The year 2015/2016 saw steady growth due to the stronger economy, new bus norms that have been introduced and fleet operators looking to buy new technology buses with better fuel consumption. F&S expects the market for medium and heavy-duty bus and coach to grow from 49,400 units in 2015/16 to 56,000 in 2016-17, this increase is largely due to the pre-buying before mandatory BS IV in April 2017. As a consequence, the market will fall back the year after to 51,500 units, before regaining momentum for continuous growth over the following three years. In 2018-19, fleet expansion, vehicle scrappage incentives, and a move to vehicles offering better passenger comfort is expected to boost numbers to around 59,000 units. In the next two years, the bus and coach market is forecast to grow to 70,000 in 2019/20 and 67,500 units in 2020/21 as a result of improved road infrastructure and rising demand for more reliable products with good fuel efficiency.
Production is also expected to grow due to rising exports over the next five years.
implemented policy for transportation, stated Kailasam; instead it has one for review. This includes a proposed policy for the scrappage of old vehicles, which, if and when implemented, is expected to increase demand across all bus segments - but more so for light buses because they tend to be much older (20 years sometimes) rather than the medium and heavy duty, which tend to be much newer.
India, Kailasam continued, is becoming a big manufacturing hub for buses: “All manufacturers will become part of the ‘Make in India’ programme for export. Apart from Ashok Leyland and Tata Motors, there are other manufacturers in India, like Volvo, in the high end coach and bus segment but also now entering the volume / value segment with its UD brand. All such overseas bus producers are looking at India as a production hub for export to regions such as Asia Pacific, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East, which have similar customer needs and road conditions as in India.”
Geography 2001-2005 2005-2010 2010-2017 2017-20201 2020-20252Nation-wide India 2000 BS II BS III BS IV BS VIMetros* BS II BS III BS IV BS IV BS VIOther Major cities**
India 2000 BS II BS III BS IV BS IV BS VI
Source: Frost & Sullivan Notes: 1Nation-wide BS IV fully implemented from April 1, 2017 2India plans to skip BS V and leap frog to implement BS VI by April 2020 across India.*Metros: NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai **Other Major Cities: Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Surat, Kanpur, Agra, Solapur, Lucknow.
Diesel hybrids and electric drive buses is the future for India, not CNG
At BS VI, the question, asked Kailasam, is whether the future technologies for city and interurban buses will be hybrids or natural gas. Presently most India customers look at the initial cost and not the total cost of ownership, said Kailasam. They also look at the fuel efficiency of buses.
However, this way of looking at the business model is not expected to change and as a consequence, vehicles need to be built to meet market demand. Due to the lower efficiency of natural gas engines as well as their propensity to spill more methane at Euro VI, will result in the OEMs moving towards hybrids over natural gas engines, Kailasam stated. “The OEMs must curb the methane without increasing the product price,” said Kailasam, adding that gas engines will cost 20% more than diesel hybrids! While Bharat VI requires lower sulfur content fuel for both, natural gas engines and diesel engines, natural gas engines will still require a major engineering upgrade in combustion design as well as extra after-treatment, said Kailasam. “Thus natural gas engines,” Kailasam stated, “may be optimal up to Bharat IV norms, but they are not viable for Bharat VI norms, as they will be definitely 15 to 20% higher in cost due to the upgrade technology and will consume about 8% more fuel than a similar Euro VI level compliant diesel engine.”
India M&HD Bus Market Forecast, FY2017 to FY20212016-17 (F) 2017-18 (F) 2018-19 (F) 2019-20 (F) 2020-21 (F)
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Pune - With ten year anniversary celebrations of MAN’s presence in India at this month’s Bauma Conexpo India 2016 in Delhi, Joerg Mommertz, chairman and managing director of MAN Trucks India Pvt Ltd of Pithampur, Pune, was upbeat about prospects and of increasing sales in India with new vehicle configurations to offer the markets: Speaking with Truck & Bus Builder at Busworld India 2016 in Bangaluru, Mommertz said that MAN India’s plan was to replace its current off-road product for the mining sector in 6x4 and 8x4 configuration to offer lighter weight products in the form of a 6x2 model with lift-able axle and an 8x2 model with lift-able axle for the haulage business. Both would be offered in tractor and rigid truck specifications – Mommertz said that there were substantial volumes in both truck configurations and this presented a good opportunity on the Indian domestic market as well as abroad.
Output (all vehicles) this year would be around 3,200 units, said Mommertz, with an equal split in sales of its CLA truck to the domestic market and for export; although in a few years’ time, his aim was to match this total output with sales of some 3,000 units to the domestic market alone.
MAN India has made much progress in recent years: Four years ago, D0836 engine production was localized and today, local content exceeds 80%. As well as the engine, it makes axles and
MAN India ready for BS IV emission regulationsthe frame; transmissions are sourced locally from either Eaton or ZF. From April 2017, new emission regulations, Bharat Stage IV come into effect and for compliance, MAN is to use SCR only after-treatment technology without EGR. Whilst initially, it plans to import the SCR dosing and after-treatment technology, MAN India also plans to source the after-treatment locally. Mommertz added that engine output improves by 80hp, from 220hp at BS III to 300hp at BS IV. He also said that from April the same regulations and therefore new driveline were to be applied to the coach segment.
Mommertz said that MAN had invested heavily in its manufacturing facilities and engine production plant. Pithampur, he said, had a very modern engine and paint treatment plant. Mommertz said: “Aftersales is the backbone of the business.” As such MAN India’s aftersales services need to be expanded - one of its first initiatives the company is looking to invest in two to three key locations for training and aftersales support for certain export markets. At Pithampur, MAN already has its own training academy for engine and chassis maintenance for dealers.
Another recent development is the introduction of common rail engine technology with its BS III engine in place of unit injectors. This 6 cylinder, 6.7-litre D0836 common rail BS III engine is quieter but with more powerful outputs of 220hp to 280hp.
Exports not only by indigenous producers like Tata, Ashok and Eicher will rise; newly established brands like Bharat-Benz, Volvo, Scania and others will actively use India as an export hub for Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Volvo Bus Corporation in the past year has exported Euro 6 intercity buses to markets in Western Europe.
Above and opposite, as well throughout this issue, are a number of articles recording the key developments and product announced at the show. Busworld India 2016 was the best attended show yet, which included a visit by Shri R. V. Deshpande, Honourable Minister for Large and Medium Scale Industries and Infrastructure Development, Government of Karnataka.
Show Report - Busworld India 2016Continued from p2
Manufacture / Product
Bangalore - The MG Group1 of Mumbai, the parent company of bus body builders, MG Automotive Pvt Ltd2 of Telangana and, Alma Motors Pvt Ltd3 of Karnataka is set to have built 100,000 units since its inception in 1996.
As part of its celebrations, MG Group announced it was unveiling two new vehicles at Busworld India 2016 in Bengaluru; the Columbus, a special low floor monocoque bus for airport operations (see separate article in this issue), and the latest version of its luxury coach, Mammoth, which is built on an MAN chassis for the domestic market; at the previous Busworld India 2015 in Mumbai it unveiled the Mammoth for international markets. The company said that it had sold some 12 Mammoth units primarily to Ethiopia. (See separate articles in this issue).
Mr Anil M Kamat, managing director, MG Group, said: “At about 90,000 buses a year, India is one of the biggest markets for coach and bus sales worldwide. We at MG Group are proud to be among the leading bus building companies in India with an annual installed capacity of 16,500 vehicles and have, since inception, manufactured over 8,000 buses across 25 markets globally for export markets. This year, we are celebrating 20 years of bus building in India and would like to dedicate and thank our esteemed customers and partners such as Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, VECV, Tata Motors and MAN, for the faith they have entrusted in us over the years, to be able to achieve this record milestone.”
1MG Group is one of the organized and OE approved body builders, building on chassis supplied by major OEM’s like Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles Ltd (VECV), Tata Motors and MAN.
2MG Automotive Pvt Ltd of Telangana (bus body builder) has factory space extending to 21,000 square metres (sq m) with an annual installed capacity of 12,000 buses. Its clients, as well as being the OEMs include State Transport Undertakings (Telangana and Andhra Pradesh) and other institutional clients. It is one of the leading privately-owned bus building groups in India.
3Alma Motors Pvt Ltd of Karnataka is spread over 18,000 sq m and offers an annual capacity of 4,500 buses. Its major clients and partners are the same as its sister company and the end user includes fleet operators, schools and institutional clients.
MG Group close to milestone of producing 100,000 buses
Product / Diversification / Strategy / Export
Telangana - The MG Group of Telangana, India used Busworld India 2016 to announce its move into a new market segment with the unveiling of a 12m low floor integral airport bus.
Called Columbus, the bus it built to a monocoque design with front and rear chassis modules. The front module featured a ZF front portal axle, while the rear module included a ZF standard drive axle with ZF’s fully-automatic Ecolife transmission and Cummins 5.9-litre 230hp Euro IV engine fitted transversely.
Lalit Waankhede, consultant – vehicle integration at the MG Group, explained that the use of front and rear modules, in the event of damage, allows them to be replaced if necessary without affecting the structural integrity of the whole vehicle. The vehicle has a long wheelbase of more than six metres (6m) enabling a low floor virtually throughout the bus with a small step over the rear axle. The passenger area has been designed to offer swift entry and exit with just eight seats around the wheel arches, with five passenger doors – three on the driver’s off side consisting of a single plug door at the front, and two double doors between the wheelbase and then two more double swing-out doors opposite on the driver’s side. The interior layout permits it to accommodate up to 70 passengers (ie 8 seated and 62 standees). Use of 275/70 tyres allows a passenger entry floor height of 290mm, after kneeling. The vehicle is 2.6m wide, is equipped with deep flush panel sealed windows that offers good light and much space within the vehicle. It also has many of the very latest technologies such as ECAS (electronically controlled air suspension), ABS (anti-lock braking) and CAN bus system, which the MG Group stated, makes it fully compliant with airport handling manual regulations.
MG Group plans entry into the low floor airport bus sector
In addition it has a new driver binnacle with digital display, developed and supplied by the MG Group’s bus electronics solutions, MG Grey Engine LLP.
Anil Kamat, managing director of MG Group, said: “Over the past two decades, we at MG Group have played a significant role in the Indian bus building landscape, recognizing customer needs and introducing game-changing and innovative products and solutions for the bus and coach industry. The Columbus, currently diesel powered, is envisioned to be offered with CNG as well as electric drive lines in the short term. In India, the air passenger traffic has been increasing at approximately 20% year-on-year and hence the demand for tarmac coaches {apron transfer buses} is also increasing. The total park volume is currently 800 units, being a highly niche segment.”
The MG Group said: ‘A good tarmac coach further enhances the image of the airline. The Indian market currently demands about 50 coaches per year, which is expected to grow as aged tarmac coach fleets are also due for replacement. Leading airlines have also placed record order sizes for aircrafts, which in turn, will increase the demand for tarmac coaches. Tier-2 City Airports under focus will also boost the demand of tarmac coaches. Keeping in mind the urgent need for spacious and high technology coaches by the airline industry, the Columbus has been positioned as a revolutionizing product and a technology demonstrator. The bus is to be initially introduced for the export markets and is to use the Busworld India 2016 platform to take critical feedback from Indian customers with a goal to introduce it in the domestic market in the near future.’
Continued on p3.
INDIA
Product
Bangalore - Volvo Buses of Gothenburg, Sweden, used Busworld India 2016 in Bengaluru to unveil its new intercity coach range compliant with BS IV emission norms, which come into force in India in April 2017.
The new Volvo 9400 range, which is built in India at its modern facility in Hosakote, Bangalore, included the Volvo 9400 12m coach with the new BSIV 7.7-litre (D8C) 330hp engine, sourced from its global medium-duty engine plant in Pithampur, India, which is operated by Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicle Pvt Ltd (VECV) - its joint
12m Volvo 9400 coach now ready for BS IV normsventure company with Eicher Motors. The other model on the stand was the its best-selling Volvo 9400, 13.8m multi-axle or 3-axle coach now offered with a more powerful engine, being upgraded from 9-litres to 11-litres.
Volvo Bus also used the show to officially unveil its BS IV compliant 7.7-litre (D8C) 330hp electronically controlled engine, which is a 6-cylinder in-line unit with turbocharging.
Volvo Buses has now been in India for 15 years said Akash Passey, senior vice president – Business Region International, Volvo Bus Corporation at the
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SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT 28
APRIL 2014
Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on Commercial Vehicle Developments in China
CHINA
Dear Reader,Despite words of caution and concern by a
number of analysts that the Chinese economy
is at risk of overheating, the commercial vehicle
manufacturing industry, which generally is one of
the first industry sectors to display evidence of this
happening, is, as yet, not showing any signs of this
occurring. The CV sector grew by a steady 6.4%
overall to eclipse the four million mark.
In fact, the industry as a whole appears confident
of continuing growth into the future. Furthermore,
this confidence is evidenced by the continued
investment, not just in capacity but in alternative
fuel vehicles and their production.
In fact, in this issue, there are three companies
looking to raise money through the Shenzhen or
Shanghai stock exchanges for defined investment
projects involving advanced technologies and / or
alternative fuels and drivelines.
Jim Gibbins, editor
1
Name Change / Product / ManufactureHangzhou / Japan / Sweden - Dongvo
(Hangzhou) Truck Co Ltd (formerly Dongfeng
Nissan-Diesel Motor Co Ltd) has announced that
series production of the new UD Quester heavy-
duty truck would start during the second quarter
this year.A prototype of the UD Quester tractor - which is
to be called Kuteng in China as this is the Chinese
name - made its debut on the Chinese market
in December 2013 at Hangzhou City, Zhejiang
Province. Its dimensions were 6.8m long, 2.5m
wide and 3.7m high, it had a curb weight of 8.76
tons and a gross combination weight limit of 40
tons. It was fitted with the GH1C 11-litre Euro
IV compliant diesel engine made by UD Trucks
Corporation, with a power output of (424hp)
316kW and matched with a Shaanxi Fast
12-speed manual transmission.
In preparation for production, a spokesperson
for the Volvo Group, (which owns UD Trucks
(formerly Nissan Diesel), in response to questions
from Truck & Bus Builder, said: “We have
introduced a number of new systems and
processes to be able to make use of Volvo’s
global supplier structure. And in production, we
have invested in a number of tools and working
methods to strictly ensure that we can meet the
quality standards required by Volvo. We have
also introduced Volvo’s quality audit process
before delivery to dealers and customers.” A high
percentage of the truck is to be manufactured
using local suppliers, although the engine is to
come from UD Trucks in Japan.
Dongfeng Nissan-Diesel Motor Co Ltd (DND),
founded in 1996 in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang
Province, is a parity joint venture (50:50) between
UD Quester trucks to be built and sold in
China under the name of KutengDongfeng Motor Corporation and UD
Trucks Corporation, with registered capital
of CNY290m. The spokesperson added that
Dongvo (Hangzhou) Truck Co Ltd was currently
still an independent joint venture, but that it would
become a subsidiary of Dongfeng Commercial
Vehicles (DFCV)*, once DFCV received all the
necessary approvals for its start-up, which, the
spokesperson said was expected to happen by
mid-2014.However, even after the inauguration of DFCV,
Dongvo (Hangzhou) Truck, as a subsidiary of
DFCV is to continue to only manufacture UD
branded trucks, whereas, DFCV itself is to only
manufacture DongFeng branded trucks.
The curent annual production capacity is 10,000
UD truck chassis. Output remains low; the
company built 362 truck chassis in 2012, which
generated revenue of CNY231m.
Backgound to the new DFCV joint venture
*In January this year, the Volvo Group announced
that China’s National Development and Reform
Commission (NDRC) had given its approval to the
proposed joint venture between the Volvo Group
of Gothenburg, Sweden and China’s Dongfeng
Motor Group Co Ltd (DFG).
This is one of a number of approvals required
from the Chinese authorities. It was back in
January 2013 that AB Volvo (the Volvo Group)
signed an agreement with DFG to acquire 45%
of a new subsidiary of DFG, Dongfeng Commercial
Vehicles (DFCV), which would include the major
part of DFG’s medium- and heavy-duty commercial
vehicles business and to produce commercial
vehicles under the Dongvo brand name.
Product / Technology
Xiamen / Taiwan - Xiamen King Long United
Automotive Industry Co Ltd (Xiamen King Long)
of Xiamen City, Fujian Province has brought to
market an all electrically powered coach for the
commuting service markets. The coach at 10.7m
long, 2.5m wide and 3.3m high, has a monocoque
body structure and has an in-house developed
100kW KLBEVTM200 electric motor, which provides
motive power from lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4)
batteries produced and supplied by Taiwanese
company, Simplo Technology Co Ltd of Huko,
Hsinchu county, Taiwan. It offers a carrying capacity
of 51 passengers and has a gross weight of 16.6t.
Xiamen King Long launches
electric commuter coach
Funding / Investment / Expansion
Hangzhou - Steering system and related parts
and components for commercial vehicles and
passenger vehicles, Zhejiang Shibao Co Ltd of
Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, announced that
it plans to raise funds of CNY708m to expand its
operations and specifically in four projects.
The four projects are:• To increase output capacity of its hydraulic steering
systems for passenger vehicles and commercial
vehicles, including 200,000 sets for commercial
vehicles – Investment needed CNY128m;
• Manufacture and processing of precision
Zhejiang Shibao steering systems to raise stock
market funds to expand operationsfoundry parts and to increase capacity to
60,000 tons a year (CNY200m).
• Building an R&D and testing centre (CNY40m)
in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province;
• To build a production line for electric power
steering of 2.1 million sets a year (CNY340m).
Zhejiang Shibao Co Ltd has been listed on the
Shenzhen stock exchange since 2006 (002703,
SZ), and supplies steering systems to major
manufacturers such as FAW, DFM, JAC, King
Long, Foton, Chery, as well as to customers in
export markets such as Iran’s Saipa Diesel Group.
Export
Shanghai / Thailand - February saw SAIC
Maxus Motor (Thailand) Co Ltd - a joint venture
company established in 2013 by SAIC Motor
Commercial Vehicle Co Ltd of Shanghai and
the Chai Tai Group of Thailand - start sales of the
MAXUS van range in Thailand.
The new joint venture is engaged in the sales of
Maxus buses in Thailand. The first batch of about
100 V80 minibuses, are to be delivered to consumers
in Thailand for commuter service operations.
The V 80 minibus is 5.7m long, 2m wide and 2.5m
high. It has a gross vehicle weight of 4,100kg and
a carrying capacity of up to 16 passengers. It uses
a Shanghai Diesel SCR 2.5-litre Euro III compliant
diesel engine, which offers an output of 100kW.
Production of Maxus started in 2011. Sales
totaled 11,302 units in 2013, 7,076 units in 2012,
and 2,833 units in 2011.
SAIC’s joint venture starts
sales of MAXUS in Thailand
SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT 23
APrIL 2014
IN THIS ISSUE
Dietrich Carebus pioneer’s new child seat
2
Indcar to build buses in Romania
3
DCG importing Yutong coaches to Europe
4
EEC trailer innovation award results
6
ATDyanmics enters Europe with boat-tail 8
Foton enters Europe with new energy
9
Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on Commercial Vehicle Developments in India
Contract
China - BYD Auto Co Ltd of Shenzhen, China,
a fast expanding new energy company, with
its short but very progressive 15 year history in
battery technology and now since 2003 and 2009,
also specializing in the manufacture of electrically
powered cars and taxis and most recently buses,
announced at Busworld last month that it has won
an order for 2000 full size electric buses from the
City of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China.
Paul Lin, senior manager, branding, BYD,
explained that the city of Shenzhen announced
in July this year that by 2015 all public vehicles
buses, taxis and other state-owned vehicles
operating in the city would be those that were fully
electrically powered only with zero emissions. Lin
added that during the recent Universiade2011
(University games) held in Shenzhen in August this
year, 40, BYD electric buses (eBUS-12) served the
sports village, sports venues and media centre, to
provide transportation for competitors, technical
officials, reporters and spectators. Lin said that
already 200 eBUS-12 were being operated as part
of Shenzhen’s public transportation system.
The eBUS-12 is a three-door full low floor city
bus made of an all-aluminium monocoque body
construction. It is fitted with a synchronous
e-motor, which
drives through
a 3-speed
automatic transmission, with electrical energy
stored in BYD’s own Fe battery pack, for which
BYD calculates, will last a full ten years based on
4000 cycles. (He also stated that the company
made battery packs with capacity for 6000 full
cycles, the equivalent to 15 years life). The battery
pack, says Lin, can then be recycled for energy
storage in another application such as solar power
storage. The eBUS is fitted with ZF rear drive axle
and has electronically controlled air suspension
front and rear which provides a kneeling function.
Lin is also able to installed the 100kW charging
station and thereby provide a turn key solution to
Vehixel and Indcar announce collaboration
to expand business internationally
its customers).
The eBUS-12, has a curb weight of 13.8t and
offers what Lin considers to be a conservative range
of 250km on a single charge in urban conditions
with stop-start depending on the duty cycle (280
to 300km is possible on less demanding routes,
says Lin). The bus can be fully charged in 3.5 hours
with a 100kW charger; energy consumption, says
BYD, is around 130kWh/100km with a battery
power pack density of 324kwh.
BYD exhibited at both APTA Expo in New
Orleans, USA and Busworld in Kortrijk, Belgium,
last month to introduce its eBus on both continents.
At Busworld, Lin announced that the eBus would
enter trial service in several European cities,
including Copenhagen and Frankfurt, in the coming
months. It is also understood that BYD’s electric
bus has started undergoing trials at one of the
world’s busiest airports in the city of Los Angeles.
The company added that the eBUS-12 was the
first in a range of electric buses under development;
other variants are to include a 10m model (eBUS-
10, 280km per charge), a double deck (eBUS-
12D, 200km per charge) and a right-hand-drive
version of its eBUS-12.
A further development announced as Future
Fuels & Power was going to press was an
agreement signed by BYD and Daimler AG
to establish “Shenzhen BYD Daimler New
Technology Co Ltd,” a 50:50 research and
technology centre to develop electric cars in China.
A further development announced as Future
Fuels & Power was going to press was an
agreement signed by BYD and Daimler AG
to establish “Shenzhen BYD Daimler New
Technology Co Ltd,” a 50:50 research and
technology centre to develop electric cars in China.
A further development announced as Future
Fuels & Power was going to press was an
agreement signed by BYD and Daimler AG
Investment / Research Centre
Germany / USA - Voith Turbo GmbH & Co KG of
Heidenheim, Germany, has opened a hybrid power-
train development centre in Poway, California, north
of San Diego for the further development of its hybrid
diesel/electric drive systems for transit buses.
Voith says that the centre covers more than
5000 square feet and includes office, warehouse
space and testing facilities. Also, a large solar panel
installation provides electricity for most day-to-day
facility operations.
“We are extremely excited to open a US-based
Hybrid Power-Train Development Centre,” said
Rob Wiss, vice president, Voith Turbo US Road
Voith opens US hybrid centre
Product / Technology
Product / Technology
USA - BAE Systems of Johnston City, New
York, USA used APTA Expo 2011 in New Orleans,
Louisiana, last month to launch, the HDS 300
system, its HybriDrive series propulsion system for
articulated buses.
Based on the company’s proven HDS 200 hybrid
electric propulsion system technology currently
deployed in more than 3,500 transit buses across
the globe, the HDS 300 system will allow higher
capacity buses with gross vehicle weight ratings of
up to 63,000lbs (28.6t).
BAE Systems said it was currently working with
bus manufacturers New Flyer and Nova Bus to
make its HDS 300 hybrid electric propulsion system
available to North American bus transit fleets.
The system, BAE added, can be purchased as a
standard package or with electrified accessories
which further increase the system’s efficiency
by reducing energy demands on the engine.
Electric accessories offer reduced maintenance
and improved safety over their conventional
counterparts, eliminating the normal jungle of belts
and hydraulic lines from the engine compartment.
USA - BAE Systems of Johnston City, New
York, USA used APTA Expo 2011 in New Orleans,
Louisiana, last month to launch, the HDS 300
system, its HybriDrive series propulsion system for
articulated buses.
Based on the company’s proven HDS 200 hybrid
electric propulsion system technology currently
deployed in more than 3,500 transit buses across
the globe, the HDS 300 system will allow higher
capacity buses with gross vehicle weight ratings of
up to 63,000lbs (28.6t).
BAE Systems said it was currently working with
bus manufacturers New Flyer and Nova Bus to
make its HDS 300 hybrid electric propulsion system
available to North American bus transit fleets.
The system, BAE added, can be purchased as a
standard package or with electrified accessories
which further increase.
Kässbohrer moves into truck
body building
Irizar plans entry into USA
Division. “The centre will allow us to further
develop hybrid bus technologies and cater to
the specific needs of our customers who want
to expand their use of this emerging technology.
Above all, we are making an important contribution
to the US economy by expanding the use of
clean-energy technology in transportation fleets
across the country.”
California-based Maxwell
Technologies is
to supply Voith with ultra capacitors; it already
uses Maxwell to supply systems for its patented
DIWAhybrid parallel drive system, which went into
production last month. Voith has been working
with Gillig to field test its parallel DIWAhybrid drive
system and says the aim of the Hybrid Power-
Train Development Center to expand on DIWA and
create new hybrid technologies for the US market.
INDIA
AXLES
1
SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT 13
MArCh 2014
Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on Com
mercial Vehicle Developm
ents in East Asia
EAST ASIA
AXLES
1
Assembly / Agreem
ent
South Korea / Vietnam - Hyundai M
otor Co
of Seoul, South Korea is considering pulling out
of an agreement with Vietnam
’s Truong Hai Auto
Corporation of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam
,
because of delays in completing a local plant.
Hyundai signed an agreement with Vietnam
’s
largest comm
ercial vehicle assembler in 2011 for
the latter to assemble diesel engines at a new
USD182m facility in the Chu Lai Econom
ic Zone of
Vietnam’s Quang Nam
province.
But the delay in implem
enting the agreement has
Hyundai reviews Vietnam diesel engine project
meant that Hyundai’s regional requirem
ents have
moved on from
what was originally agreed. The
Korean firm is now understood to object to Truong
Hai’s plans to press ahead with assembly of Euro
II and Euro III engines, saying it would prefer to
switch to Euro IV engines from 2016.
Meanwhile, the Vietnam
government has just
approved the assembly by Truong Hai of up to
100,000 diesel engines over a five year period,
ending in
December
2018, in
line with
the
specification requirements of the local m
arket.
Expansion / Assembly / Distribution
Indonesia / Sweden - Swedish truck and bus
manufacturer, Scania AB of Sodertalje, aim
s to
strengthen its position in the Indonesian bus market
following the establishment of a new bus plant in the
country in late 2013, with the collaboration of its long-
standing local truck distributor, PT United Tractors.
The new
facility has
a m
onthly production
capacity of 25 completed buses, or around 250-
300 units per year. Demand for intercity and tourism
buses in Indonesia has expanded rapidly over the
last several years, with rising incomes encouraging
more leisure travel.
Public transport in the country’s major cities is
also heavily dependent on buses and demand here
is also increasing rapidly. The overall bus market is
currently dominated by Hino and M
ercedes-Benz,
with Chinese brands beginning to make inroads in
the last year or two.
Scania has a stronger presence in Indonesia’s mining
truck segment, however. The com
pany estimates last
year’s truck sales in the country at 450 to 500 units, a
level largely unchanged from the previous year despite
the tough conditions in the mining sector - with coal
prices depressed for some tim
e.
Indonesia is one of Asia’s largest producers of
coal, which it exports to major regional m
arkets such
as India and China. Scania estimates that around
95% of its truck sales in this country are to m
ining
companies. Its largest client here is PT Pam
apersada
Nusantara (PAMA), which has one of the largest fleets
of mining trucks in the world - including 640 Scanias.
Mikael Benje, head of Scania’s representative office
in Indonesia, said around 2,900 Scania mining trucks
were currently in operation in Indonesia, as well as
Scania expands presence in South-east Asia
150-200 (mostly im
ported) buses.
Scania expects
its truck
sales to
increase
from current levels, particularly when coal prices
recover and investment in coal production rises
once again. Mr Benje believes the tough off-road
operating conditions in this segment offer additional
opportunities for his company.
The com
pany has
established a
new parts
warehouse in Singapore to improve afterm
arket
supplies and reduce its clients’ truck downtime.
“Mining vehicles are worked hard and require rapid
access to parts. One of the reasons we built a new
parts warehouse in Singapore is that we want to cut
lead times in the region”, M
r Benje added.
Large truck operators in Indonesia increasingly
look at the life-cycle costs of trucks, including fuel
consumption, and capacity utilisation, rather than
just the initial truck cost and load capacity, says
Scania. This is expected to benefit European truck
manufacturers such as Scania, as well as others,
Mercedes-Benz and Volvo for exam
ple, which offer
good fuel economy and durable trucks com
pared
with Japanese and Chinese trucks.
Scania is also enjoying strong demand for its
vehicles in Singapore, fuelled by the island-nation’s
construction boom. It sold over 200 trucks in this
market last year and the com
pany claims to have a
strong presence in the bus segment, having delivered
1,100 units since 2007. Deliveries in 2013 are
estimated at around 30 units, however.
As regards other markets in the region, Scania sold
around 670 comm
ercial vehicles in Malaysia and
500 in Thailand last year. It also recently established
dealer operations in Myanm
ar in 2013.
Product
Japan / Germany - Last m
onth saw Kawasaki-
based Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corporation
New 8.55t Fuso Canter
now on sale in Japan
Aftermarket / Investm
ent
Japan / Singapore - Isuzu Motors Ltd of
Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan, through its subsidiary,
Isuzu Motors Asia Ltd has established a new
aftermarket centre in Singapore to help im
prove
aftermarket parts availability and service backup
across the ASEAN region.
The Singapore centre is to be managed by Isuzu
Motors Asia Ltd and is in response to increasing
volumes of Isuzu m
edium and heavy trucks in use
in the region and rising local content levels. Isuzu
Motors Asia Ltd was established in M
arch 1996
and its function is the control of Isuzu business
in ASEAN countries, supply of CKD parts/service
parts and providing support for after-sales activities
of distributors / dealers in the ASEAN region.
The new aftermarket parts facility has been set
up in Johor, on the southern tip of the Malaysia
peninsula and just across the causeway from
Singapore, with more than 30,000 parts in stock to
supply aftermarket distributors across the region.
A similar centre was established in Dubai in 2010
to serve Middle-Eastern m
arkets.
Isuzu establishes new
aftermarket centre in
Singapore
(a subsidiary of Daimler AG
) introduce a new high-
payload version of its Canter medium
-duty truck
through its network of dealerships across Japan.
The new truck has a payload of almost six tons
and a gross weight of 8.55 tons, compared with
a maxim
um gross weight of 8.25 tons previously.
The new truck model is also being rolled out this
year in 40 other markets worldwide.
Export / Expansion
USA / South Korea – February saw US truck-
maker, Navistar International Corporation of
Lisle, Illinois, USA enter the South Korean market
with the launch of its ProStar 6x4 range of heavy
cargo trucks, powered by its 475hp 12.4-litre
(Maxxforce 13) engine.
The m
ove by
Navistar follows
the recent
implem
entation of a trade agreement between
South-Korea and the USA in March 2012, which
eliminates im
port tariffs on these products.
Navistar says it has sold 70,000 units of this truck
model in the US to date and is upbeat about its
sales prospects in South Korea. The company
claims that the ProStar, which it has priced at KRW
159 million (USD149,000), is 9%
more fuel-efficient
than its European competitors.
Navistar suggests
the South
Korean heavy-
duty truck market is currently 55%
controlled by
European brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Scania,
Volvo and MAN, with the rem
ainder taken up by
domestic trucks from
Hyundai and Tata Daewoo.
Navistar plans to support products in South Korea
through its International truck dealerships, currently
found at six locations and plans to continue to grow
its service and support network.
ProStar units for the Korean market are built at
the company’s assem
bly plant in Springfield, Ohio.
Navistar enters South
Korea’s heavy truck market
SP
EC
IAL S
UP
PLE
ME
NT 1
AP
RIL 2014
Special Supplement to Truck & Bus Builder on C
omm
ercial Vehicle Developm
ents in South America
SOUTH AMERICA
AXLES
1
Dear R
eader,
Welcom
e to
our new
est regional
supplement
recording the
most
important
developments
concerning the
comm
ercial vehicle
manufacturing
industry in Brazil and other South Am
erican countries.
As w
ith our
other regional
supplements,
we
highlight new
business
relationships, new
products, legislation impacting the m
arket and the
manufacturers’ research and production strategies.
As usual we look at the m
arkets by product segment
and w
eight. In
this inaugural
edition w
e have
focussed on the largest market, B
razil.
Jim G
ibbins, editor
Jose C Secco
, local correspondent
Investment
Brazil
/ U
SA
-
Supplying
engines for
new
customer applications in trucks and buses is one
of the key pillars of Cum
mins’ grow
th strategy in
Brazil.
As
part of
this initiative,
Cum
mins
Inc of
Colum
bus, Ohio, through its subsidiary, C
umm
ins
Brasil Ltda of S
ão Paulo, B
razil plans to invest
US
D48m
on engineering technology and in further
modernization
of its
plant in
Guarulhos,
state
of São P
aulo unit, where its diesel engines are
produced. It also announced plans to invest more
than US
D90m
in the first phase of construction
of a new plant at Itatiba, in state of S
ão Paulo,
to where it plans to transfer its energy and filter
business areas. This new plant is expected to
begin operations during 2015.
The com
pany expects
the truck
market
to
grow steadily in 2014, by betw
een five and ten
per cent. A num
ber of truck manufacturers have
launched production
operations recently
with
trucks fitted with C
umm
ins engines. One such
example w
ould be MA
N Latin A
merica, w
hich has
been installing the Cum
mins IS
L 420hp engine in
the VW C
onstellation since 2012. Other brands
that have installed or plan to offer a Cum
mins
Cum
mins to invest U
SD138m
in diesel engine
manufacturing operations in B
razil
engine unit in Brazil are all C
hinese; they include
Beiqi Foton M
otor, Foton Aum
ark do Brasil,
Metro-S
hacman and JA
C M
otors should utilize
the brand’s
engines. Foreign
manufacturers
/
assemblers m
ust comply w
ith local rules, which
require that 65% of com
ponents must be sourced
from w
ithin Brazil – so thus requirem
ent ensures
that the engines are built by Cum
mins in B
razil and
not imported from
China.
Cum
mins estim
ates that nearly 70,000 diesel
engines are to come off its production lines this
year for installation in trucks. For the bus segment,
the company expects an increase in m
arket share
from 11%
to 20% w
ithin three years, with its
engines being offered in a number of new
models
and in
new
applications during
this tim
e; this
includes, says Cum
mins, the supply of engines to
Mercedes-B
enz do Brasil for installation in light-
duty Mercedes-B
enz buses.
Cum
mins Inc has four divisions and business
in Latin
Am
erica is
split as
follows:
Engines
45%, D
istribution 30%, Energy G
eneration 13%
and components 14%
. After a slow
er year than
expected in 2013, the company is now
focused
on meeting forecast projected grow
th.
Import / D
istribution / Agreem
ent
Brazil / C
hina - Following in the footsteps of a
number of its fellow
truck and bus manufacturers,
like Shaanxi A
uto, Sinotruck and Foton, another
Chinese
bus producer,
Shanghai
Shenlong
Bus C
o Ltd (Sunlong) of S
hanghai, China, has
announced that it plans to begin exporting buses
to Brazil before the end of June.
This announcem
ent w
as m
ade by
Brazilian
entrepreneur, Mauri M
oreira de Oliveira, w
ho has
been appointed
as S
unlong’s B
razilian partner.
Oliveira announced that he w
ould be investing
an initial BR
L15m (U
SD
6.4m) to construct a new
distribution centre on an 80,000 sq m site in Juiz
de Fora, in the state of Minas G
erais.
With 35 years of experience in the segm
ent and
having worked w
ith foreign bus chassis builders,
Volvo and Scania and B
razilian bus body builder,
Com
il, Oliveira stated that S
unlong’s arrival in Brazil
would be the result of three years of discussions
and negotiations with the C
hinese builder.
Oliveira says the buses and coaches are to be
imported fully built up ready for operation in the
Brazilian m
arket place and that already, a number of
vehicles were undergoing type approval in the country.
Shenlong Bus appoints industry entrepreneur
in Brazil to sell Sunlong buses
As is com
mon in the passenger car and truck
segments,
buses im
ported from
C
hina have
a
certain attraction and market place due to their
often highly competitive low
price. Oliveira points
out that
the vehicles
being im
ported, how
ever,
incorporate a great deal of advanced technology
to improve both com
fort and safety such as air
suspension, air conditioning systems and A
BS
.
Oliviera says that w
hilst all the imported vehicles
would be equipped w
ith diesel engines, Sunlong
has the technology to offer a full range of other
powertrains
including hybrid
vehicles, electric
vehicles and even buses propelled using fuel cells.
How
ever, import of such m
odels would only be
likely once the Brazilian governm
ent had defined its
incentive programm
e.
Oliveira
also announced
that S
unlong w
ould
consider producing buses in Brazil in a few
years’
time; this w
ould, if it went ahead, be its first plant
outside of China. O
liveira remarked: “O
ur plan is to
win a sm
all slice of the Brazilian m
arket by offering
products that complem
ent the market.”
Sunlong buses to be sold in B
razil are to include
9m to 12m
coaches and 12m city buses.
Brazil - In addition to the ungraded Ford C
argo
816, Ford Trucks of São B
ernardo do Cam
po, has
announced that later this year it plans to expand its
presence in the medium
truck market by offering
the 11 ton Cargo 1119 m
odel. Details w
ere not
released but Ford suggests it will have the highest
output and load capacity in its class.
Product
Ford to offer new 11t truck
Sweden
/ B
razil –
Worldly
knnown
for its
brake system
s and
brake com
ponent products
for comm
ercial vehicles, Sweden’s H
aldex AB
of
Landskrona, is targeting the Brazilian truck and bus
markets to expand sales.
Brazil is, indicates H
aldex, the largest and single
most im
portant country in South America. It points out
that, after a slow year in 2012, the B
razilian economy
once again started to show its strength during 2013.
In addition to a growing econom
y, Brazilian legislation
was also driving technical developm
ent forward. An
emissions standard equivalent to EU
RO
5 had, Haldex
points out, already been introduced, as well as rules
regarding ABS and autom
atic brake adjustment.
AB
S
legislation w
as introduced
in 2013
and
required new trailers in B
razil to be equipped with
AB
S system
s, comm
ents Haldex, adding that the
legislation would be fully im
plemented in 2014.
The AB
S legislation w
as also expected to increase
the penetration rate of automatic brake adjusters
in order to fully utilize AB
S perform
ance. Haldex
draws
attention to
the fact
that annual
trailer
production volume for the S
outh Am
erican market
amounted to approxim
ately 80,000 vehicles.
In its annual report for 2013 it points out that Haldex’
new m
anufacturing plant in São José dos Cam
pos
saw a 50%
increase in production volume. This, it
says, is a brand new facility w
ith a new organization,
so this positive progress is a welcom
e addition to
meet the grow
ing demand in South Am
erica. The
plant in São José dos Cam
pos replaced three former
sites, and it was, says H
aldex, carefully chosen for its
strategic and logistical location.
Sales
Haldex targets Brazilian m
arket
VOLUME 35 ISSUE NUMBER 4 MaRch 2014
www.truckandbusbuilder.com 1
The International Newsletter of commercial Vehicle Manufacturing Developments
Contract
China - BYD Auto Co Ltd of Shenzhen, China, a fast expanding new energy company, with its short but very progressive 15 year history in battery technology and now since 2003 and 2009, also specializing in the manufacture of electrically powered cars and taxis and most recently buses, announced at Busworld last month that it has won an order for 2000 full size electric buses from the City of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China.
Paul Lin, senior manager, branding, BYD, explained that the city of Shenzhen announced in July this year that by 2015 all public vehicles buses, taxis and other state-owned vehicles operating in the city would be those that were fully electrically powered only with zero emissions. Lin added that during the recent Universiade2011 (University games) held in Shenzhen in August this year, 40, BYD electric buses (eBUS-12) served the sports village, sports venues and media centre, to provide transportation for competitors, technical officials, reporters and spectators. Lin said that already 200 eBUS-12 were being operated as part of Shenzhen’s public transportation system.
The eBUS-12 is a three-door full low floor city bus made of an all-aluminium monocoque body construction. It is fitted with a synchronous e-motor, which drives through a 3-speed automatic transmission, with electrical energy stored in BYD’s own Fe battery pack, for which BYD calculates, will last a full ten years based on 4000 cycles. (He also stated that the company made battery packs with capacity for 6000 full cycles, the equivalent to 15 years life). The battery pack, says Lin, can then be recycled for energy storage in another application such as solar power storage. The eBUS is fitted with ZF rear drive axle and has electronically controlled air suspension front and rear which provides a kneeling function. Lin is also able to installed the 100kW charging station and thereby provide a turn key solution to
Vehixel and Indcar announce collaboration to expand business internationally
its customers).The eBUS-12, has a curb weight of 13.8t and
offers what Lin considers to be a conservative range of 250km on a single charge in urban conditions with stop-start depending on the duty cycle (280 to 300km is possible on less demanding routes, says Lin). The bus can be fully charged in 3.5 hours with a 100kW charger; energy consumption, says BYD, is around 130kWh/100km with a battery power pack density of 324kwh.
BYD exhibited at both APTA Expo in New Orleans, USA and Busworld in Kortrijk, Belgium, last month to introduce its eBus on both continents. At Busworld, Lin announced that the eBus would enter trial service in several European cities, including Copenhagen and Frankfurt, in the coming months. It is also understood that BYD’s electric bus has started undergoing trials at one of the world’s busiest airports in the city of Los Angeles.
The company added that the eBUS-12 was the first in a range of electric buses under development; other variants are to include a 10m model (eBUS-10, 280km per charge), a double deck (eBUS-12D, 200km per charge) and a right-hand-drive version of its eBUS-12.
A further development announced as Future Fuels & Power was going to press was an agreement signed by BYD and Daimler AG to establish “Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co Ltd,” a 50:50 research and technology centre to develop electric cars in China.
A further development announced as Future Fuels & Power was going to press was an agreement signed by BYD and Daimler AG to establish “Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co Ltd,” a 50:50 research and technology centre to develop electric cars in China.
A further development announced as Future Fuels & Power was going to press and technology centre to develop electric cars in China.
Product / Technology
Product / Technology
USA - BAE Systems of Johnston City, New York, USA used APTA Expo 2011 in New Orleans, Louisiana, last month to launch, the HDS 300 system, its HybriDrive series propulsion system for articulated buses.
Based on the company’s proven HDS 200 hybrid electric propulsion system technology currently deployed in more than 3,500 transit buses across the globe, the HDS 300 system will allow higher capacity buses with gross vehicle weight ratings of up to 63,000lbs (28.6t).
BAE Systems said it was currently working with bus manufacturers New Flyer and Nova Bus to make its HDS 300 hybrid electric propulsion system available to North American bus transit fleets. The system, BAE added, can be purchased as a standard package or with electrified accessories which further increase the system’s efficiency by reducing energy demands on the engine. Electric accessories offer reduced maintenance and improved safety over their conventional counterparts, eliminating the normal jungle of belts and hydraulic lines from the engine compartment.
USA - BAE Systems of Johnston City, New York, USA used APTA Expo 2011 in New Orleans, Louisiana, last month to launch, the HDS 300 system, its HybriDrive series propulsion system for articulated buses.
Based on the company’s proven HDS 200 hybrid electric propulsion system technology currently deployed in more than 3,500 transit buses across the globe, the HDS 300 system will allow higher capacity buses with gross vehicle weight ratings of up to 63,000lbs (28.6t).
BAE Systems said it was currently working with bus manufacturers New Flyer and Nova Bus to make its HDS 300 hybrid electric propulsion system available to North American bus transit fleets. The system, BAE added, can be purchased as a standard package or with electrified accessories which further increase.
Kässbohrer moves into truck body building
Irizar plans entry into USA
Truck & Bus Builder
IN THIS ISSUE
Dietrich Carebus pioneer’s new child seat 2
Indcar to build buses in Romania 3
DCG importing Yutong coaches to Europe 4
EEC trailer innovation award results 6
ATDyanmics enters Europe with boat-tail 8
Foton enters Europe with new energy 9
Germany / USA - Voith Turbo GmbH & Co KG of Heidenheim, Germany, has opened a hybrid power-train development centre in Poway, California, north of San Diego for the further development of its hybrid diesel/electric drive systems for transit buses.
Also, a large solar panel installation provides electricity for most day-to-day facility operations.
“We are extremely excited to open a US-based Hybrid Power-Train Development Centre,” said Rob Wiss, vice president, Voith Turbo US Road Division. “The centre will allow us to further develop hybrid bus technologies and cater to
Voith opens US hybrid centre
the specific needs of our customers who want to expand their use of this emerging technology. Above all, we are making an important contribution to the US economy by expanding the use of clean-energy technology in transportation fleets across the country.”
California-based Maxwell Technologies is to supply Voith with ultra capacitors; it already uses Maxwell to supply systems for its patented DIWAhybrid parallel drive system, which went into production last month. Voith has been working with Gillig to field test its parallel DIWAhybrid drive system and says the clean-energy technology in transportation aim of the Hybrid Power-Train Development Center to expand on DIWA and create new hybrid technologies for the US market.
Development SAMPLE
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show. He said the bus transport business and the bus manufacturing industry had undergone a sea change since 2001, the year the company had started in India. He pointed out that Volvo has pursued a strategy of maximising its local content and that the bus body in all Volvo buses in India was now 100 per cent localised. In addition it was now building buses in India for the European market; he said that its low-entry city bus, the Volvo 8400 fitted with a Euro VI compliant driveline, built in India had been sold and delivered to operators in Spain and in France.
Volvo Bus said that the new coach is to be manufactured at Volvo Buses’ facility near Hosakote, Bangalore.
Volvo stated that it has sold more than 6000 buses in India, which includes 4,500 coaches and some 1,500 city buses.
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