Evobus Romania has commenced the delivery of a number of 30 Mercedes-Benz Conecto G complete low-floor articulated buses to RATT, the public authority of Timisoara, the largest western city in Romania. The bidding process started in 2008 and it was finally completed in 2009, with Evobus being declared winner. Apart from this new Conecto G buses, RATT also operates 55 Mercedes-Benz Conecto solo buses of the first generation. These examples were brought back in 2005 and 2006 and are equipped with air-conditioning system.

The new articulated Conectos were assembled at the Mercedes-Benz Türk A.S. Hosdere - Istanbul facility in Turkey and are powered by the OM 457 6-cylinder inline BlueTEC 5 engine, which sports a total cc displacement of 12.0 liters and reaches a peak output of 354 hp (260 kW). The maximum torque of 1600 Nm is entirely available at 1100 rpm. Power is sent to the two rear axles via an automatic 6-speed automatic gearbox, produced by ZF. Among the key safety features of the new Conecto G we can list the complex braking system with discs on all 6 wheels, the ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) and the EBS (Electronic Braking System), all of them offered as standard equipment. Engineers have also installed the integrated FPS (Freely Programmable Control System) management unit, gathering together no less than 5 electronic modules which make possible the proper functioning of all the bus components (from heating, ventilation, instrument cluster up to passenger-dedicated IBIS - Issue-Based Information System).

The ease of access inside the bus is further improved by the intelligent pneumatic suspension (the driver can vary the height depending on the conditions), working in perfect conjunction with the full low floor architecture.

The KTL method (body immersion in dyebath + cataphoresis or E-coat) prevents the exterior paint finish from rusting, for the whole life cycle of the bus. As in the case of the other 55 Conecto solo models owned by RATT, the new articulated buses boast a special and distinctive exterior colour scheme: white and mild purple.

The Conecto G models to enter in operation in Timisoara are also equipped with Konvecta air conditioning units, a black box that records the events taking place during an accident, a 3D-sensor passenger counting system, a real-time surveillance system with 7 video cameras placed inside and outside the bus and a set of two interior LCD display where passengers will be able to read various information concerning the route. GSM, GPRS, Wi-Fi and WLAN antennas ensure a smooth data transfer and allow the detection of the exact location of the bus.

As a conclusion, the new Mercedes-Benz Conecto G is, by far, the best alternative in its segment, with an unbeatable price/quality ratio (being targeted specially to the Central and Eastern European countries) and a very attractive friendliness in everyday usage. Moreover, this buses, as well as other Mercedes-Benz and SETRA buses and coaches, benefit from an extensive network of dedicated, professional service centers across Europe provided by Evobus, a member of the Daimler AG Group.

<< Official details provided courtesy of Mr. Deniz Kuluhan, Sales Manager Evobus Romania, and Mrs. Dorina Barac, Marketing/PR Officer Evobus Romania >>

Note: Reproduction of the images, on other websites, without the preliminary consent of the rightful owner is strictly forbidden.









Copyright © 2010, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Stuttgart/Bucharest, Germany/Romania, Jul 09, 2009

- Official handover to the Bucharest mass transit company

- Opening of new EvoBus Romania location in Bucharest

At the end of June, Daimler Buses handed the 1,000th Mercedes-Benz Citaro city bus to Bucharest’s mass transit company Regia Autonoma de Transport Bucuresti (RATB). Dr. Eckehard Stengel, Managing Director of EvoBus Romania, symbolically presented the keys to Bucharest’s Mayor Sorin Oprescu at the festive opening of the new EvoBus Romania location. EvoBus is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Daimler AG.


“The new customer and service center in Bucharest underscores our commitment to Eastern Europe. We are proud of the successes our colleagues have achieved there such as the achievements in sales and the professional handling of all full-service and maintenance service contracts,” says Holger Suffel, Managing Director of Sales at EvoBus.

Daimler Buses has been represented in Romania since April 2006. It has sold around 1,200 buses in the country over the past three years, making it the clear market leader for buses with a market share of about 50 percent.

The 1,000th Mercedes-Benz Citaro for the Bucharest mass transit company is 12 meters long and provides seating for 27 passengers. The bus is equipped with a Euro 4-compliant BlueTec engine. The most recent delivery completes the major order from 2007 for 500 Citaro city buses. The Romanian capital ordered the first batch of 500 city buses of the Citaro type back in 2005. The low-floor city bus is manufactured at the German Mercedes-Benz bus plants in Mannheim and Ulm.

Besides trams and trolley buses, the RATB fleet consists of 1,500 buses, including 1,000 Mercedes-Benz Citaro city buses. In addition to serving urban areas, the Bucharest mass transit company operates a total of 51 rural service bus lines. Last year, buses accounted for about half of the passengers transported in Bucharest.

The new EvoBus Romania location in Bucharest was primarily selected because of its better accessibility for customers. On 12,000 m² of floor space the new service provides customers with further service and maintenance for Mercedes-Benz and Setra buses such as services 24 hours a day. The after-sales area provides also offers professional driver and technology training courses for customers and service partners. Around 90 men and women are employed at the new location.




Copyright © 2009, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

- New photovoltaic system on assembly hall roof is officially inaugurated

- “E+” energy conservation project substantially reduces CO2 emissions and lowers costs

- Major investments in environmentally sound production processes

Neu-Ulm, Germany, Mar 06, 2009 - Environmental protection is a top priority at the plant operated by EvoBus GmbH in Neu-Ulm. For years now, the facility has been carrying out numerous projects with the aim of developing environmentally friendly products and production processes. Such efforts not only help the environment but also reduce costs, as evidenced by the fact that the Neu-Ulm plant boasts the lowest energy costs per square meter of all Daimler commercial vehicle plants in Germany. This makes the plant a benchmark in the Group.


The latest contribution to environmental protection made is an 18,000-square-meter photovoltaic system mounted on the roof of the assembly building. The photovoltaic system is a joint undertaking of Stadtwerke Ulm/Neu-Ulm GmbH, Phoenix Solar AG, and EvoBus GmbH. This joint project counts as a remarkable example of cooperation between the public sector and the industry. At the same time the system in Neu-Ulm, which was officially inaugurated today, is the largest photovoltaic system built on Daimler premises. The system has a peak output of 2.3 megawatts (2,300 kilowatt) electricity, which is enough to cover the electricity needs of around 650 households for an entire year. What’s more, it saves approximately 2,000 tons of CO2 per year by comparison with a modern coal-fired power plant.

The list of green initiatives at the EvoBus plant in Neu-Ulm is long. One prominent example is the plant’s “E+” project, which is designed to significantly improve energy efficiency, lower costs, and reduce the strain on the environment. Whereas the new photovoltaic system marks an important milestone in energy conservation, “E+” is about more than just solar energy, as the project seeks to enhance efficiency in every conceivable area. For example, since 2006 the Neu-Ulm plant has reduced its consumption of natural gas for heating purposes by nearly 25 percent. In the past, giant energy-guzzling heating fans used to swirl warm air into the factory halls, but now radiant heating panels installed in the ceilings send heat down to the factory floor. “Even in the winter, you always have the feeling that the sun is shining in our halls,” says Horst Uhl, head of Plant Infrastructure at EvoBus. Even better than that is the fact that the new heating unit eliminates emissions of more than 2,200 tons of CO2 per year.

Many ideas from the workforce

The special thing about the “E+” project is that any employee can contribute his or her energy-saving ideas to it. Repeated internal idea competitions have already produced many small improvements, which in sum are generating huge savings potential. “We promote environmentally responsible behavior at EvoBus by providing relevant information and advanced training to all of our employees,” says Wolfgang Hänle, the head of EvoBus Production, who is responsible for the Neu-Ulm plant. “We give our people responsibility, inform them about environmental regulations, and reward their good ideas and exceptional performance.”

EvoBus has invested almost €70 million in the Neu-Ulm plant over the last two years and has consistently made sure that new environmentally friendly technologies are always part of the package. The plant’s bus paint shop - the most modern facility of its kind for buses ever since - has reduced its paint consumption by more than 40 percent and its solvent and dust emissions by approximately 50 percent. The use of improved drying processes, energy-saving motors, and heat recuperation systems has also lowered energy and heating costs.

The new EvoBus Replacement Parts Logistics Center, which opened in February 2008 in Schwaighofen, was also designed with ecology in mind. The center’s new administration building cleverly combines energy efficiency with renewable energy sources in a system that obtains 80 percent of the energy needed for heating and cooling the building directly from the environment - free of charge. It does this with the help of a heat pump that uses the groundwater at the site as a source of energy.

Copyright © 2009, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Stuttgart, Germany, Feb 17, 2009

* Payout to 11,000 employees in March

* Highest level of profit sharing since the establishment of EvoBus

* Maximum success-based component of €450 added to Evopensionskonto-Plus pension accounts

The EvoBus GmbH management team and the company’s General Works Council have jointly agreed to pay a voluntary profit-sharing bonus of €2,100 to all 11,000 eligible EvoBus employees. The bonus, which will be included with wage and salary payments for March 2009, is the highest profit sharing payout issued since the establishment of EvoBus in 1995.


Additionally, the company also will voluntarily add the maximum success-based component of €450 to Evopensionskonto-Plus pension accounts.

The success-based profit sharing payment and the maximum pension component are being used by the management team to reward the great effort and dedication of the workforce, and the contribution it made to the operating result in 2008.

The basis for the profit sharing payout is the very good business development at EvoBus GmbH last year, when the company once again set a new record by selling 10,900 Mercedes-Benz and Setra brand buses, or 13 percent more than in 2007.

EvoBus GmbH is a wholly owned Daimler subsidiary. The company’s profit sharing plan for its employees is negotiated by means of an internal agreement and is therefore separate from the system used at Daimler AG, whose Board of Management determines the Group’s profit sharing payout each year after consulting with the Works Council.

Copyright © 2009, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.