Thomas Built, Detroit Diesel donate engine to diesel program
Thomas Built Buses and Detroit Diesel Corp. have contributed a six-cylinder Mercedes Benz 900 engine to Sheridan (Wyo.) College’s Diesel Program.
Rich Thornburg, a district service manager for Thomas Built, said the company worked with its business partners to ensure that the school would have new equipment with the most current technology after Thornburg learned that the program did not have a Mercedes Benz engine.
In other news, Thomas Built’s New York dealership, Matthews Buses Inc., will now serve as its school and commercial transportation solution provider for central and northern Florida.
Mathews Buses will serve the community through an Orlando- based dealership and several mobile service units.
IC Bus introduces A/C system; hybrid units qualify for tax credit
IC Bus has introduced IC Air, a factory-installed air conditioning system that is engineered to a bus’ specifications.
IC will offer a 30-month standard warranty as well as multiple extended warranty options. Customers can contact their local dealers about including IC Air on their bus purchases.
In other news, the Internal Revenue Service has added 10 IC units to a list of vehicles that qualify for the Alternative Fuel Motor Vehicle Credit.
IC’s school buses that meet the requirements are the 2008 and 2009 CE Series hybrids equipped with an Enova charge-depleting hybrid drive system, gross vehicle weights 14,001 to 26,000 lbs. and 26,001 to 33,000 lbs.
Navistar Defense to develop vehicles for military applications
Navistar Defense LLC, an affiliate of Navistar International Corp., will convert commercial vehicles for military applications in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Two contracts totaling $60.4 million were awarded to Navistar Defense by the U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command.
The buses produced for the first contract will be based on IC Bus’ CE 300 school bus platform and will be powered by MaxxForce DT engines. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in February and be completed by June 2010.
The refrigerator trucks produced for the second contract will be based on International’s WorkStar platform and will run on MaxxForce engines. Deliveries will begin this month and will be completed by August.
Arens Controls Co. relocates corporate headquarters
Arens Controls Co. has relocated to a new corporate facility in Arlington Heights, Ill.
Arens CEO Kenneth Kunin said the company’s acquisition of Ouadrasat Controls, coupled with its growth in the hybrid vehicle power electronics market, prompted the relocation.
Arens develops and manufactures by-wire electronic transmission and drivetrain control components.
STA Education Foundation to host golf tournament
Officials for Student Transportation of America’s (STA) Education Foundation and the PGA (Professional Golfers Association) Tour’s Nationwide Tour announced that the 2009-11 Nationwide Tour Championship will be played at the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, S.C., which includes two nationally-ranked golf courses.
STA’s Education Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the school bus company, will serve as host. The foundation’s partnership with the Nationwide Tour will help expand the foundation’s ability to offer college scholarships to deserving high school students. For the first time, scholarships will be awarded to outstanding Charleston students who display pride in their community and choose to attend Charleston-area colleges and universities, said foundation Chairman Denis J. Gallagher.
Blue Bird announces dealer development
Blue Bird Corp.’s dealer in Quebec, A. Girardin Inc., has acquired Pearson Bus Sales Ltd. in Ontario. Pearson is also a dealer for Blue Bird and for Girardin Minibus in Ontario.
Tony Martins, a veteran of Canadian Blue Bird Coach Ltd., was appointed general manager of Pearson Bus Sales. Rick Pearson will remain as sales manager during the transition period.
Quebec and the Maritime provinces will continue to be served through A. Girardin Inc.
Oregon transit company tests new Thermo King system
Thermo King Corp. has developed an all-electric bus HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) system.
The system operates with an electric compressor, enabling it to offer consistent capacity regardless of the ambient temperature or bus speed.
TriMet, a Portland, Ore.-based transit company, tested the unit on one of its buses for one year and compared its results to 20 other buses from the same fleet.
Tony Bryant, bus maintenance director, reported that the system had negligible maintenance costs and facilitated 2 to 3 percent in annual fuel savings.
Moreover, once software was installed to improve capacity control on the unit, the bus’ fuel economy exceeded the fleet average by as much as 7 percent during some months.
Allison Transmission opens call center
Allison Transmission Inc. has established a Technical Assistance Call Center (TAC) to answer distributor, dealer and end user service questions about all Allison 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 Product Family Vocational Models, as well as AT, MT and HT models.
TAC representatives answer questions about general issues, such as fluid levels and diagnostic codes; for more complex issues, the rep involves a dealer or distributor near the caller’s location.
The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The toll-free telephone number is (800) 252-5283.
{+PAGEBREAK+} InstallerNet acquires information technology company
Installation solutions provider InstallerNet Inc. has acquired Victory Technologies Inc.
The acquisition will enable InstallerNet’s MAID vehicle software subscribers to have access to Victory Technologies’ Installation Excellence database, while Installation Excellence subscribers now have access to the products and business opportunities afforded to InstallerNet retail partners.
In 2007, InstallerNet installed safety devices from Child Check-Mate Systems on First Student Inc. buses. The second phase of the project began in late 2008 and is scheduled to be completed in April.
First Student cleans up Minnesota fleet
First Student Inc.’s participation in Project Green Fleet’s School Bus Emission Reduction program has enabled over half of its Minnesota fleet to be retrofitted with emissions-control equipment.
The most recent retrofits were completed on 48 buses at First Student’s Wayzata, Minn., location. Retrofits at locations in Mounds View, Oakdale, Rochester, Anoka and Champlin have also been completed.
More than 350 First Student Minnesota school buses were retrofitted by the end of 2008.
Project Green Fleet is coordinated by the Minnesota Environmental Initiative, which creates partnerships to enact programs that positively impact the state’s environment.
Propane industry offers updated fleet cost calculator
The propane industry has launched the latest version of a fleet cost calculator designed to help fleet managers make a business case for operating propane-powered vehicles.
The calculator, available on the Propane Education and Research Council’s Website at www.propanecouncil.org/fleetcalculator, is easier to use and features updated information.
Fleet managers can log on to the calculator to analyze cost savings and how they are affected by fuel prices, vehicle fuel economy, initial vehicle price, local and state rebates, and federal tax credits.
The calculator also allows users to estimate costs over a 10-year period, factoring in revenue from the sale of fleet vehicles.
AngelTrax holds strategy meeting during BusCon 2008
AngelTrax Bus Video held its annual Global Strategy Meeting during BusCon 2008 in October. AngelTrax President Richie Howard and consultant T.C. Howard conducted the meeting at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago.
Topics discussed during the meeting included the competitive landscape, new products, marketing tactics, channels to market and company-wide goals.
AngelTrax manufactures video surveillance for the school bus, mass transit, rail and law enforcement industries.
Zonar Systems celebrates anniversary, product milestone
Fleet management solutions provider Zonar Systems reached its seven-year anniversary in October and completed over 50 million verified visual fleet inspections across all 50 states in the U.S. thanks to its electronic vehicle inspection report (EVIR), which enables school bus drivers to quickly and efficiently complete their pre- and post-trip inspections.
In 2003, a child-check feature was added to EVIR to ensure that drivers conduct a clearance walk to make certain that children are not inadvertently left on the bus.
Zonar’s latest product, ZPass, allows end users to track students during the loading and unloading process.
Edupro Group unveils new corporate logo
Edupro Group, sponsor of the National Conference and Exhibition on Transporting Students with Disabilities and Preschoolers, recently unveiled a new corporate logo.
The logo contains bold colors and clean graphics to emphasize professionalism in pupil transportation, company officials said.
A highway graphic ties in Edupro Group’s mission to deliver vital information on best practices for pupil transportation through the conference and exhibition, held annually since 1992.
The 2009 event is scheduled to be held Feb. 27 to Mar. 4 in Indianapolis.
For more information, visit www.eduprogroup.com.
Arsenault recognized for corporate growth, releases 2009 calendar
Fleet maintenance software provider Arsenault Associates has been named one of Philadelphia’s 100 fastest-growing privately-held companies.
The Philadelphia 100 is an annual program conducted by the Entrepreneurs’ Forum of Greater Philadelphia Inc., the Philadelphia Business Journal and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Small Business Development Center.
In other news, Arsenault’s 2009 Dossier wall calendar is now available to fleet professionals. It features winners of the second annual Dossier Fleet Maintenance Software Calendar Photo Contest.
Contest winners will be honored at the 2009 Dossier User Group in May in Nashville, Tenn.; the grand prize winner will also be announced.
To receive a calendar, call (800) 525-5256 or e-mail sales@arsenault.biz.
Transfinder offers routing and scheduling software tutorials
Transfinder Corp. in October began offering free Web seminars to its school district clients. The online courses that compose Transfinder University teach the basics of the company’s routing and planning software program and teach transportation personnel how to save money.
“Our customers rely on us for dedicated training after they’ve purchased our routing software,” said Kathleen Fagan, marketing manager. “However, we felt it was necessary to go beyond this initial training since many districts experience turnover. This way a new employee can jumpstart his or her learning simply by going to our Website [www.transfinder.com].”