LIVONIA, MICH. — Five recently hired business development executives bring dozens of years of expertise in the automotive and alternative fuels industries to ROUSH CleanTech, company officials said on Wednesday.

ROUSH CleanTech manufactures and installs propane autogas fuel system technology for Type A Micro Bird and Type C Blue Bird school buses, among other vehicles. The new employees increase the company’s staff to 80 — up from six in 2010.

“We’ve invested more than $35 million to establish a solid foundation with the most advanced technology backed by a robust supply chain,” said Todd Mouw, vice president of sales and marketing at ROUSH CleanTech. “Coupled with ROUSH’s well-known brand and the addition of top sales talent, we are excited to be at the forefront of the alternative fuels market. All of this will lead to more effective service and support for our customers.”

The new members of the ROUSH CleanTech sales team are:

• Derek Whaley, whose emphasis is the public sector, including school districts and government municipalities.

• Phillip Mailey, with a focus on providing fleet solutions to school districts and government municipalities.

• Steve Whaley, with a focus on launching the new ROUSH CleanTech Ford F-650 and F-59 strip chassis for national fleet accounts.

• Joe Rudolph, concentrating on fleet analysis and sales in the telecommunications and transit industries.

• Don Manfredi, providing fleet analysis and solutions to integrate alternative fuel vehicles in the services industry.

Other recent news related to propane:

• GO Riteway adds 20 propane buses to fleet
• Over 2,000 propane school buses now running in Texas