The Spanish manufacturer is delivering new i4 and i6 models in conjunction with a number of stakeholders
Irizar has completed the handover of 26 coaches to the Ministry of Defence. The coaches have beeen delivered to sites across the UK, with the initial batch comprising 21 14-metre i6 and five 12.9-metre i4 coaches, which Irizar says were built to a special MoD specification.
The project had multiple stakeholders, with Babcock International managing the procurement process on behalf of the MoD via competitive tender, and Novuna Vehicle Solutions being selected as the lease provider. Andrew Blundell, Managing Director of Irizar UK commented: It has been a pleasure to work closely with the teams at Babcock and Novuna, and successfully deliver the first Irizar coaches into the MoD. By committing to detailed evaluation of different options, we have been able to deliver a specification which optimises the MoD’s unique requirements around passenger seat numbers and payload capacity.”
The 14m i6 coaches have 59 seats, and have been built with PSVAR preparation to protect future residual values. The i4s were specifically selected for their lower overall height due to access restrictions at a number of locations, and have 51 seats and are PSVAR-ready. All of the coaches are supplied with the DAF engines paired with ZF Traxon transmission, and are HVO compatible, something which Irizar says was particularly important in the selection criteria, with the use of HVO offering a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions.
Optimisation and Implementation Manager for Babcock International Matt Strickland commented: “Babcock is delighted to be working with Irizar delivering this vital capability to the MoD. Throughout the process the Irizar team have been proactive and customer focused, understanding the specific requirements of the MOD. Reducing CO2 emissions, maximising payload and seat numbers, and minimising through life costs were three very important customer requirements. Working with Irizar we have delivered a first class product to end users.”
National Business Development Manager for Novuna Vehicle Solutions Toby Carter added: “This has been a seamless process from order through to user delivery, including our own thorough pre-delivery inspections, and driver training on handover of all these new coaches. Everyone in the process has been very satisfied with the outcome and we have received excellent user feedback, so a great job done by all involved.”
Winning a public sector tender and delivering into the MoD is part of Irizar’s strategic road-map as Andrew explained: “When I was appointed in March 2020, diversification of the customer base and volume growth were two very clear objectives. Covid-19 put a 30 month dent in our timeline, but I’m delighted that Irizar in the UK is now actively engaged in supplying units into the larger fleets and the public sector. Whilst the ‘retail’ market will remain vitally important to us, our successful divergence into larger volume deals will deliver critical mass into our business, and strategically underpin our medium term plans for the UK market as we embark on the next exciting phase of our growth.”
