NewPower for mid-life fleets

Jonathan Welch reports from the launch of Wrightbus’ new in-house bus repowering facility in Oxfordshire

Whether you like it or not, it’s coming. In the not too distant future, internal combustion engines, certainly of the diesel variety, will largely be a thing of the past when it comes to ordering new buses. But what about all those vehicles out there that have recently been delivered, or those still to be ordered, built and delivered between now and the end date for the sale of diesel vehicles?

Yes, they could go on as diesels, but as fleets become ever more electrified, and diesel fuel itself becomes more expensive to buy and use, what if there were an easy way to convert those existing, mid-life vehicles to use battery power?

A number of third-party converters have launched conversions over the last few years, but in a surprise move, Wrightbus has moved quickly to launch its own new bus re-engineering arm to cater for what it sees as a growing market (and given the short timescale of its inception it was almost as much of a surprise to Wrightbus as anyone else!).

In just nine months, the Northern Irish bus builder has gone from the seed of an idea, to having the first vehicles ready to leave the facility, which is located just a couple of miles from its AllServiceOne premises in Bicester. It has the capacity to turn out as many as 500 electrified mid-life buses per year, using Wrightbus’ own in-house designed replacement rear module, which contains batteries, motor and electronics.

The new business, NewPower, is a stand-alone venture that will work alongside existing Wrightbus brands, initially from its high-tech Oxfordshire base, though with scope for expansion in the UK and overseas. Wrightbus says that the cost of repowering an existing bus is substantially lower than buying new, and can be achieved in just three weeks. The Bicester facility can work on as many as six buses simultaneously, though at the time of the launch five were being worked on for initial customer First Bus, with the sixth bay occupied by removed components such as engines, gearboxes and fuel tanks, which will be returned to the operator for re-use.

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Installed in place of the existing powertrain are the Voith Electric Drive System (VEDS), powered by NMC battery packs from Forsee and a Grayson HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) system. These are assembled at Bicester onto specially-built frames, or ‘skids,’ which have been designed to mount directly into the existing vehicle structure with no modification required, helping to maintain the structural strength and rigidity. The skids are finished in the same blue colour as Wrightbus uses for its full chassis.

Business on the up

After some time in the doldrums after its collapse into administration, Wrightbus is now back on track and has successfully repositioned itself in the UK bus market, as well as broadening its horizons. With a current market share of around 40%, up from 33% last year, the company says it is proud that around 48% of the material it uses in construction of its vehicles is sourced in the UK, and a further 43% from close neighbours in Europe.

The business has grown in scale and now employs around 1,850 employees, including the 25 so far created at NewPower, a number expected to rise to 65 by the end of the year. Around three times that many are supported by the wider supply chain. Revenue is up from £170m in 2022 to £295m in 2023, and

the company expects to attain £500m in 2024. As CEO Jean-Marc Gales said at the NewPower launch, “we’re the fastest growing large manufacturing company in the UK.”

Alongside NewPower, Wrightbus is seeing ongoing investment in its Ballymena factory and its refurbishment business based nearby in Bicester, as well as development of its line-up for the Malaysian market, where it is gearing up to produce tri-axle electric buses for Hong Kong and, later, Singapore.

The company also has a growing interest in Germany, where it now has five contracts to deliver 155 hydrogen-fuelled buses, and where it has set up a new bus refurbishment facility in Cologne to support its operations in the country. Jean-Marc says that the company is already eyeing up an expansion in Europe, with France next followed by the Benelux countries.

New arrival in Bicester

Turning the focus back to Oxfordshire, and its new 45,000 square foot Bicester base (incidentally formerly used by electric vehicle manufacturer Arrival), Jean-Marc was keen to stress that this is no start-up with a factory full of plans and ideas. The first buses are almost ready to go out of the door, he explained. “These are not promises. These buses are for customers. This is a working business,” he said.

With some 34,000 diesel buses currently on the UK’s roads and a zero-emission target of 2035, that’s quite a lot of work for it, too; to replace them all would mean over 3,000 buses per year either replaced or re-engineered with zero-emission drivelines.

Jean-Marc quoted the price of a conversion at around half that of a new vehicle, which he says will help those operators who want or need to decarbonise quickly but don’t have access to funding streams such as ZEBRA, to make a start on reducing their emissions.

Sensibly, NewPower plans initially to focus on converting its own, integral, Streetdeck model, for which it already has full knowledge of the structure, stresses and engineering. The conversion involves an initial strip-out stage, where all components no longer required are removed. Items are not removed needlessly, though, and as much as possible is re-used. There is no new rear axle, for example; the repower option has been designed to work with the existing components, and fit within the existing space.

In the medium term, NewPower expects to look next at the Gemini 2, built on a Volvo chassis, which it sees as a good ‘half-way house’ in terms of engineering. Further down the road, a conversion package for the New Routemaster is also planned, about which the company is currently in discussions with Transport for London. After that, NewPower says it will extend its horizon to looking at competitors’ models, and lastly it plans to expand its offering into Europe, where the market for both new and repowered buses is significantly larger than in the UK.

Engineering experience

To support the NewPower operation, Wrightbus has made some selective senior hires from across the automotive sector, including people who have worked for Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations, BMW and McLaren, including Programme Developer Graham Hamlyn.

Also alongside Jean-Marc at the launch was Director of Engineering Robert Best. Robert reminded us that Wrightbus’ first foray into electric buses was way back in 1998. “Two or three years ago, I didn’t think we’d be here talking about repowers. That was something third parties were involved in,” Robert said.

The rapid turnaround in position speaks volumes about how Wrightbus sees the market for half-life buses, and also supports what it can offer via its AllServiceOne refurbishment business; buses can be repowered and refurbished in one go at half-life, meaning reduced hassle, less downtime, and a cleaner fleet for operators at lower cost.

“We know the Streetdeck product well,” he said, explaining why that model is the first focus. “We’ve been building them for 12 years. We know where loads are applied. Because of that, we’re able to offer a full 10-year body and chassis warranty, which we see as a key USP.”

Because the buses were built as diesels, they still have to meet the 18-tonne weight limit, rather than the 19.5 tonnes allowed for the electric equivalent, which means a slightly reduced overall capacity of either 89 or 83, depending on whether the operator chooses the 308kWh, four-string battery set-up or the 385kWh five-string option. The latter adds an extra battery pack above the nearside front wheel, housed in a raised and extended wheelarch moulding.

A consequence is that the wheelchair space has to be moved rearwards, though at the same time the side destination screen is removed from the top of the window and housed at the bottom within the new battery housing, giving a slightly improved view for drivers over their left shoulder. As retrofit solutions go, within the confines of an existing body, it seemed rather neat.

The rear window is also deleted, allowing the space to be used for saloon and battery heating and ventilation systems. The only other interior addition is a new screen in the cab, the location of which can be varied according to operator demand, showing information such as the state of charge.

Retaining the ethos of re-using as many components as possible, Wrightbus says that rather than replace the dashboard, adding the extra screen rather than replacing the dash binnacle means that no other changes are needed to the cab, and there is no wastage.

Overall, the new equipment adds around one tonne to the overall weight, depending on specification.

Streamlined process

Once a vehicle is selected for re-engineering, it is given a thorough inspection by NewPower and the operator to identify any additional remedial work that might be needed to ensure that it returns to service in the best mechanical and technical condition possible, regardless of whether it has also been refurbished.

Once it arrives on site, the vehicle remains in the same work bay for the full duration of its conversion, rather than progressing along a production line, before being moved across to a pre-delivery inspection bay prior to dispatch. If the destination is within 100 miles, NewPower will normally aim to drive the bus back, rather than use a low-loader for transport.

Robert explained that on a normal build, it should be possible to complete the strip-out phase within a day if no unexpected issues are encountered. Any components removed that are not returned to the operator will be recycled.

The conversion has been designed to be very process-driven, Robert explained, helping to maximise throughput and minimise cost and downtime. Exactly what the cost is depends on the base vehicle, he added. Operators can also opt for a second charging socket on the nearside, should they need more flexibility.

The first two completed buses have been finished in First’s new house livery of purple and grey for Leeds and in Leicester’s green colour for use alongside its new electric buses in that city.

Forward thinking

Speaking to CEO Jean-Marc afterwards, he explained that the company has a plan for the next three years. The company has learned a lot from its experience in Germany and the necessary adherence to that country’s VDV standards, and has recently appointed a new Key Account Manager for France, he said. Given the number of diesel buses still being produced, he believes there will be a market for conversions for many years in the UK, and abroad after that; in Germany, he said, the move to zero emissions has been slower than in the UK.

He also emphasised the possibility of adapting the technology to other vehicle types, such as trucks, and scaling the business worldwide, given that many economies are further behind on the road to net zero. The hydrogen coach project also remains very much on the drawing board, he said, with plans for a tri-axle vehicle capable of up to 1,000km. An electric sibling for its left-hand drive hydrogen model is also mooted.

Overall, production at the Ballymena facory is around 80% battery-electric, 10% diesel and 10% hydrogen, though the latter is expected to increase slightly next year. There’s still demand for diesel buses, Jean-Marc added, whilst in the Far East demand for double-deckers remains strong, an area in which Wrightbus has extensive experience, and one in which Jean-Marc said he wouldn’t rule out repowering as well as new bus sales, given that there are some 8,000 buses in Hong Kong alone.

“While we are selling new hydrogen and battery-electric buses all over the world there is a huge market of mid-life buses which, once converted, can have an immediate impact on helping to improve air quality in towns and cities up and down the UK,” he concluded. “The business is growing very fast and I am really proud of what we have achieved over the last 12 months because every order, whether home or abroad, guarantees jobs back in Ballymena. A year ago, we had 200 zero-emission buses on the road. Today, we have 900 and in the next year we will get to 2,000.”

At Bicester, he added that the facility would be ‘flat out’ this year with work for First, and with buses for another customer to follow next year. With the first conversions not far off being returned to their owners ready for use, the facility looks to be off to a running start, and with the backing of a known and respected name like Wrightbus will certainly provide food for thought for operators currently unsure about how to begin, or continue, their decarbonisation journey.

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