Daimler Annual Report 2011 - Alle jaarverslagen

4 | The Divisions | Daimler Buses
The innovative Citaro sets new standards for city buses in terms of economy, environmental friendliness, comfort, safety and design.
Sales in North America dropped to 600 units in 2011 because
the business with city buses declined in this region as well.
The new Mercedes-Benz Citaro – economical, comfortable
and safe. Following the sale of more than 31,000 units over
a 13-year period, the completely new Mercedes-Benz Citaro was
presented in May 2011. This extremely fuel-efficient premium
city bus sets benchmarks for economy, environmental friendliness,
comfort, safety and design. Our customers benefit
from the vehicle’s improved economy and the expertise of the
world’s largest bus manufacturer. Passengers enjoy greater
comfort and an unparalleled level of safety. The regular-service
city bus now comes with the Electronic Stability Program
(ESP) for the first time. In addition, we provide drivers with
a completely new workplace. To ensure that the bus is environmentally
friendly and to further improve its green credentials,
we have equipped it with clean and economical engines
featuring BlueTec diesel technology and conforming with the
Euro V and EEV (Enhanced Environmentally Friendly Vehicle)
standards.
Mercedes-Benz updates and expands its product range
in Brazil. With an updated product range, Daimler Buses is introducing
economical and low-emission BlueTec V engine technology
in the Brazilian market. In this way, the division is ensuring
that all Mercedes-Benz bus chassis meet the Euro V emission
standards, which went into effect in Brazil in January 2012.
Daimler Buses offers the Brazilian market’s broadest product
range, comprising more than 20 chassis models for city buses
and intercity buses, including the newly launched O 500 MDA
and UDA. These chassis can accommodate bus bodies up to
23 meters long and can thus accommodate approximately
200 passengers when used for local public transportation.
Daimler Buses to launch city bus in India’s growth market.
In 2012, Daimler Buses will launch the first Mercedes-Benz
city bus in the Indian market. Following the launch of a two-axle
coach in 2008 and a three-axle coach in 2010, Daimler Buses
now aims to establish itself in the country’s city-bus market
with its Mercedes-Benz brand. The Indian market already
has a high volume of about 50,000 buses per annum and is
expected to grow rapidly in the years ahead. India already
has the world’s largest bus market after China.
Daimler Buses continues to focus on innovations in ultramodern
drive technology. The world’s population is steadily
growing and is becoming more and more urbanized. The need
for mobility is therefore increasing worldwide, as is the associated
impact on the climate and the environment. Since buses
play a key role in mobility networks, Daimler Buses is developing
pioneering drive technologies to address the resulting
challenges.
One of the ways in which the division is doing so involves the
optimization of vehicles to make sure they are equipped
with state-of-the-art internal-combustion engines. An example
of this approach during the year under review was provided
by the Mercedes-Benz Travego Edition 1, the world’s first Euro
VI-compliant coach. The Euro VI standard will become obligatory
in early 2014, leading to further drastic reductions in
pollutant emissions.
Another focus of our work is on hybridization, which involves
combining an electric motor with an internal-combustion engine.
Since it was first presented in 2009, the Mercedes-Benz
Citaro G Blue Tec hybrid bus has been proving its worth in 15
European cities. The Citaro G BlueTec Hybrid is the only hybrid
bus to date that can run purely on electricity for parts of its route
and can thus remain virtually silent as it approaches bus stops.
Depending on specific operating conditions, this results in a
reduction in diesel fuel consumption of approximately 20%
and a corresponding decrease in CO 2 emissions.
Our fuel-cell buses emit no pollutants at all. The first of these
buses are already in daily use in Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
They run on hydrogen, which is converted into electrical
energy on board the vehicles. The first generation of the
Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid was tested in 2003. The further developed
version of the bus now boasts important new features
including high-performance wheel-hub motors, electric ancillary
components and improved fuel cells, whose targeted service
life has been extended to a minimum of five years or 12,000
hours of operation.
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