Annual Report 2010/2011 - pdf 7.05 MB - Nobina AB

NOBINA – the OperAtIONs
» By optimizing its bus fleet, Nobina
can operate traffic profitably.
market’s needs. The offering of traffic, destinations
and ticket prices is controlled by
demand, and the offering is continuously
developed through new payment solutions,
for example, event transports, airport transfer
traffic and different forms of service.
With its flexibility and new schools of
thought, Swebus is always quick to offer
alternative transports in conjunction with
disruptions in traffic.
COMPrEHENSIVE trAFFIC PLANNINg SkILLS
A profitable traffic contract is based on
meticulous planning and resource-effective
implementation. The work involved in preparing
a tender is started as early as 1–2 years
before the procurement procedure is initiated
by the principal. During the early
stages, Nobina conducts in-depth dialogues
with the principal, industrial organization,
employees and customers in order to analyze
existing conditions for traffic patterns and
potential market needs. The tender planning
personnel study infrastructure, test drive the
routes and review present and possible depot
alternatives. The goal is to offer an attractive,
profitable and realistic traffic solution for both
the short and long-term.
Contracts extend over several years and
continuous development work is conducted
in close cooperation with the principals and
employee representatives to optimize schedules,
traffic routes and customer offerings,
with due consideration for profitability and
drive-ability. The traffic planners and traffic
managers are responsible for the formulation
of solutions that enable traffic to move effectively
and minimize empty traffic routes, for
example to and from depots and waiting
times and distances between transport service.
All employees are encouraged to contrib-
24 NOBINA | ANNuAl repOrt 2010/2011
ute to the development work, and there are
established channels for suggestions, opinions
and procedures for these referrals.
OPtIMAL BUS MANAgEMENt
Nobina is the only traffic company in the
Nordic market with its own centralized
management of buses. Through efforts to
optimize the bus fleet from a Group perspective,
Nobina is able to improve its potential
to win tenders and conduct profitable traffic
operations. The goal is to continuously
reduce expenses for buses, which account for
about 10% of the Group’s total expenses.
In 2010, the bus fleet consisted of 3,618
buses, comprising 648 buses owned by
Nobina, 1,494 buses leased through operational
contracts and 1,476 buses leased
through financial contracts. More than 99%
of the buses operate in traffic within the
framework of contract traffic or through
leasing to Swebus. When a bus is no longer
needed in a contract, it can be transferred to
another contract, sold or scrapped. External
rentals are used in exceptional cases, usually
pending a redistribution of the buses. During
fiscal year 2010/2011, Nobina bought
395 buses and sold 330, which is slightly
higher than the normal reinvestment level
of about 260 buses.
Selections of new buses are extremely
important in optimizing the fleet of vehicles
and improving resource efficiency. Standardized
buses provide broader areas of application
within the Group. The traffic contracts
specify everything from size, disposition and
appearance to environmental standards and
average age, and vary from one traffic region
to another. This limits opportunities to completely
standardize the entire bus fleet. In
parallel with deregulation of the Nordic
market, opportunities are increasing to adapt
the bus fleet based on market needs, longterm
function and cost-optimization, rather
than short-term formal demands from each
individual principal.
The Group’s buses have a replacement
value of approximately SEK 4.6 billion and
a depreciation period up to 14 years. The
average age of the bus fleet today is 6.2 years,
compared with the target age of seven years.
Nobina’s success in optimizing the bus
fleet depends on demands imposed on the
buses by principals, Nobina’s foresight in
traffic planning in tenders and current contracts
and how well the buses are serviced
and maintained in everyday operations. Last
but not least, the financial solution is critical
for bus management in terms of structure,
control and follow-up.
Nobina prioritizes financial leasing
agreements that optimize the cash flow
from bus financing in parallel with contract
payments in the most beneficial manner.
New regulations and reporting of operational
leasing agreements are expected to
be introduced during the summer of 2011,
which means that operationally leased fixed
assets must be reported as assets in the
consolidated balance sheet.