Media Release 02062011, Volgren Bus

 

Dandenong-based bus body-builder Volgren has won a major contract to supply 38 new buses to the Ventura Bus Group.

 

The contract was unveiled by the Victorian Minister for Manufacturing, Richard Dalla-Riva, who visited the Dandenong plant today (Tuesday 7 June).

 

Volgren’s General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Tony Kerr, said Volgren was delighted to win the contract, which would support local jobs.

 

‘We employ more than 280 people in Dandenong, and we are committed to sourcing local services and products wherever possible, so this contract is welcome as we continue to make our factories more efficient, in what is a difficult global environment.’

 

Volgren is Australia’s biggest bus body builder, making about one-third of all buses sold in Australia. It has plants in Victoria, New South wales, Queensland and Western Australia.

 

Mr Kerr said about 30 per cent of buses made at the Dandenong plant were delivered to Victorian customers, with the majority going interstate.

 

‘What makes our buses so attractive is they are built with a unique aluminium system, which makes them lighter, stronger and more environmentally friendly than a traditional steel bus.’

 

Ventura’s Managing Director Andrew Cornwall said the company’s bus drivers were excited about the choice of Volgren because their excellent ergonomics provided a good workplace.

 

He said Volgren’s work was known to be of a high standard. ‘We know for a fact Volgren’s aluminium bus bodies will last for more than 20 years,’ Mr Cornwall said.

 

‘It is exciting for us that Volgren, a Victorian bus manufacturer, can build a product of this calibre and, as well as bettering anything that we’ve seen from overseas, put together an extremely competitive package,’ he said.

 

‘Ventura is a proud Victorian-owned and operated company so it makes sense that we work with a local bus manufacturer such as Volgren to build these buses and help secure local jobs,’ Mr Cornwall said. ‘As a Victorian company Ventura is always looking at ways of supporting local industry and we are pleased to be able to do this. We look forward to working with the State Government to be able to deliver more contracts like this.’

 

The new buses, which are purpose built for the specific routes they will run on, will begin operating as part of the Ventura fleet later this year. This will support the significant increases in bus patronage experienced over Ventura’s extensive network of bus routes across Melbourne.

 

More information: Tom Noble, 0408 332 880