China Zhongwang and Brilliance Bus partner to develop all-aluminum new energy public buses
20 July 2015
China Zhongwang Holdings Limited, the second largest industrial aluminum extrusion product developer and manufacturer in the world and the biggest one in Asia, has successfully designed, manufactured and developed all-aluminum new energy electric buses for Brilliance Bus (Dalian) Company Limited. This co-operation marks China Zhongwang’s inauguration as the first and only aluminum processing enterprise in China to have the capability of undertaking both the design and manufacturing of all-aluminum new energy public buses.
The frame and body of this new public bus model use aluminum alloy as the key material. Its weight is reduced by 40% compared to its steel counterparts. Aluminium-bodied vehicles are more durable, corrosion resistant and have better vibration absorption capabilities. The lighter auto bodies increase the vehicles’ driving range, thereby conserving energy and reducing operating costs.
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In order to reduce the urban air pollution problem, China has enacted policies to encourage the development of new energy vehicles. These policies have played an important role in driving the growth of aluminum applications.
China Zhongwang has now completed two vehicle prototypes for Brilliance Bus, of which the first prototype is for display, and the second is currently undergoing road tests. It will commence mass production after passing the road test.
China Zhongwang has been focusing on the light-weight development of transportation, machinery and equipment and electric power engineering sectors through the provision of quality industrial aluminum extrusion products. It now has 93 internationally advanced aluminum extrusion production lines including 21 production lines of large-scale aluminum extrusion presses of 75MN or above.
In addition, to further leverage its existing strengths in the industry, the Group is developing the high value-added aluminum flat-rolled product project. With a total designed annual production capacity of 3 million tonnes, the project is scheduled for development in two phases.
Phase I of the project with a planned annual production capacity of 1.8 million tonnes consists of two production lines. Plant construction has been completed and equipment installation and testing is underway, to be followed closely by trial operation. This new business venture will not only enable the Group to further capitalize on its leading edge in aluminum alloy smelting and casting and product research and development, but also achieve synergies with its existing industrial aluminum extrusion and deep processing businesses by taking full advantage of their customer and market resources in related downstream application sectors.
Brilliance Bus (Dalian) Co., Ltd. was established on July 29, 2010 with investments from Brilliance Automotive Investment (Dalian) Co., Ltd, as an automobile manufacturing enterprise. Brilliance Bus is committed to the development and manufacturing of new energy buses, new energy transportation vehicles and high-end private cars.
The company’s current products include city buses, group tourist buses, clean energy LNG buses, new energy all-electric buses, non-tank conversion transportation vehicles, all-electric sanitation vehicles and more. As well, the company is also involved in the entire vehicle production line from welding, painting, assembling and manufacturing to vehicle performance tests and processing of various equipment parts.
In addition to the manufacturing of passenger vehicles and expansion of new product categories, Brilliance Bus also serves as the production platform for Dalian’s special category coaches, new energy vehicles and school buses.
Our main city used hundreds of locally made aluminum city buses from 1934 to 1960. For obscure reasons, lighter aluminum buses were replaced with heavier imported GM steel buses from 1961 to 1985 or so and with locally made Nova/Volvo steel units thereafter.
From 2016 onward we will see a progressive return to locally made light weight Nova-Volvo aluminum e-buses.
Posted by: HarveyD | 20 July 2015 at 06:04 AM
Actually, Grumman tried aluminum on the Flxible buses in the 70's, putting aluminum in the chassis where it supposedly would have counted. The result was a wave of cracks and mechanical failures, so this was abandoned. We would put our bets on stainless steel.
Posted by: kalendjay | 20 July 2015 at 02:56 PM
Our 1960 subway cars (on rubber wheels) were made of stainless steel to last 60+ years.
The new subway cars (coming out soon) are made of stainless steel and aluminum. Being lighter, they will use 20% to 30% less energy. Will they last as long as the old cars?
Posted by: HarveyD | 21 July 2015 at 11:06 AM