As the last teams packed up and contractors arrived on site to dismantle stands last Wednesday evening, Busworld 2019 had come to a close. Held for the first time in Brussels, the show was bigger than its previous edition held in Kortrijk and the extra space proved useful to crowds of visitors meandering from stand to stand in search of the latest news within the bus and coach market.
Sustainable transport ideas
Sustainability was the word on everyone’s mouth with UN’s Action toward Climate friendly Transport declaration waiting in the VIP lounge for exhibitors to sign and pledge their support for the cause. Many exhibitors including Golden Dragon, Kinglong, Vandamme Reinigingstechnieken and more signed the declaration during the show, joining wider circle of companies doing their bit to tackle climate change.
Isuzu premiered three new electric buses with high performance batteries, quick charging technologies and solar panels installed on the roof of each vehicle to generate extra power. At the same time, Kiepe Electric unveiled overhead line charging concept that aims to eliminate bottlenecks at charging stations while ABB presented its new e-bus pantograph for a more flexible, efficient and automated charging solution.
Innovation label
This year Innovation Label was awarded for various projects including autonomous minibus, prototype of composite electric bus, electric central drive, mobile air conditioning compressor and mirror replacement digital camera systems. See the full list here.
One of the mirror replacement systems was MirrorEye displayed by Stoneridge-Orlaco. Aside from the expected benefits of larger viewing angle, diminished blind spots and better view of what is happening behind the vehicle, MirrorEye is also said to generate three percent saving on fuel consumption.
Heath and safety concern for bus drivers
Pailton Engineering presented their solution to the issue of poor hygiene conditions in drivers’ cabins. The company claims that there are more ‘colony-forming’ units of bacteria on an average steering wheel than a toilet seat and some of those can cause food poisoning. And since antibacterial wipes and gels are not enough to combat this, Pailton’s solution is a removable bus steering wheel. The idea sounds extreme but Pailton were willing to discuss it with OEMs at Busworld to establish whether this would be a viable option for the future.
ELeather at Busworld
ELeather team had a particularly busy time at Busworld with our VIP meeting room in use majority of the time across the six days. Visitors were intrigued not only by our beautifully designed stand but also the process of how the engineered leather is made, its sustainability credentials and the way it can benefit bus operators compared to other upholstery options.
ELeather bags, document wallets and amenity bags on display also proved popular (especially with the ladies), not to mention the limited-edition pair of Nike flyleather trainers. The showroom, decorated with wall tiles and boards featuring various colours, grains and secondary processes of engineered leather received many compliments from impressed visitors.
Monday saw the return of popular gin hour, where ELeather team served gins produced locally to the company’s HQ in Cambridgeshire. Despite the largely international crowd, visitors were very happy to engage in the British tradition of drinking G&T.
We’re now turning our attention to Busworld Brussels in 2021 and hoping to see everyone there in two years’ time!
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