"A small castle built at the waterside" is the meaning of Kuwait in Arabic. Located to the northwest of the gulf and enjoying great natural benefits, Kuwait abounds with oil deposits. While it is a country with small land area, Kuwait still catches people s attention with its rich oil resources and rapid economic development.
75 high-end Yutong city buses set foot on Kuwait territory for the first time. Kuwait, a country that seamlessly combines contemporary style and traditional Islamic civilization, has begun to provide safe, comfortable and environmentally-friendly travel services for Kuwaiti passengers.
Excellent City Buses Arrive
In Kuwait, City Bus is a major public transport company with powerful capabilities and many years of professional experience in public transport operations. In order to provide better service for passengers, the company recently purchased 175 Yutong ZK6118HGA city buses, with the first batch of 75 buses just delivered. This is the first time Chinese buses have entered the public transport market of Kuwait.
The ZK6118HGA city bus, one of Yutong s best selling models, is 11.6 meters long with 40 passenger seats and a maximum capacity of 81 persons. Incorporated with a Cummins engine and German automatic transmission, the bus features superior safety, comfort, durability and a high performance to price ratio. After the electrocoating treatment of the entire bus body, the anti-corrosive capability has been greatly improved, thus making the products more durable and highly resistant to wear and tear. As for the interior, the driver and passenger areas are separated with a door, providing a safe and comfortable space for the drivers. The seats are safe, comfortable and sturdy; the monitoring system can monitor the front and rear of bus, as well as the two service doors. Furthermore, the infrared camera can still work at night after the ignition is turned off. The bus also has significant fuel economy. Based on the operational features and the local environment, Yutong, together with the German gearbox manufacturer, adjusted the control program of bus operation. Verified with an actual bus, the fuel economy has improved by 5~10% compared with the buses of same type. In order to adapt to the climate and maintenance requirements in Kuwait, Yutong and City Bus worked together to make dozens of modifications on this bus model. For instance, to meet the cooling requirement under a 55 environmental temperature, Yutong designed an extra large radiator for this order. Upon the customer s request, Yutong designed an out-swing intercooler that shortens the maintenance time of the water tank from half an hour to ten minutes. High temperature-resistant trimming was also adopted and an air conditioner system was especially tailored for heavy duty operation in a hot climate. The sealing of the service door has been enhanced to secure the cooling effect inside the bus and the use of a special cover prevents the pipes and wires on the chassis from being damaged by stone impacts.
By means of optimized products and performance, Yutong and City Bus will create a comfortable and safe environment for passengers. Yutong bus s elegant appearance will bring a contemporary presence to Kuwait.
Professionalism Enables Cooperation
Located in a country where Chinese city buses have never been seen, why did City Bus dare to sign an order of 175 buses with Yutong at one time? In a smaller sized country, a procurement of this volume is no small matter.
Actually, as a large-scale enterprise, City Bus was pretty cautious upon this procurement. After preliminary appraisal, City Bus selected several potential bus builders, among them there were both Chinese and Korean bus manufacturers. Yutong s powerful comprehensive strength and high performance-price ratio of its products create a significant competitive advantage.
As the No. 1 bus brand in China, Yutong is the largest and most technically advanced manufacturing base of large and medium-sized buses, with a daily output of over 120 complete buses. Yutong has a thorough quality control system and passed the ISO/TS16949 worldwide quality system certification in automotives. Before delivery, each Yutong bus has to go through different tests, such as a performance test, shower test, fording test, road test, etc., thus ensuring the performance and quality of the products. Backed by the state-level technical center and the only experiment center in China s bus industry, the large and outstanding R&D team can meet the customization demands of customers. Starting from product development, the different links of the whole supply chain have been optimized. Since problem-free operation maximizes customers profit, Yutong has established a highly effective service system. The professional pre-sale, in-sale, and after-sale service teams are paving the way for customers with their responsive and speedy service.
At the end of 2008, the general manager of City Bus and his entourage came to Yutong for the first time. After observing the production line, the electrocoating lines of both chassis frame and bus body, and the experiment center, they were deeply impressed by Yutong s scale, advanced technical facilities, as well as the philosophy of Drive Your Value. Prior to this, they had already visited some other Chinese bus enterprises in addition to a number of European bus factories. However, Yutong s R&D capability, process quality assurance, large output facility, and brand name recognition eliminate their concerns regarding the reliability of Yutong s buses.
Presently, four after-sale engineers have been sent to Kuwait to carry out relative work and provide technical support for the smooth operation of the buses. Yutong s dealer in Kuwait, Al-Zayani Trading Company, which is also the dealer of Ferrari, Bentley, Bugatti, Veyron, and Daihatsu, has extensive experience in automotive service and will also provide customers with timely and effective after-sales service support. With the export of 175 ZK6118HGA buses, Yutong enters into the public transport market of the gulf area for the first time. The successful operation of these 175 buses will also play an active role for Yutong while expanding business in the public transportation market of Kuwait and its surrounding countries. Under the severe economic situation in 2009, Yutong s active and moderate brand export strategy will further highlight its advantages. It is reported that the second batch of 100 buses will be delivered to Kuwait in July.
