North American Bus Industries
Encyclopedia
North American Bus Industries, commonly known as NABI, is a major transit bus manufacturing company based in Anniston, Alabama
Anniston, Alabama
Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...

. NABI was founded in 1992 when the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 firm Ikarus Bus
Ikarus Bus
Ikarus is a bus manufacturer based in Budapest, Hungary. It was established in 1895 as Uhri Imre Kovács- és Kocsigyártó Üzeme .-History:...

, a key bus supplier to Central, Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...

, spun off a majority share of their American operations to American/Hungarian investors amid financial instabilities in the wake of the end of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

.

History

NABI's history can be traced to the attempts of its former parent, Ikarus Coach
Ikarus Bus
Ikarus is a bus manufacturer based in Budapest, Hungary. It was established in 1895 as Uhri Imre Kovács- és Kocsigyártó Üzeme .-History:...

, to enter the North American market. In 1980, Crown Coach entered an agreement with Ikarus to produce the model 286, an Americanized model 280 articulated bus
Articulated bus
An articulated bus is an articulated vehicle used in public transportation. It is usually a single-deck design, and comprises two rigid sections linked by a pivoting joint...

 under the Crown Ikarus name. After the venture with Crown ended in 1984, Ikarus entered an agreement with Orion
Orion Bus Industries
Orion International, previously Orion Bus Industries and Ontario Bus Industries in Canada and Bus Industries of America in the United States, is a bus manufacturer based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada and established by the Government of Ontario in 1975...

 to continue production of the 286 for the Canadian market as the Orion III. Regardless of name, the 286/Orion III was beset with a multitude of problems ranging from poor construction to inadequate build quality which played a role in Crown's demise in the US.

In the wake of the 286 problems, Ikarus regrouped and entered a deal with Union City Body Company of Union City, Indiana
Union City, Indiana
Union City is a city in Wayne Township, Randolph County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 3,584.Union City was a stop along the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, a forerunner of the Pennsylvania Railroad that connected Pittsburgh to...

, to market and assemble a new bus for the American market. In 1989, Ikarus reentered the US market as Ikarus USA and introduced the model 416 (an Americanized model 415). The next year, Ikarus USA introduced the model 436, an articulated model of the 416. Though the company had modest success, the end of the Cold War led to a vast decline of Ikarus' European output and to a period of uneasiness at the company. These problems contributed to Union City Body Company declaring bankruptcy in 1992, in turn putting the future of Ikarus' US operations in doubt.

Amid these problems, Hungarian-born/US-residing investor Peter Rona, director of the First Hungary Fund Ltd of Jersey, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, purchased 75% of Ikarus USA in mid-1992 with Ikarus retaining 25%. With the purchase came many changes, most significantly the name of the company to American Ikarus and the base of production from Union City to Anniston, Alabama.

Though American Ikarus was more successful than its predecessors, by the mid 1990s Ikarus decided that they wanted to leave the North American market given increased competition in Europe. In 1996, Ikarus sold their share of American Ikarus to the First Hungary Fund which took on the current NABI brand name and NABI Rt. corporate name upon closing. Subsequently, NABI expanded into the European market with the purchase of Optare
Optare
Optare plc is a bus manufacturer and importer based in Leeds and Blackburn, UK. The company operates from three main business units, Bus Manufacturing, Coach Sales and Unitec....

 in 2000 and is now a rival to its former parent.

With its independence, NABI began expanding its product line to gain a foothold in the then-fledgling low-floor bus
Low-floor bus
A low-floor bus is a bus that has no steps between one or more entrances and part or all of the passenger cabin. Being low floor improves the accessibility of the bus for the public, particularly the elderly or infirm, or those with push chairs, and increasingly, those in wheelchairs.In the modern...

 market with the launch of the LFW series in 1997, NABI's first original model. The LFW series has been successful, in turn launching the Compobus series (2001), the BRT series (2004), and the expansion of the LFW series into articulated buses (2002).

On January 23, 2006, NABI Rt. announced that it had a preliminary agreement with NABI Gyártó és Kereskedelmi Kft and Homerica Investments B.V. for the acquisition of all of the stock of NABI Inc. and substantially all of the business and assets of NABI Rt. NABI Inc. then announced that the purchase was by affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management
Cerberus Capital Management
Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. is one of the largest private equity investment firms in the United States. The firm is based in New York City, and run by -year-old financier Steve Feinberg. Former U.S...

. The transaction was completed on February 15, 2006. According to the August 4, 2006 Interim Report, the Hungarian company changed its name to Exbus Nyrt. and became an asset management company, and the current directors are endeavoring to preserve the equity and use the directors' experience in the capital markets.

On August 21, 2006, NABI announced their purchase of the Wichita, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...

-based Optima Bus Corporation
Optima Bus Corporation
Optima Bus, LLC, formerly Chance Coach Inc., is a brand of small transit buses manufactured by North American Bus Industries. It was established in 1976 in Wichita, Kansas....

 for an undisclosed amount. This will add the popular Opus low-floor minibus and American Heritage replica
Replica
A replica is a copy closely resembling the original concerning its shape and appearance. An inverted replica complements the original by filling its gaps. It can be a copy used for historical purposes, such as being placed in a museum. Sometimes the original never existed. For example, Difference...

 streetcar (rubber-tired trackless) product lines to NABI's roster. One week later, it was announced that Cerberus had acquired Blue Bird Corporation, thus giving Cerberus a full line of school bus
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...

es, and 30 to 60 foot transit buses.

On June 6, 2007, it was announced that Optima Bus Corporation "would cease operations in Park City on Aug. 8 or shortly after." Soon after, Blue-Bird stopped producing commercial buses. Both operations were moved to the existing NABI plant, except for the Commercial Express product line, which was sold.

In 2008, NABI updated the look of its 416 and 40LFW, adding a new style front and rear as well as optional frameless windows. The new style front is available on a special order only. The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada is both the transit authority and the transportation-planning agency for Southern Nevada...

 were the launch customers for the restyled low-floor model, with NJ Transit being launch customer for the high floor model.

Production

NABI's method of production, dating back to the Ikarus USA/American Ikarus period, is split between plants in Hungary and Anniston in what is an outgrowth of "Buy America" requirements, which mandate buses purchased with government money have at least 60% of the bus built in the US. The shells for the buses are built in Hungary and are then shipped to Anniston for the installation of all other components. This method has had its advantages in lower costs of labor in Hungary vs. the US and Canada, however at times it has had its disadvantages (as can be seen in the section on the Compobus). The advantages of lower costs of shell assembly have been the main reason NABI has maintained the practice even after the 416/436 began to fall from favor and the LFW series became NABI's main product. However, the cost advantage eroded, due to an unfavorable foreign exchange
Foreign exchange market
The foreign exchange market is a global, worldwide decentralized financial market for trading currencies. Financial centers around the world function as anchors of trading between a wide range of different types of buyers and sellers around the clock, with the exception of weekends...

 ratio between the Hungarian forint
Economy of Hungary
The economy of Hungary is a medium-sized, structurally, politically and institutionally open economy in Central Europe and is part of the European Union's single market...

 and the U.S. dollar. The problems, leading to the sale of the company's assets, are described in the 2005 Annual Report.

The Compobus

In 2001, NABI launched a new line called the Compobus, a revolutionary line which used a body built from composite fiberglass as opposed to the traditional steel. This model was also notable for being the first transit bus in North America to be available in a 45-foot length (model 45C-LFW) in addition to the standard 40-foot (model 40C-LFW). Though, on paper, the Compobus looked to be an eventual success and a standard setter for transit buses, the model instead floundered for a multitude of reasons including a lack of customers, financial losses stemming from shell production, the expiration of Buy America Act waivers, and an uneasiness from transit authorities to buy a non-steel bus. While these factors led to the discontinuance of the Compobus line in early 2005, the Compobus was revived when Los Angeles County Metro approved the purchase of up to 260 from NABI, now called the Metro 45C. One was tested in Honolulu, Hawaii in early 2009.

Historical

Model name Discontinued Length Photo Fuel and propulsion type Notes
40C-LFW CompoBus 2004 40 ft (12.19 m) Diesel, CNG LACMTA and Antelope Valley Transit Authority
Antelope Valley Transit Authority
Antelope Valley Transit Authority is the transit agency serving the cities of Palmdale, Lancaster and Northern Los Angeles County. Antelope Valley Transit Authority is operated under contract by Veolia Transportation, and is affiliated and offers connecting services with Metro and...

 were the only buyers
30-LFN 2005 30 ft (9.14 m) Diesel A badge engineered Optare Solo
Optare Solo
The Optare Solo is a low-floor midibus manufactured by Optare in Leeds, UK since 1997. The name "Solo" is a play on the low-floor status of the bus, the manufacturer believing its vehicle having an entrance that is "so low" from the floor, namely 200 mm with kneeling suspension.The innovative...

—Discontinued after NABI sold Optare
436 (60-SFW) 2008 60 ft (18.29 m) Diesel Last built in 2002 for SamTrans
SamTrans
SamTrans is a public transport agency in and around San Mateo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It provides bus service throughout San Mateo County and into portions of San Francisco and Palo Alto...

60-LFW 2008 60 ft (18.29 m) Diesel Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority, also known as CTA, is the operator of mass transit within the City of Chicago, Illinois and some of its surrounding suburbs....

 was the lone buyer; these buses had a history of structural problems, noted since 2005, and CTA took them out of service on February 19, 2009, subsequently retiring the fleet.

Current products

Model name Length Width Photo Fuel and propulsion type
Standard floor
NABI 416 40 ft (12.19 m) 102 in (2.59 m) Diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

Optima American
Heritage Streetcar
30 ft (9.14 m),
35 ft (10.67 m)
96 in (2.44 m) CNG
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...

, Diesel, Propane
Propane
Propane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...

Low floor
NABI BRT 37 ft (11.28 m),
42 ft (12.8 m),
60 ft (18.29 m),
65 ft (19.81 m)
102 in (2.59 m) CNG, Diesel, Diesel-electric
Sirius 37 ft (11.28 m),
42 ft (12.8 m),
60 ft (18.29 m),
65 ft (19.81 m)
102 in (2.59 m)
CNG, Diesel (currently), Diesel-electric
Optima Opus 30 ft (9.14 m),
35 ft (10.67 m)
99 in (2.51 m) Diesel, Diesel-electric
NABI LFW 31 ft (9.45 m),
35 ft (10.67 m),
40 ft (12.19 m)
102 in (2.59 m) CNG, Diesel, Diesel-electric, LNG
NABI Metro 45C 45 ft (13.72 m) 102 in (2.59 m) CNG, Diesel, Diesel-electric, LNG
Blue Bird Ultra LF 30 ft (9.14 m),
35 ft (10.67 m)
102 in (2.59 m) CNG, Diesel

External links

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