EvoBus GmbH continues on its successful path at the Mannheim plant. Following the production of 2160 urban buses at the site in 2007, this year’s production is also booked to full capacity and the employment situation at the plan continues to look good.

Wolfgang Hänle, Production Manager at EvoBus, commented: "2008 was a good year for the Mannheim site and we are confident that we will surpass the results from 2007." The driving force behind this success is the Mercedes-Benz Citaro bus family, which celebrated an anniversary in 2008, with 20,000 units coming off the assembly line during ten years of production. "Our investments in the Mannheim site over the last several years and the positive trend in orders continue to ensure good capacity utilisation," added Hänle.

EvoBus has for example invested 40 million euros over the last eight years alone in modern body shell and assembly areas, equipment, new production techniques and quality processes. A further milestone for the Mannheim site will be completed in 2009: a new shop and office building to be built on a floor space covering 10,000 square metres will be ready for use and will house sample model construction and testing facilities. The project represents a total investment of 8 million euros.

One guarantee for success for the Mannheim bus plant comes from the Mercedes-Benz Citaro models. Brought on the market in 1998 and with over 20,000 vehicles built since then, built the Citaro is the most successful urban bus in its segment. Its state-of-the-art technology makes it a future-proof product. In addition to the BlueTec 4 and BlueTec engines, a gas drive system and EEV technology (Enhanced Environmentally Friendly Vehicle) are also available. Starting in 2009 the "green" Mercedes-Benz Citaro G BlueTec Hybrid will undergo customer test drives.

The Mannheim plant plays an important role in the European coordinated production system of EvoBus. In Mannheim 3400 employees produce the Mercedes-Benz Citaro and the low-floor large-capacity CapaCity regular-service bus along with body shells for Mercedes-Benz and Setra. In addition the Mannheim plant has one of the most modern systems available for cathodic dip priming of body shells. Over the last several years using this system has reduced solvent emissions by 60 percent.

Daimler Buses is the largest manufacturer of buses and chassis larger than eight tonnes perm. GVW worldwide. Daimler Buses employs a total of 17,200 staff around the globe; in 2007 it sold over 39,000 buses. Its products cover city, rural and touring transport and range from minibuses to doubledeckers, all with various engine and equipment variants. EvoBus GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler AG, is responsible for the European bus business.