Finland-based Exel Composites has supplied Chinese bus and coach manufacturer Yutong with fiberglass profiles for 33 electric buses which have been delivered to Helsinki, Finland. The introduction of the electric buses is part of the country’s goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by five million kilograms a year.
Exel designs and manufactures large and complex carbon fiber and fiberglass composite profiles. The fiberglass panels delivered to Yutong were manufactured in China, and included the skirt and side panels for the electric buses. Yutong delivered the buses to the Finnish bus and road operator, Pohjolan Liikenne.
Olli Tevä, SVP, Sales and Marketing said in an official statement, ” Light-weight fiberglass was important to this project as it reduce operating costs and helps to increase energy efficiency that helps improve environemental sustainability.”
“Additionally our composite profiles resist deformation and corrosion from the harsh road environments typical in Finnish winters. Reparing fiberglass is straightforward and can be done in depot. This means that the overall lifetime operational and maintenance costs of buses decreased.”
Exel continuing to work with Yutong to develop and manufacture composite solutions for their vehicles.
The delivery of the electric buses is the first time that Yutong, which became the first listed bus company in China in 1997, has entered the Finnish market. This is also the largest volume of buses that Finland has purchased from overseas. The country aims to have 400 electric buses operating in the capital by 2025.
