Irizar, known the world over for its world-class design and manufacture of buses and coaches, officially presented its new brand image, the new Irizar i3 Low Entry coach, and its future projects at the International Bus and Coach Fair (FIAA) in Madrid.
The Irizar stand presented the company’s whole range of coaches, including the Irizar Pb, Irizar i6, Irizar i4 and the new Irizar i3 built on the different brands of chassis available in the market.
Over the years, Irizar has responded to its clients’ changing needs, and made a concerted effort to improve safety, reliability, comfort and profitability of its products while offering them the best service possible. This is part of Irizar’s strategy of satisfying and cultivating customer loyalty in order to generate maximum trust in the Irizar brand, one that has consolidated the result of over 120 years of experience. The new image responds to the great evolution that has occurred in recent years during which Irizar has transformed itself into an international reference.
The company logo has been changed in accordance with the design lines characteristic of Irizar products. It retains its main features. The internal elements have a double meaning; on the one hand, they represent the ‘i’ of Irizar and, on the other, a person travelling by coach, reclining in a seat that embraces, protects and holds. The circle surrounds the two inside elements and represents the environment formed by people, clients and passengers, in short, the world around.
“This is the image of Irizar today”, says Mr. José Manuel Orcasitas, General Manager, Irizar, who adds, “the Irizar that is expanding overseas, that grows by diversifying, that researches and improves its technology at its innovation centre.
The Irizar that has vision, its eyes set on the future, always creating and offering new advances; a future where technology, electronics, telecommunications, innovation, environmental and social sustainability, diversity and mobility live alongside one another. In short, this new image will accompany us into the future, on the path to always moving forward, advancing step by step, hand-in-hand with our employees and collaborators.”
New Irizar i3
The company also presented its new Irizar i3 coach, a model that complements its existing range and covers the niche that the i4 could not. “This model was created with our clients’ needs in mind, and we until now could not fully satisfy them. It is the true result of joint reflection with our clients on how to create a more functional product to cover the low-entry range, with full guarantee”, says Mr. Miguel Angel Pérez, Spanish Sales Director, Irizar.
The main features of this model are centered on accessibility and adaptability to the configurations desired by each customer. At the front of the coach, the customer can choose between single-door and double-door access, depending on the usage of the coach. Its reduced height from the ground, a maximum of 340 mm, also contributes to improved accessibility.
The coach’s weight and distribution have also been optimized while maintaining its attributes of safety and rigidity intact. The structure is designed in accordance with the R66/01 standard, and the main aspects to receive the most attention were improved performance in the event of a head-on collision and rigidity of the entire roof structure.
The ergonomic driver seat is especially comfortable and provides extensive visibility. Its integrated climate control equipment offers passengers maximum comfort.
It is the first of Irizar’s coaches in Spain with the option for Class I homologation. The i3 offers functionality, while maintaining all of the attributes of the Irizar family in terms of safety, reliability, profitability, service and the Irizar guarantee.
In recent years, the Irizar Group has developed capacity for technology with its acquisition of JEMA, a manufacturer of high quality static energy systems, and DATIK, a technology company that develops ITS (Intelligent Transport Solutions) aimed at transport management, providing high quality solutions. It has also created Creatio, its new R&D centre that will firmly support the group in developing its new integral design and electric coaches.
“Creatio is key to our future development”, asserts Mr. Orcasitas, who is convinced that the Irizar Group has to work on long-term innovation to improve its sustainable competitiveness and its growth, generating wealth and employment in those areas in which it operates.
Strong performance
The Irizar Group, which closed 2011 with a turnover of 500 million Euro, which in itself was a historical record, continues to grow in 2012 mainly due to its international presence and industrial diversification.
Barely 20 per cent of the group’s turnover corresponds to the domestic market while 80 per cent corresponds to the export markets, including products manufactured both in Spain and at its overseas plants.
Considering the downward the European market trend, the launch of the integral coach range with the Irizar brand assumes special significance. In the current year, Irizar has already sold more than 100 units, now running in seven countries.
Irizar Mexico and Irizar Brazil have been the drivers of the group growth during the past two years. With both subsidiaries exceeding production records year after year, the outlook for the future is indeed most promising.
Irizar’s strong run this year has been possible because the increase in export sales to Europe, growth in volume in overseas plants and the functioning of group companies in recent years have compensated for the decrease in sales in Spain and other Mediterranean countries.
The driving force behind Irizar’s success is its customer loyalty strategy in all its group businesses, based on increasingly closer relations with customers to offer customized products and services. The company is focused on strengthening its capabilities further to pave way for accelerating growth in the coming years.