WINNIPEG,
Feb. 12, 2013 /CNW/ - (TSX:NFI;
TSX:NFI.DB.U) New Flyer Industries Inc. ("New Flyer" or the
"Company"), the leading manufacturer of heavy-duty transit buses in
the United States and Canada, announced today that Daimler Buses
North America, Inc. ("DBNA"), has assigned to New Flyer its
contract with Seattle Metro
Transit, a division of King County Department of Transportation, to
build up to 381 Xcelsior™ heavy-duty 35 and 40-foot diesel-electric
hybrid buses. King County Metro's
initial order to New Flyer under the assigned contract consists of
60 heavy-duty 35-foot buses and 60 heavy-duty 40-foot
diesel-electric hybrid buses.
The contract, which expires on June 30, 2014, includes remaining base order
buses consisting of a combination of 181 35-foot and 40-foot
diesel-electric hybrid buses, as well as 200 option buses
consisting of a combination of 35-foot and 40-foot buses.
This award assignment marks the first Xcelsior™ buses to be built
for King County Metro's fleet. The
Xcelsior™ is New Flyer's 'best-in-class' low-floor model that
boasts improvements in fuel economy, passenger experience,
accessibility, noise reduction and styling; supported by the New
Flyer warranty, service and lifetime customer care.
"Delivering on commitments to King County Metro was of the upmost importance
to New Flyer," said Paul Soubry, New
Flyer's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are pleased that
we could respond to DBNA's transition plan with a solution that met
the needs of King County, while
ensuring that expectations regarding our current bus production run
are met."
The assignment of this contract is a result of
DBNA's decision announced on April 25,
2012 to exit production of Orion heavy-duty transit buses in
the US and Canadian markets.
This order is additional to New Flyer's existing
contract with King County for 43
60-foot buses currently in production with an anticipated delivery
in the second quarter of 2013. This contract assignment further
extends the long-standing partnership between New Flyer and
King County that has developed on
the basis of the reliability of the 995 New Flyer buses delivered
since May 2000.
About New Flyer
New Flyer is the leading manufacturer of heavy-duty transit buses
in the United States and
Canada. The Company's three
manufacturing facilities - in St. Cloud,
MN; Crookston, MN; and
Winnipeg, MB - are all ISO 9001,
ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certified. The Company currently
operates a parts fabrication facility in Elkhart, IN and four parts distribution
centers in Erlanger, KY;
Fresno, CA; Winnipeg, MB and Brampton, ON. The Company also operates
a service center in Arnprior,
ON.
With a skilled workforce of over 2,200
employees, New Flyer is a technology leader, offering the broadest
product line in the industry, including drive systems powered by
clean diesel, LNG, CNG and electric trolley as well as
energy-efficient diesel-electric hybrid vehicles. New Flyer
has delivered over 32,000 heavy-duty buses in the United States and Canada. All products are supported with
an industry-leading, comprehensive parts and service network.
Further information is available on New Flyer's web site at
www.newflyer.com.
The common shares and convertible unsecured
subordinated debentures of New Flyer are traded on the Toronto
Stock Exchange under the symbols NFI and NFI.DB.U,
respectively.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating
to expected future events and financial and operating results of
the Company that involve risks and uncertainties. Although
the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are
based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions,
investors cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent
with these forward-looking statements, and the differences may be
material. Actual results may differ materially from
management expectations as projected in such forward-looking
statements for a variety of reasons, including market and general
economic conditions and economic conditions of and funding
availability for customers to purchase buses and to purchase parts
or services, customers may not exercise options to purchase
additional buses, the ability of customers to terminate contracts
for convenience and the other risks and uncertainties discussed in
the materials filed with the Canadian securities regulatory
authorities and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Due to
the potential impact of these factors, the Company disclaims any
intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.
SOURCE New Flyer Industries Inc.