2022 saw Coachair celebrate its return to the Bus & Coach Expo with the release of two air-conditioning units. The new models have laid a platform for a successful 2023 for the manufacturer.
With new models and a massive Bus & Coach Expo, it’s been an incredibly busy year for Coachair.
The air-conditioning manufacturer has released flagship models across both the diesel and battery-electric air-conditioning sectors, both of which were on full display at October’s Bus & Coach Expo and will lead Coachair into a busy 2023.
Coachair general manager Anthony O’Donnell says the EX32 unit is at the forefront of Coachair’s modern offerings to the bus and coach market.
“On the electric side we are promoting our prized EX32 unit,” O’Donnell told ABC.
“The EX32 is the lightest weight unit on offer in Australia for zero-emissions buses.
“It also has the highest capacity heating and cooling. Under testing in the lab and data logging on road, it has shown to use significantly less power than other units on offer in the market today.”
O’Donnell says the EX32 is the only unit on the market that has been specified by Australian engineers for the Australian climate.
Coming from more than 40 years of manufacturing electric air-conditioning units for the rail sector, O’Donnell says the EX32 takes the best of its rail offerings and transitions it to the bus and coach market.
Having been 100 per cent Australian owned and marketed, Coachair’s EX32 has been designed specifically by the company’s electric engineers for zero-emissions buses.
“It’s a pure DC unit, we don’t run converters to AC to keep power consumption at a minimum,” O’Donnell says. “We’re also running two separate refrigeration systems with DC compressors.
“It gives us the ability to have 50 per cent redundancy, so if we do have one system fail then the unit can still keep the bus on the road.”
Yet Coachair’s air-conditioning units aren’t just limited to its latest venture into zero-emissions, lightweight options.
On the diesel side, Coachair also released a new model in 2022, the XT44.
 |
“On the diesel side, the XT44 is the replacement for the original XT353 model,” O’Donnell says.
“The reasoning behind replacing the XT353 model was to upgrade to a higher capacity unit with more air flow and a much lighter weight.”
O’Donnell says the upgrade from the XT353 to the XT44 is a clear evolution for Coachair.
While the control systems on both models are identical, the models differ when it comes to the latest technology.
O’Donnell says the XT44 would be close to the highest capacity diesel air-conditioning unit in the Australian market.
Supporting the two main Coachair models is a quickly expanding nationwide warranty that the company has been working hard to develop in 2022.
With the likes of business development manager Eddie Furmanczyk returning to the Coachair fold in time for the Expo, Coachair is now primed to promote its after-sale capabilities too.
RELATED ARTICLE: Adding the Mercedes-Benz touch for operators
“Both the EX32 and the XT44 models are now backed by our nationwide warranty and service divisions,” O’Donnell says. “We have nationwide service and warranty back-up for customers, regardless of where in Australia they are or at what time.
“Our service and warranty capabilities are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
This twin release of models in both the diesel and electric air-conditioning markets has made 2022 a whirlwind for O’Donnell and Coachair.
Moving into 2023, O’Donnell says the company is busy servicing the local industry and pushing its new models further into the market.
“As we look towards 2023, we have a fairly solid order bank ready to go,” O’Donnell says.
“We also have a lot of non-Coachair customers who are looking at our products because of what it is and what we’re doing in the marketplace.”
What to look forward to in 2023
Off the back of the launch of the EX32 and the XT44 and their promotion at the Bus & Coach Expo, Coachair’s focus in 2023 will be on growing its presence in the market.
“In general, 2023 will be an exciting year for Coachair,” O’Donnell told ABC. “We’ll continue promoting our units and building our service divisions to support the product we’re selling.”
O’Donnell says Coachair will continue to draw on its near 50-year link to the rail industry as it works to evolve its electric powered airconditioning platform.
He says Coachair is also looking at a new technology when it comes to refrigerant coils to ensure its products have a lower impact on the environment while continuing to have great capacity for the weight of the unit.
While there is certainly a focus on developing in the electric power space, Coachair will not be disregarding its diesel units and technology.
“Diesel buses aren’t going to go away for at least 15 to 20 years in regional and rural areas,” O’Donnell says.
“We will still keep evolving our diesel equipment as well as our electric to provide quality products for as long as our customer base requires it.”