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New Optare distributor

Bus Corp Oceania (BCO) has been appointed as the new Australasian distributor for British bus and coach manufacturer Optare

 

BCO is a vehicle distribution and after sales organisation that is supported by one of Australia’s largest automotive groups, and it aims to strengthen Optare’s representation and help expand its market reach.

 The organisation has appointed Jason Pecotic to head up the new distributorship. Pecotic brings more than 25 years of experience in the automotive industry, including many years in the bus and coach distribution sector and will lead a team that will focus heavily on after market support for Optare customers across Australia and New Zealand.

 BCO will be based in Melbourne with a network of service providers around the country.

 The first round of staff recruitment has begun with BCO aiming to have a complete after sales and spare parts division fully operational within seven weeks, operating from BCO’s Moorabbin premises in south east Melbourne.

Pecotic says his main focus will be ensuring existing and potential customers have faith in the brand and can purchase with peace of mind that they will be well supported.

 “Our strategy is to target after market support and to provide exactly the sort of infrastructure and support networks we have to have in place to ensure those buying Optare can be satisfied in their purchase,” he says.

 BCO has recruited highly experienced bus sales professional Guy Pex as the national sales manager.

Pex has worked with Optare in Australia over the past few years and brings a wealth of knowledge about the brand and the bus industry.

 The company will also work closely with Optare’s Australian representative Shannon Taylor, who will provide direct factory support from the Optare Group within the region.

“It’s an exciting time to be joining the Optare family with its proven low deployment costs, packaged with cost saving technology as well as a passenger comfort focused bus range,” Pecotic says.

“The timing of this announcement is perfect as Australia and New Zealand enter new rounds of operator contract tenders and government procurement negotiations.”

 BCO has a fleet of demonstrator vehicles available for operators for trial purpose.

“As the supply of units increases will build that fleet to a level where no operator should have to wait long for their personal experience. We believe with Optare proven low fuel consumption and low deployment we will save millions of dollars for operators’ contract costs, which has benefits for every public transport budget in the region.”

Optare is confident that its strategy to invest into Australia and New Zealand and introduce new products to provide a complete range of urban buses will provide the foundations to grow Optare into one of the key bus suppliers for this region.

“Optare buses are highly advanced and offer some significant advantages for operators thanks to weight-saving monocoque construction, advanced electronics and low emission power options.

“Optare’s monocoque design means its buses can be as much as 1.5 tonnes lighter than the ladder chassis-equipped competition.”

Optare’s line up of buses ranges from the entry level 27-seat, 7.9-metre Solo midi model — through the 9.9 metre Solo, the larger Tempo and flagship Metro city bus along with a new double decker; the Metrodecker.

The latest technology Cummins turbo-diesels will power most Optare buses in Australia; paired with Allison automatic transmissions, while Mercedes Benz power is also available in some models. Pure electric (EV) powered versions are also available across the range.

Optare has close to one hundred years of history and expertise in bus manufacturing; growing out of the famous Leyland brand.

Parent company Ashok Leyland is part of the Hinduja Group, which boasts annual revenues of $2.5 billion and is ranked amongst the top four bus manufacturers in the world.

 Optare also has a range of low-carbon buses using enhanced diesel technology or zero emission electric drivelines, and is also offering complete integration of telematics on critical operating and status parameters for the vehicle.

Optare also provides the latest in driver management software to optimise fuel consumption by profiling driver, route and individual buses.

The latest GPS, CCTV and passenger-counting systems are part of a suite of on-board capabilities which can be assessed using live feed telematics while the bus is in operation, or produce comprehensive reporting from standardised or custom KPI reports.

“Optare has been successful in securing a number of key public transport sales across Australia and New Zealand in the past few years and the appointment of BCO as the new distributor will ensure the solid foundation will built on with a significantly increasing fleet of Optare buses on Australian and New Zealand roads,” Pecotic says.

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