Abellio Bus has continued its partnership with Michelin Services and Solutions. Michelin will continue to manage all tyres for Abeillo’s 800-strong bus fleet, which both sides estimate will cumulatively save around 900,000 kilogrammes of CO2. Abellio will also use Michelin’s newly-launched electric vehicle tyre, the X InCity EV Z for around 120 of its fleet starting 2022.
Abellio Bus Signs a New Five-Year Effitires Contract with Michelin
Contended with the savings they have seen from Michelin’s Services and Solutions team, as well as the environmental benefits, Abellio is keen to keep on relying on Michelin for all its tyre needs. The new contract will see Michelin supply, fit and manage the tyres across the company’s 800-strong bus fleet. The extended partnership was partly secured on the back of a detailed calculation that showed the contract would continue to help reduce the passenger transport operator’s CO2 emissions by more than 900,000 kilogrammes, and raw material usage by 100,000kg, every year.
Jon Eardley, Engineering Director at Abellio Bus, revealed why the partnership worked for them - “Michelin provides us with the full package – an excellent product, superb aftersales support and the best technical advice. But what sealed the deal for us this time was Michelin’s commitment to sustainable transport.”
Noting that the environmental benefits were a key part of Michelin’s strategy, he added, “We were invited to a customer centricity event at the factory in Stoke that reinforced the message of Michelin’s 4R strategy: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Renew. When we compared the raw materials, oil, CO2 and waste savings Michelin could offer, compared to any other tyre policy that doesn’t include the use of Michelin Remix retreads and regrooving, the figures were staggering.”
Based on the contract, all tyres fitted to Abellio Bus vehicles will be carefully managed through a multi-life policy with Michelin’s skilled technicians regrooving worn tyres on-site once the tread depth reaches 3-4mm, thereby helping to extend each tyre’s life in its most fuel-efficient state. Once the regrooved tyres have worn, they will be retreaded at the Michelin Remix plant in Stoke – a process that saves natural resources and doubles the Michelin casing lifespan and supports UK manufacturing.
Michelin will predominantly fit urban bus tyres across the Abellio Bus fleet, including the new X InCity EV Z – Michelin’s first range of tyres specifically designed for electric vehicles (EVs).
“Our target is to have around 120 electric buses in service by early 2022, so the X InCity EV Z will be a key part of this new contract,” adds Eardley. “We already have 34 electric vehicles in the fleet at this moment in time, operating over one million miles per annum on Michelin tyres, with another 91 in production which will all arrive straight from the factory shod on Michelin rubber.”
Andrew French, Director of Services & Solutions at Michelin, said: “We have established a great relationship with Abellio since we won back the contract in 2017, and we are delighted they have chosen to continue our partnership for a further five years.”
Noting how important sustainability is to the company’s objectives, French added, “The sustainability benefits of our carefully managed contracts are becoming more and more crucial to operators – helping to meet stringent government emissions targets and their own environmental strategies, as we all work together towards a greener and cleaner future for the transport industry.”
