VDL Bus Venlo to convert new police cars
VDL Bus Venlo, part of VDL Bus & Coach, is going to convert the new patrol cars for the Dutch national police on behalf of Mercedes-Benz. The agreement between the police and Mercedes-Benz was signed at the NIDV Symposium & Exhibition in Rotterdam on Thursday 30 November. This includes the delivery of 1,250 converted cars of the type Mercedes B‑Class. These cars will replace the current patrol cars, which are based on the Volkswagen Touran, starting in 2018.
In the coming four years VDL Bus Venlo will initially convert 875 vehicles into fully-fledged police cars for Mercedes-Benz. VDL Bus Venlo will supply various components for the remaining 375 vehicles that are being converted by another company. The monetary figures associated with the order will not be disclosed. The new cars converted by VDL Bus Venlo will be equipped with light and sound equipment, vehicle graphics and high-quality communication and navigation equipment, and the boot will be fitted out to accommodate the standard police equipment.
Workflow
Later, the number of Mercedes-Benz vehicles to be converted by VDL Bus Venlo may be expanded, resulting in a continuous workflow with a maximum duration of seven years. The intention is that the first converted vehicle will be delivered to the national police via Mercedes-Benz in late February 2018.
Conversion of police vehicles is nothing new for VDL Bus Venlo. This VDL company with 80 employees has delivered many custom-made vehicles for the police in the past. Over the last year the company has been hard at work on the conversion of the first of a total of 256 crowd- and riot-control buses. Deliveries of these vehicles began in February 2017. To make the conversion process as efficient as possible for this order - the largest vehicle conversion order in VDL history - line production was used for the first time. The base vehicle for the crowd- and riot-control bus is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter.
Strategy
Managing Director Mark Francot of VDL Bus Venlo says, “The conversion of the ME buses and these surveillance vehicles for the police is in line with the strategy of growing our Special Vehicles department. If we do well, we may be considered for the conversion of even more police vehicles. That would provide great continuity to our organization.”
VDL Bus & Coach
VDL Bus Venlo is part of VDL Bus & Coach, the Buses & Coaches division of VDL Groep. The core activities of VDL Bus & Coach are the development, manufacturing, sales and after-sales service of a wide range of buses, coaches and chassis modules, the conversion or extension of mini & midi buses and the purchase and sales of second-hand buses. VDL Bus & Coach consists of multiple operating companies that are collectively active in the global market. The manufacturing takes place in the Netherlands and Belgium. VDL Bus & Coach places great importance on aspects such as quality, safety, durability, the environment, low fuel consumption, comfort and low maintenance costs. Sales of the VDL Bus & Coach products take place through a worldwide network consisting of corporate-owned sales offices, importers and agents in more than 30 countries.