Make public transport emission-free

But the very first e-bus from the Dutch manufacturer went into service in Helsinki, Finland. Today, Ebusco operates in seven countries and is publicly traded. The link with Etteplan, also from Finland, goes beyond the shared roots. ‘With Etteplan, we are laying a foundation for Ebusco's technical content management in the future.’

‘The influx of electric buses is set to accelerate significantly in Europe in the coming years, but there is still a long way to go for a completely zero-emission fleet,’ explains Maurice van Eck, Manager Aftersales at Ebusco. ‘By 2030, over a third of the approximately 200,000 buses used for European public transport are expected to be emission-free. The penetration of electric buses in the Netherlands is twenty per cent, the highest in Europe. Most other countries have yet to reach five per cent.

The worldwide growth of electric buses has only just begun. Our roadmap is therefore clear: expand production capacity in order to make the most of rising global demand for e-buses. We want to make zero-emission public transport the new norm.’

Not just a booklet that comes with it

All buses must be accompanied by manuals: a manual for the driver, repair procedures, instructions for towing service providers. But manufacturer's often neglect content creation and content delivery. Especially in the explosive growth phase in which Ebusco finds itself, technical documentation is not a top-of-list priority.

We tap external expertise where necessary to complement our vision and philosophy and to obtain sufficient capacity to develop all the manuals.

Etteplan understands like no other that it is not merely “a booklet that comes with it.” We make a high voltage product, and for that reason alone we have a great responsibility when it comes to safety.’

Etteplan has a stable CMS that we can steadily build on. Depending on our needs, we can turn to Etteplan. They have what it takes to take our information management to the next level. They are a professional party that can scale up with us, in terms of both people and expertise. With Etteplan, Ebusco is laying a professional foundation for the content management of the future.’

Change of mindset

‘Just as the electrification of transport is a matter of changing mindset, so too is the organization of technical documentation,’ explains Bram Berden Area Manager Technical Documentation Services at Etteplan. ‘It is still often fragmented, requires a lot of manual work and is far from being paperless.

We are convinced you can cut the time required for information gathering by 25 to 30 per cent and achieve substantial savings. A good manual contributes to a high level of customer satisfaction. Therefore, make it an integral part of the product life cycle of your products and integrate it into your production process. For Etteplan, helping Ebusco transition to a smarter approach to organizing their technical documentation is the way to contribute to their success.’