Korean order for amphibious coaches
GS Specialist Vehicles has secured orders for five amphibious coaches, to be used in a Korean transport project on the Han River. The coaches have to be delivered by October and production is now in full swing at the company's temporary premises at...
GS Specialist Vehicles has secured orders for five amphibious coaches, to be used in a Korean transport project on the Han River. The coaches have to be delivered by October and production is now in full swing at the company's temporary premises at Corradino Industrial Estate. The first will roll out within six to seven weeks.
In all, the company has orders for 20 coaches, amounting to €8 million.
The Times Business had tried out the prototype two years ago but managing director George Smith said the new coaches have been completely re-designed.
"Rather than plunge straight into production, I wanted to get the engineering right," he said.
"We have invested heavily in improving the design of the catamaran hull, which now has a shorter front which we believe is more attractive. The stairs, which folded out, will now be recessed into the hull with a watertight door behind them. We have also changed the propulsion system so that it now changes from wheels to jet without gears. And the wheels will retract into the hull to reduce drag, so that we can now get speeds of 10 knots," he said enthusiastically, barely pausing to breath.
"And with the new Hamilton jet, we could do a circle around a buoy if we wanted to."
He is importing coach bodies with a more luxurious interior, including LCD screens on the seats and a sophisticated sound system that will enable multilingual announcements. These are then assembled onto the chassis and hull.
The changes do not only affect the final product but also the production process. For example, he has designed a planing machine that smooths out the welds and filler to a one millimetre tolerance, saving weeks of work.
A rotating jig allows his staff to weld more ergonomically and he has broken down the hull into sections that slip seamlessly into each other, with hardly any gaps.
The final part of the challenge was to get certification, which he got from the German Technischer Überwachungs-Verein, one of the most stringent in the world.
Malta Industrial Parks is currently refurbishing a factory for GSSV at Hal Far, which should be ready to move into by year-end. The factory will be able to take 12 coaches simultaneously, with overhead cranes to speed up the process.
Mr Smith is champing at the bit. In addition to the Korean order, he has three coaches under construction, which will soon be sent to do tours on the Danube in Budapest and Rotterdam; he has an order for four more from Schiphol Airport, which sees a marvellous opportunity for them as tour coaches.
"A large percentage of the 40 million passengers who go through Schiphol have more than four hours to wait and so the airport is considering offering tours of Amsterdam - including a ride down the canal - using our coaches," he grinned.
In the meantime, the Chinese heard on television about the Korean order and contacted him about the possibility of 15 coaches for the Beijing Olympics, he said.
With the order books full and a waiting list building up, GSSV is also taking on staff. Its workforce of 12 is due to grow to 30 within weeks and to 100 by the time it is in the new factory. The company already subcontracts a lot of its engineering work.
The company's overseas success has not yet been replicated in Malta, in spite of considerable interest from travel agencies. The company is in the midst of talks with the Maritime Authority and the Transport Authority, reassuring them about the safety and certification of the coaches. Once that hurdle has been overcome, Mr Smith believes there will be wonderful opportunities.
Mr Smith is very pleased with the support he has received from the government.
"It is very important for the government to encourage innovation and support these companies. This is how to create large scale employment."
In all, the company has orders for 20 coaches, amounting to €8 million.
The Times Business had tried out the prototype two years ago but managing director George Smith said the new coaches have been completely re-designed.
"Rather than plunge straight into production, I wanted to get the engineering right," he said.
"We have invested heavily in improving the design of the catamaran hull, which now has a shorter front which we believe is more attractive. The stairs, which folded out, will now be recessed into the hull with a watertight door behind them. We have also changed the propulsion system so that it now changes from wheels to jet without gears. And the wheels will retract into the hull to reduce drag, so that we can now get speeds of 10 knots," he said enthusiastically, barely pausing to breath.
"And with the new Hamilton jet, we could do a circle around a buoy if we wanted to."
He is importing coach bodies with a more luxurious interior, including LCD screens on the seats and a sophisticated sound system that will enable multilingual announcements. These are then assembled onto the chassis and hull.
The changes do not only affect the final product but also the production process. For example, he has designed a planing machine that smooths out the welds and filler to a one millimetre tolerance, saving weeks of work.
A rotating jig allows his staff to weld more ergonomically and he has broken down the hull into sections that slip seamlessly into each other, with hardly any gaps.
The final part of the challenge was to get certification, which he got from the German Technischer Überwachungs-Verein, one of the most stringent in the world.
Malta Industrial Parks is currently refurbishing a factory for GSSV at Hal Far, which should be ready to move into by year-end. The factory will be able to take 12 coaches simultaneously, with overhead cranes to speed up the process.
Mr Smith is champing at the bit. In addition to the Korean order, he has three coaches under construction, which will soon be sent to do tours on the Danube in Budapest and Rotterdam; he has an order for four more from Schiphol Airport, which sees a marvellous opportunity for them as tour coaches.
"A large percentage of the 40 million passengers who go through Schiphol have more than four hours to wait and so the airport is considering offering tours of Amsterdam - including a ride down the canal - using our coaches," he grinned.
In the meantime, the Chinese heard on television about the Korean order and contacted him about the possibility of 15 coaches for the Beijing Olympics, he said.
With the order books full and a waiting list building up, GSSV is also taking on staff. Its workforce of 12 is due to grow to 30 within weeks and to 100 by the time it is in the new factory. The company already subcontracts a lot of its engineering work.
The company's overseas success has not yet been replicated in Malta, in spite of considerable interest from travel agencies. The company is in the midst of talks with the Maritime Authority and the Transport Authority, reassuring them about the safety and certification of the coaches. Once that hurdle has been overcome, Mr Smith believes there will be wonderful opportunities.
Mr Smith is very pleased with the support he has received from the government.
"It is very important for the government to encourage innovation and support these companies. This is how to create large scale employment."