Blue Bird Corporation

Blue Bird Corporation

Type	Public
Traded as	NASDAQ: BLBD
Industry	Bus manufacturing
Founded	1932
Founder	Albert L. Luce, Sr.
Headquarters	402 Blue Bird Blvd P.O. Box 937 Fort Valley, GA 31030
Area served	United States Canada Over 60 countries worldwide Africa Asia the Caribbean Latin America Europe Middle East [1]
Key people	Phil Horlock, President and CEO
Products	School buses Activity buses
Number of employees	1000+ [1]
Parent	Merrill Lynch Capital Partners (1992-1999) Henlys plc (1999-2004) Cerberus Capital Management (2006-2014, still owns 58% of shares)[2]
Slogan	Your Children's Safety Is Our Business (unknown-early 1990s) Count on Blue Bird (mid 2000s-2014) Blue Bird. A Heritage of Looking Ahead (2014-current)
Website	Blue-Bird.com

Blue Bird Corporation (originally known as the Blue Bird Body Company) is an American bus manufacturer headquartered in Fort Valley, Georgia. Best known for as a manufacturer of school buses, the company has also manufactured a wide variety of other bus types, including transit buses, motorhomes, and specialty vehicles such as mobile libraries and mobile police command centers. Currently, Blue Bird concentrates its product lineup on school and activity buses and specialty vehicle derivatives.^[3]

After company founder A.L. Luce produced a steel-panel school bus in his auto dealership in 1927, he started production of bus bodies exclusively in 1932, founding Blue Bird Body Company in Fort Valley, Georgia. Remaining under family control into the early 1990s, the company changed hands several times in the 2000s and became publicly owned in February 2015, with previous owner Cerberus Capital Management holding a 58% share of the company.

The Blue Bird company logo, painted on the roof of many of its buses since the early 1960s, is a silhouette profile of its namesake, a bluebird.

History

1927–1945: The Change to Steel

"Blue Bird Number 1", built on a 1927 Ford Model T. Donated to The Henry Ford Museum in 2008.

In the late 1920s, Albert L. Luce, Sr. was a local entreprenuer, owning two of the local Ford Motor Company dealerships in the area around Fort Valley, Georgia, a rural farming community south of Macon.

In 1927, Luce designed his first bus body, largely as a side project to his automobile business. In 1925, a local customer had purchased a Ford chassis fitted with a wooden bus body to transport his workers; however, the wooden bus body started to disintegrate before the customer finished paying for the vehicle.^[4] Driven to sell a vehicle capable of surviving the unpaved rural roads of the time, Luce sought input to develop a stronger body from potential customers; he decided to build his own bus body on a Model T frame.^[5] In an effort to improve over the original wood-framed bus that was sold, Luce constructed the frame of his bus body with steel angles and sheetmetal, using wood sparingly.^[4] Completed in 1927, the bus was put into service transporting school children.

After the construction of seven more bus bodies, Luce sold his Ford franchise in 1932 to produce bus bodies full-time to start his own company.^[5] When deciding upon a name, Luce chose the Blue Bird name for a variety of reasons. The Blue Bird name originated from the positive reception of school children to a blue and yellow demonstrator unit from a group of school children; Luce was nervous about the use of the family name for his business out of fears of it being mispronounced (i.e., "the loose bus").^[5]

In 1937, the company began production of full-steel bus bodies, an innovation which soon replaced the wooden bodies which were then in common use around the United States.^[5] The early use of farm wagons on a part-time basis soon evolved into purpose-built school bus products, each with economy and function as major priorities.

As the second quarter of the 20th century began, Albert Luce Sr. was one of the entrepreneurs of the period who transitioned from building wagons to developing some of the earliest purpose-built school buses. In a 1939 conference, Blue Bird engineers helped to develop the color school bus yellow, which is still in use today. Blue Bird and Wayne Corporation were several of the earliest to experiment with steel body construction, although such efforts were severely limited by war production product shortages and restrictions during World War II.

1945–1960: Post-war transition

Following World War II, continuing a transition from one-room schools, there was a nationwide movement in the US to consolidate schools into fewer and larger ones, facilitating graded class structures. This meant that fewer students were attending school in their immediate neighborhoods, particularly as they progressed into high school; for many, the previous practice of walking to school became impractical. This led in turn to a large increase in the demand for transportation. The company grew substantially and became a major school bus body builder in the post-World War II period.

During the late 1950s, the leadership of Blue Bird changed. Company founder A.L. Luce retired, handing over operations to his three sons.^[5]

All American

Blue Bird founder Albert Luce Sr. viewed a design for a flat-front passenger bus at the 1948 Paris Auto Show. Two years later, Blue Bird Body Company introduced their own transit-style design which evolved into the Blue Bird All American, often pointed to as one of the pioneer transit designs to gain widespread acceptance for school buses in North America, along with Wayne Corporation, Gillig Corporation and Crown Coach Corporation (whose "Supercoach" dated to 1932). In 1952, Blue Bird became the first school bus manufacturer to produce its own chassis rather than rely on outside suppliers for the All American; today, Blue Bird builds the chassis for every full-size bus produced.^[6]

1960–1980: Moving beyond school buses

1979 Blue Bird Wanderlodge

Early 1960s Blue Bird school bus with a Chevrolet C-60 chassis. This bus is being converted to an RV.

As the 1950s became the 1960s, Blue Bird grew rapidly, becoming the fourth-largest manufacturer of school buses.^[5] To accommodate the added demand, the Luce brothers added several production facilities to supplement the Fort Valley, Georgia plant. In 1958, Blue Bird Canada was opened in Brantford, Ontario.^[7] In 1962, Blue Bird Midwest was opened in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. In 1965, Blue Bird moved production beyond North America with Blue Bird Central America in Guatemala. To lower production and maintenance costs, while the Conventional and All American bodies were produced, they were built on locally sourced chassis (from Mercedes-Benz, Hino, Nissan Diesel, and Toyota).

Company founder A.L. Luce died in 1962. Shortly after, the three Luce sons sought to diversify the company product line, fearing that the school bus industry, whose demand was influenced by the baby boom generation, would eventually drop off as students completed their education. At the beginning of the decade, the Blue Bird company logo made its debut, painted on the roofline of many of its buses.

In 1963, the first major Blue Bird venture outside of school buses made its debut. Named the Blue Bird Transit Home (re-branded Wanderlodge in 1968), it was a $12,000 ($92,000 in 2015 dollars) luxury recreational vehicle based on the All American. Using the heavy-duty frame and all-steel body to its advantage, the vehicle was marketed as higher-quality than other RVs of the time; the interior was largely built to order. Based on the All American for over 25 years, the Wanderlodge developed a loyal following, including celebrities and heads of state among their owners.

In the 1970s, Blue Bird developed a bus for a much wider audience. Named the City Bird, it was a variant of the All American developed for the mass-transit segment. A short-wheelbase rear-engine bus, the City Bird was intended for smaller cities and routes with cul-de-sac ends, providing better maneuverability, and more efficient costs than larger vehicles.

During the 1970s, with the use of small school buses increasing, Blue Bird found a way to diversify its school bus line. While school buses based on cutaway vans were not invented by the company, Blue Bird found ways to gain significant market share. In 1975, Blue Bird introduced the Micro Bird, based on a dual rear-wheel Chevrolet/GMC van chassis. Largely similar to the Wayne Busette, the Micro Bird distinguished itself by featuring a full-height school bus door and additional windows forward of the entry door to aid loading-zone visibility. In 1977, the small-bus lineup was expanded to two with the debut of the Mini Bird, based on the GM P-30 stepvan chassis. While still a small bus in its own right, the Mini Bird was designed with the advantage of the same body width of the Conventional/All American; many Mini Birds were fitted with wheelchair lifts.

1980-2000: Market leadership

1988-1990 Blue Bird TC/2000

1995-1998 Blue Bird/Ford B800 in Brooklyn, New York

The late 1970s and early 1980s were a time of turmoil for school bus manufacturers; many of the predictions of the Luce brothers had largely come true. As the baby-boom generation completed their secondary education by the end of the 1970s, student populations, a key factor in school bus sales for nearly three decades, began to decline. Coupled with the fragile economy of the time, three of the six largest school bus manufacturers (Carpenter, Superior, and Ward) would file for bankruptcy in the early 1980s, with Superior exiting school bus production entirely. The recession of the early 1980s cut deeply into profits, leading to the re-organization or closure of several manufacturers. Blue Bird fared better than most competitors, becoming the largest manufacturer in terms of sales; by the mid-1980s, one out of every three new school buses was a Blue Bird.^[5]

A key factor to the sales expansion was the renewal of the Blue Bird product line at the end of the decade. In 1988, the company made two product introductions that would change the company. Due to increasing demand, the company began in-house production of rear-engine chassis for the All American for the first time; previously, it was outsourced to other manufacturers. Also that year, the company expanded the transit-style school bus line from one to two with the introduction of the TC/2000. Largely a response to the Wayne Lifestar, the TC/2000 was developed in an effort to secure bids from operators of large fleets; it was designed with a purchase price nearly in line with conventional-style bus. However, unlike competitors, it was also designed with an in-house chassis like the All American. The TC/2000 was a runaway success; by 1990, nearly 1 in 10 new school buses was of the type. Introduced during 1989 production, Blue Bird made its first major changes to the All American since 1957. Along with major exterior updates, there was an all-new powertrain lineup and a redesigned drivers compartment.

While Blue Bird had enjoyed major success during the 1980s with school buses, the company had mixed results with its mass-transit products, discontinuing the City Bird in 1986 after 10 years of production. In 1992, Blue Bird launched the Q-Bus, a 96" wide bus transit and charter applications.^[8] Unlike the City Bird, the Q-Bus was not based upon any version of the All American. During the 1990s, Blue Bird launched commercial versions of the All American and TC/2000, called the APC and CS-Series; the buses were also sold in shell versions for upfitters as well.

In the early 1990s, the Wanderlodge began to transition away from its school bus origins. While still a heavy-duty coach built largely to order, the Wanderlodge was redesigned to allow it to be built with a 102" wide body. While the width was illegal for a school bus, it had been allowed in motorcoaches (and some competing motorhomes) for some time. Additionally, the change allowed Blue Bird to modernize the looks of vehicle. In 1997, Blue Bird introduced its first passenger motorcoach, the LTC-40, its first passenger motorcoach; it became the donor platform for the Wanderlodge from 1998 onwards.

Environmentally-friendly buses

The 1990s were also a period that the company explored the use of alternative power sources for school buses. In 1991, Blue Bird introduced the first school bus (an All American Rear Engine) powered by compressed natural gas (CNG). In 1994, Blue Bird developed a battery-powered school bus in an effort with Westinghouse Electronic Systems for a school district in California.^[5] While the electric school bus remained a prototype, Blue Bird has continued to offer CNG as an option on the All American since its 1991 introduction. In 1996,^[9] the Envirobus 2000 concept made its debut; based loosely on the Q-Bus, it served as a testbed for both safety-related technology as well as the viability of compressed natural gas school buses.^[10]

Blue Bird/ MB-IV on a Ford E-350 chassis

Ownership changes and joint ventures

From its 1932 foundation until 1984, Blue Bird was run entirely by the Luce family, either by Albert Sr or by his three sons. In 1986, the board of directors hired Paul Glaske, president of Marathon LeTourneau, a Texas-based heavy equipment manufacturer.^[5] During this time, the Luce family still maintained ownership of the company. In 1992, Merrill Lynch Capital Partners purchased an 82% stake of the company in a management-led buyout with the other 18% spread between Paul Glaske and 14 other Blue Bird managers.^[5] After the buyout, the company name changed from Blue Bird Body Company to Blue Bird Corporation.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, declining demand for school buses and changes in world markets would lead to a number of changes at the company, leading to several ownership changes. In 1999, the British Henlys Group PLC purchased Blue Bird with a substantial financial stake held by Volvo Group.^[11] The ownership changes during the late 1990s led to a number of changes in Blue Bird production facilities. In 1992, the factory in Buena Vista, Virginia (Blue Bird East) was shut down; in its place, the company opened its first factory in Mexico (Blue Bird de Mexico) in Monterrey, Nuevo León in 1995.

In 1992, in an effort to supplement its product line, Blue Bird entered into a supply agreement with its Canadian bus manufacturer Girardin Minibus (its distributor in the country) to supply dealers in the United States with the newly designed MB-II/MB-IV cutaway van (branded as Blue Birds). While similar to the Micro Bird, the Blue Bird MB-II/IV by Girardin allowed Blue Bird to offer an updated body design along with a configuration based on a single rear-wheel van chassis; at the time, Girardin was the only school bus manufacturer that built a full cutaway body for a single rear-wheel chassis. The MB-II/IV were sold by Blue Bird until 1999.

After redesigning its medium-duty truck line in 1991, General Motors entered into a 11-year supply agreement with Blue Bird, starting with 1992 production. Although the Blue Bird Conventional would remain available on other chassis (Ford, Navistar, and later Freightliner), the school bus version of the Chevrolet Kodiak/GMC TopKick would become the standard version of the Blue Bird Conventional, called the Blue Bird/GM CV200. The CV200 was produced until 2003.

2000s: Focus toward school buses

Blue Bird Ultra LF bus

2007 Blue Bird Vision

2010 Blue Bird All American

While the late 1990s were calmer than the late 1970s for the school bus industry, it still remained a time of relative turmoil for school bus manufacturers; this would carry into the 2000s. Several school bus manufacturers underwent acquisition or changed hands (AmTran and Thomas Built Buses); by 2001, several others (Crown Coach, Carpenter, Gillig, Wayne) would end school bus production forever. Instead of being family-run companies, school bus manufacturers were now owned by larger companies with ties to truck manufacturing. For Blue Bird, a large stake of the company was owned by the Volvo Group, the largest bus manufacturer in the world. However, during the early 2000s, due to financial difficulties of its other parent company, Blue Bird was sold from Henlys in 2004. In 2006, Blue Bird was acquired through a bankruptcy filing by Cerberus Capital Management.^[12] Looking to develop its entries in the transportation sector, Blue Bird was paired with North American Bus Industries (NABI) and Optima Bus Corporation by Cerberus.

At the beginning of the 2000s, Blue Bird sought to modernize its aging transit bus line; the Q-Bus was nearly a decade old and the CS and APC coaches were essentially commercial versions of the All American and TC/2000 school buses. For 2002, the 96-inch wide Q-Bus was replaced by the 102-inch wide Xcel102 and the CS and APC lines were retired. In 2003, the company entered the low-floor segment with the introduction of the UltraLF and UltraLMB.

As the number of full-size school bus manufacturers had been cut from seven to three from 1990 to 2000, Blue Bird began on making its school bus products more competitive during the early part of the decade. Following the substantial update of the All American in 1999, Blue Bird discontinued the slow-selling TC/1000 in 2001 and consolidated the TC/2000 with the All American early in 2004.

However, the largest change came in 2003, as Blue Bird sought to replace the CV200. While initially developed to use the Ford F-650 Super Duty chassis, the Vision underwent a major change before its release. In a major break from precedent, Blue Bird did not use an existing truck manufacturer for the chassis, instead developing its own version from the ground up. While the Vision used the same bus body as the long-running Conventional, engineering changes were made to optimize forward visibility.

As part of its acquisition by Cerberus, Blue Bird gradually saw itself positioned exclusively into yellow school bus production, its largest market. In 2007, the Xcel102 was discontinued and the low-floor UltraLF/LMB product lines were added to NABI. In a controversial move, the rights to the Wanderlodge luxury motorhome were sold to Complete Coach Works; production ended in 2009.

In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the construction the first Blue Bird bus and the centennial of the Model T Ford, the Luce family donated the restored vehicle to The Henry Ford Museum in 2008.^[4][13] Dubbed "Blue Bird #1", it is the oldest known surviving school bus in the United States.

With resources dedicated solely towards school bus production, the Vision saw a major update for 2008. In addition to a new dashboard, it received a new cowl with larger headlights and grille. For 2009, the company expanded alternative-fuel options as it introduced a propane-fuel variant of the Vision; it was powered by a General Motors 8.1L V8. For 2010, the All American was given a complete update, marking some of the largest changes to the Blue Bird body design in over 50 years; along with a complete redesign of the roof, windshield, and rear entry, the interior received a ground-up redesign.

With the streamlining of bus production, the number of production facilities utilized by the company has been reduced. Blue Bird de Mexico was closed in 2001 and Blue Bird Midwest in Mount Pleasant, Iowa was closed in 2002.^[14] In 2010, Blue Bird North Georgia was closed, consolidating all bus production back to company headquarters in Fort Valley.

In October 2009, Blue Bird further streamlined its bus production as it entered into a second joint venture with Canadian school bus manufacturer Girardin Minibus.^[15] Dubbed Micro Bird, Inc., all small bus production was consolidated at the Girardin facilities in Quebec, Canada; consequently, all Blue Bird production is now limited to full-size conventional and transit buses. The 2010 Micro Bird was the last Blue Bird bus to use a non-Blue Bird chassis.

2010-present: Next-generation school buses

2010-present Micro Bird MB-II

2015 Blue Bird All American Forward Engine

Following the consolidation of Blue Bird production to the Vision and All American school buses (and vehicles derived from them), during the 2010s, a number of changes were phased in. In following with the popularity with the LPG/propane version of the Blue Bird Vision conventional, a version powered by a Ford V10 was introduced in 2011 (as the original General Motors V8 engines were no longer in production); in addition, the Vision received a dashboard and steering column shared with the All American.

In 2013, Blue Bird unveiled a redesigned version of its full-size school bus line. An all-new 2014 version of the All American (code-named the T3 Series) replaced versions introduced in 1999 and 2008 produced concurrently. Distinguished by a redesigned (rounder) roof, the new All American has increased parts commonality with the Vision. In October 2013, the 2015 Vision was introduced. Along with clear-lens headlights and a new grille, propane-fueled versions gained the option of an extended-range 98-gallon fuel tank. Company owner Cerberus Capital sold off the majority of its transportation holdings, including NABI and Optima to Canadian body manufacturer New Flyer; Blue Bird remained under Cerberus ownership.

In late 2013, Blue Bird entered a different segment of school transportation as it introduced Blue Bird Connect™, a GPS-based fleet management software system co-developed with Synovia Solutions. While designed as an integrated system as an option for any Blue Blue school bus, Blue Bird Connect™ was also intended for retrofit to existing fleets of school buses as well, regardless of brand.^[16]

Though produced by Girardin under the Micro Bird joint venture, in late 2014, the company introduced the Micro Bird T-Series, a Girardin-bodied Type A school bus; it is the first school bus body ever produced for the Ford Transit in North America.^[17] Largely due to the Ford-derived chassis design, Blue Bird predicts a 20% fuel economy increase over its E-Series MB/G5 counterpart.^[17]

In September 2014, the ownership of Blue Bird underwent another transition. Texas-based venture capital firm Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corporation purchased a $255 million stake of the company from Cerberus affiliate The Traxis Group.^[18] As part of the acquisition, Cerberus/Traxis would retain majority ownership; the Blue Bird leadership team remained in place.^[18] Although Cerberus remains the majority owner of Blue Bird with a 58% share of the company, in late February 2015, Blue Bird became the first stand-alone school bus manufacturer to become publicly traded on NASDAQ.^[19]

In September 2015, Blue Bird further expanded its non-diesel fuel offerings as the company introduced a gasoline-fueled variant of the Vision, starting with 2016 production^[20] The first gasoline-fueled full-size school bus since the discontinuation of the 2002 Blue Bird CV200, it is powered by the same Ford V10 used by the propane-fueled variant of the Vision.

Products

In addition to school, activity, and commercial applications, Blue Bird buses have been custom-built for unique applications such as bloodmobiles, mobile libraries, and public safety command centers.

School Buses

Current Product Line
Model Name	Micro Bird by Girardin	Vision	All American (T3)
Photo
Year Introduced	2010	2003	1948
Assembly	Drummondville, Quebec, Canada	Fort Valley, Georgia
Configuration	Type A MB-II:single rear wheel G5:dual rear wheel T-Series: single/dual rear wheel	Type C	Type D (front engine, rear engine)
Chassis Manufacturer	Ford Motor Company Ford E-350/E-450 (2010-2014) Ford Transit (2015-on) General Motors Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana	Blue Bird
Fuel Type(s)	Gasoline, Diesel, Propane	Gasoline, Diesel, Propane, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)	Diesel, Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)
Passenger Capacity	10-30	36-77	54-90
Other Notes	Introduced for 2011 model year as part of Micro Bird, Inc. joint venture with Girardin. Replaces Micro Bird 2015 Micro Bird T-Series is the first Type A school bus based on the Ford Transit cutaway chassis in North America.	Vision was introduced in 2004 and is currently in its second generation (introduced 2008). Vision uses an in-house chassis from Blue Bird. Vision underwent further upgrades for 2015 model	The All American FE has been produced on a Blue Bird-designed chassis since 1952; the All American RE chassis has been produced by Blue Bird since 1988. Current version (internally known as T3) introduced for 2014. Known in export markets as the Blue Bird TX3; formerly known as the TC/3000 and All Canadian.[21]

Former Product Lines
Model Name	Years Produced	Assembly	Configuration	Chassis Supplier	Notes
Micro Bird	1975–2010	Fort Valley, Georgia Mount Pleasant, Iowa Brantford, Ontario, Canada	Type A (single or dual rear wheel)	Ford Motor Company Ford Econoline/E-Series General Motors Chevrolet Express (1997–present) Chevrolet G-30/GMC Vandura (1975–1996) Chevrolet P-30 (1995–1996)	Replaced with products from Micro Bird, Inc. joint venture with Girardin. From 1992 to 1999, the Micro Bird was sold alongside Girardin-produced Blue Bird MB-II/MB-IV models. From 1995 to 1996, a heavy-duty model using the Chevrolet P30 chassis was produced using modified Chevrolet G30 front bodywork.
MB-II/MB-IV	1992–1999	Drummondville, Quebec, Canada	Type A MB-II: single rear wheel MB-IV: dual rear wheel	Ford Motor Company Ford Econoline/E-Series (1992–1999) General Motors Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana (1997–1999) Chevrolet G-30/GMC Vandura (1992–1996)	Introduced in Canada in 1991. Produced by Canada's Girardin Minibus and distributed in the United States as Blue Bird-brand products[22] MB-II continues in production and is now sold again as a Blue Bird (Micro Bird by Girardin)
Mini Bird	1977–2005	Buena Vista, Virginia Mount Pleasant, Iowa	Type B	General Motors Chevrolet P30	Mini Bird was the first Blue Bird marketed with special-needs customers in mind. Featured the same body width 96 inches (2.4 m) as full-size Blue Birds.
Conventional	c.1957-2004	LaFayette, Georgia Mount Pleasant, Iowa Buena Vista, Virginia Brantford, Ontario, Canada Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico	Type C	Chrysler Corporation Dodge D-300 (to 1977) DaimlerChrysler Corporation Freightliner FS-65 (1997–2002) Ford Motor Company Ford B600/B700/B800/B8000 (to 1998) General Motors Chevrolet/GMC B-Series (1966–1991) International Harvester Loadstar 1703 (1962–1978) S-1700/S1800 (1979–1989) Navistar International International 3800 (1989–2004)	The Conventional uses a cowled-chassis version of the body used by the All American (except for the D3 Series) and the TC/2000. Available on a wide variety of commercially produced chassis, discontinued with the end of International 3800 production in 2004. Replaced by Blue Bird Vision. In export markets, the Conventional was often produced using locally sourced chassis.
Chevrolet/GMC CV200	1992-2003	LaFayette, Georgia Mount Pleasant, Iowa Brantford, Ontario, Canada Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico	Type C	General Motors Chevrolet/GMC B7	Produced under a supply agreement between Blue Bird and General Motors; the Chevrolet/GMC chassis was used exclusively by the company. Ford, Freightliner, Navistar versions of the Conventionals were produced as options. The 2003 CV200 was the last full-sizecschool bus (prior to 2016) available with a gasoline engine. CV200 was replaced by the Vision.
SBCV	2005-2008	LaFayette, Georgia Brantford, Ontario, Canada	Type C	Navistar International International 3300	The SBCV was the replacement for the Conventional based on the International 3800; Blue Bird is the only body manufacturer to use the International 3300 chassis besides IC Bus. Produced alongside Vision until its 2008 discontinuation.
TC/1000	1997–2001		Type D front engine	Blue Bird Corporation	Marketed primarily for special-needs customers Front-engine version only; smaller than TC/2000 Flat-floor interior configuration
TC/2000	1988–2003	Fort Valley, Georgia LaFayette, Georgia Mount Pleasant, Iowa Brantford, Ontario, Canada	Type D front engine rear engine		Lighter duty chassis than All American Lower price meant to attract larger fleet buyers.

Other Vehicles

Other Product Lines
Model	Production	Configuration	Notes
City Bird	1976-1986	High-floor, rear engine	Short-wheelbase adaptation of All American for the mass-transit market
CS-Series APC-Series	1990s-2002	High-floor, front and rear engine	Various versions of the All American and TC/2000 school bus body and chassis adapted for commercial use.[23][24] The CS-Series was marketed towards transit and shuttle use while the APC was marketed towards various commercial buyers.
Q-Bus	1992-2001[8]	High-floor, rear engine	Mass-transit bus introduced in 1992 as the replacement for the City Bird. First Blue bird transit bus not based upon the All American or TC/2000.
Xcel102	2002-2007	High-floor, rear engine	Replaced Q-Bus First 102-inch wide Blue Bird transit bus.
Ultra LF Ultra LMB	2003-2010	Low-floor, rear engine	First low-floor bus designed by Blue Bird. Built by NABI in Anniston, Alabama from 2007-2010.
LTC-40	1997-2003	Rear-engine motorcoach	LTC=Luxury Touring Coach The LTC-40 was the first motorcoach designed by Blue Bird. From 1998 onwards, the LTC formed the basis for the Wanderlodge motorhome.
Wanderlodge	1963-2009	Recreational vehicle, front or rear-engine	The Wanderlodge was a hand-crafted recreational vehicle available in several configurations Based on the All American school bus from 1963-1989 Rights to product line sold to Complete Coach Works in 2007; production ceased in 2009.
Blue Bird Sigma	2014	Transit Bus, front or rear-engine	The Sigma is a new Transit Bus produced by Bluebird starting in 2014.

Prototypes

Model	Year	Chassis (Configuration)	Notes
Envirobus 2000	1996[9]	Blue Bird Q-Bus (rear-engine)	Loosely based on the Q-Bus, the Envirobus 2000 served as a testbed for the viability for compressed natural gas (CNG) in large-scale production for school buses.[10] A number of advanced safety features were integrated as part of the design. The Envirobus was not intended for production in its prototype form.
Blue Bird/Ford Conventional	2002	Ford F-750 Super Duty (conventional, cowled chassis)	As Blue Bird sought to replace the General Motors-chassis CV200 after 2003, several Blue Bird Conventional bodies were fitted on F-750 Super Duty chassis as a potential replacement. As Ford never completed a supply agreement with Blue Bird, these would become the very last Ford-chassis school buses ever built. Several features of these prototypes were integrated into the Vision introduced in 2003.[25]
EC-72	2006	Blue Bird Vision (conventional, cowled chassis)	Using the chassis of the Vision, the EC-72 was a limited-production series of conventional prototypes intended for testing new production designs; the EC-72 used the hood later seen on the 2008-2014 Vision along with a new roof and window design. Approximately 50 were produced in total.

Company Timeline

Blue Bird Corporation Timeline, 1970–present

Buses (by configuration)

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

'70

'71

'72

'73

'74

'75

'76

'77

'78

'79

'80

'81

'82

'83

'84

'85

'86

'87

'88

'89

'90

'91

'92

'93

'94

'95

'96

'97

'98

'99

'00

'01

'02

'03

'04

'05

'06

'07

'08

'09

'10

'11

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

Company Ownership

A.L. Luce family

Merrill Lynch Capital

Henlys plc

Peach County Holdings

Cerberus Capital

Publicly Traded (Cerberus Majority owner)

Type A

Single rear-wheel

MB-II by Girardin

Micro Bird SRW

Micro Bird MB-II

Micro Bird T-Series

Dual rear-wheel

Micro Bird (DRW)

Micro Bird T-Series DRW

MB-IV by Girardin

Micro Bird G5

Type B

Mini Bird

Type C

Conventional

SBCV

CV200

Vision

Vision

Vision

Type D

All American Forward Engine (1957)

All American Forward Engine (1989)

All American (A3FE)

All Amer. (T3)

All American Rear Engine (various chassis)

All Am. Rear Eng.

All American Rear Engine (1989)

All American (A3RE)

All American (D3RE/D3FE)

TC/2000 Forward Engine

TC/2000 Forward Engine

TC/2000 Forward Engine

TC/2000 Rear Engine

TC/2000 Rear Engine

TC/1000

Non-School Buses

City Bird

Q-Bus

Xcel102

CS-Series

Ultra LF/Ultra LMB

LTC-40

Wanderlodge (96" body)

Wanderlodge (102" body)

Wanderlodge LX/LXi/M380

Manufacturing and assembly

Traditionally, school buses such as those produced by Blue Bird consist of components purchased from various outside suppliers and parts which are manufactured in-house to the company's specifications. These two categories of parts are then typically assembled into bodies which can be mounted onto chassis which have often been variations of those used in a myriad of truck applications.

Production-wise, the large "home" plant complex in Fort Valley, Georgia served as both a part manufacturing plant for the entire organization as well as one of the six locations where bodies were assembled from in house and purchased components. Parts and service were also located in Fort Valley, as was Wanderlodge Wayside Park, a tree-shaded motor home park for visiting Wanderlodges adjacent to the Wanderlodge plant.

Blue Bird Corporation currently operates a single manufacturing facility in the United States: the Blue Bird Body Company in Fort Valley, Georgia. A second facility (Blue Bird North Georgia) in LaFayette, Georgia was closed August 30, 2010.^[26]

In the past, Blue Bird has had an international manufacturing presence, with two factories in Canada, one in Mexico, and one in South America. These have now all been closed due to changing market conditions and Blue Bird's shift back to a lineup of school bus-based vehicles.

Blue Bird Corporation Manufacturing Facilities
Name	Location	Product Lines	Year Opened	Year Closed	Notes
United States
Blue Bird Body Company	Fort Valley, Georgia	All American TC/2000 Vision Q-Bus CS parts	See Notes		The first Fort Valley facility opened in 1935; destroyed by fire in 1945. Present Fort Valley facility opened in 1946.
Blue Bird North Georgia	LaFayette, Georgia	Vision Conventional TC/2000	1988	2010	Closed August 30, 2010.[27]
Blue Bird Midwest	Mount Pleasant, Iowa	TC/2000 Conventional Mini Bird Micro Bird	1962	2002
Blue Bird East	Buena Vista, Virginia	Conventional Mini Bird TC/2000	1972	1992
Blue Bird Wanderlodge	Fort Valley, Georgia	Wanderlodge parts	1963	2007	Originally opened as Cardinal Manufacturing
Canada
Blue Bird Canada	Brantford, Ontario, Canada	TC/2000 Conventional Micro Bird parts	1958	2007	Blue Bird also operated a facility in St. Lin, Quebec from 1975 to 1982
Micro Bird, Inc.	Drummondville, Quebec, Canada	Micro Bird (MB-II, G5)	1981		Girardin Minibus production facility
Worldwide Facilities
Blue Bird de Mexico	Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico	Conventional	1995	2001
Blue Bird Central America	Guatemala City, Guatemala	See Notes	1965	1980s	Produced All American and Conventional bodies on locally available chassis.

Images

• 

  Blue Bird company logo in steering wheel

• 

  2000s Blue Bird All American FE bus in transit service in Bronx, NY.

• 

  1990s Blue Bird/GMC as a mobile firefighting command center in Quebec.

• 

  Right hand drive Blue Bird TC/3000 in use with First Essex in Essex, UK.

• 

  Defunct 1997 Blue Bird wheelchair-equipped bus with International 3800 chassis in Kentucky.

See also

• School bus
• North American Bus Industries
• List of school bus manufacturers

References

1. "Blue Bird Corporation". Retrieved 2010-10-18.
2. Traxis Group
3. http://www.blue-bird.com Blue Bird Corporation
4. McKeegan, Noel (March 9, 2008). "First steel-bodied school bus donated to Henry Ford museum". gizmag.com. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
5. "History of Blue Bird Corporation – FundingUniverse". Fundinguniverse.com. Retrieved 2012-10-29.
6. "Blue Bird Corporation/About Us/History". Retrieved 2010-01-11.
7. Blue Bird Corporation To Relocate Micro Bird Production; Blue Bird Press Release, May 8, 2007
8. http://www.secinfo.com/dRqWm.82F7.htm#d4p Blue Bird Body Co. 1996 10-K405 Annual Report -- [X] Reg. S-K Item 405
9. http://www.afdc.energy.gov/pdfs/suc2.pdf
10. "Blue Bird Envirobus 2000 School Bus". Blue Bird Corporation via http://web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 1998-05-19. Retrieved 2010-07-10. External link in |publisher= (help) Archived version of Blue Bird's website on this vehicle, with link to specifications.
11. "Volvo Group; Volvo Logistics North America". Volvo.com. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
12. "Blue Bird Corporation/About Us/History". Retrieved 2010-01-09.
13. "School Bus Fleet News, Blue Bird No. 1 donated to historical institution, March 10, 2008". Schoolbusfleet.com. 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
14. Osborne, Alistair (2001-09-07). "Telegraph.co.uk; Henlys takes a skid after US bus sales fall". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
15. "Press Releases/BLUE BIRD AND GIRARDIN ANNOUNCE JOINT VENTURE(2009-10-19)" (Press release). Retrieved 2010-01-17.
16. "Blue Bird Connect accessdate=1 February 2014" (PDF).
17. "THE NEW MICRO BIRD T-SERIES BUS LINE DEBUTS AT NAPT". Retrieved 4 December 2014.
18. "Blue Bird to be acquired, will be publicly traded company". Retrieved 1 March 2015.
19. "Blue Bird becomes publicly traded company". Retrieved 1 March 2015.
20. "Blue Bird Unveils New Gasoline-Powered Type C Vision School Bus". Retrieved 26 December 2015.
21. "Autobus Girardin - Minibus (Specialized bus) Used minibus | Autobus Girardin (School bus) Girardin Minibus". Girardinbluebird.com. 2009-05-23. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
22. "Girardin; A Brief History". Autobusgirardin.com. Retrieved 2009-08-10.
23. "Blue Bird | Commercial | CS Buses". Archived from the original on May 19, 1998. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
24. "Blue Bird | Commercial | APC Series". Archived from the original on May 19, 1998. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
25. "School Bus Central- 2002 Blue Bird/Ford". Retrieved 2010-07-10. Webpage with archived version of product literature
26. LaFayette Blue Bird bus plant being shut down; Chattanooga Times-Free Press; June 24, 2010
27. "Press Releases". Blue Bird Corporation. Retrieved 25 June 2010.

External links

• Blue-Bird.com Blue Bird Corporation official website
• Blue Bird Corporation official Facebook Page
• Blue Bird Corporation official Twitter Page
• School Bus Fleet magazine official website
• Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for school buses
• U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics
• Technical support forum for the Blue Bird Wanderlodge