Local employment benefits from 3 year partnership
Elphinstone Pty Ltd and the BusTech Group rolled out the 100th bus for Metro Tasmania last week. The partnership spanning 3 years has created local employment opportunities and future economic benefits for Tasmania.
Boosting the local economy
The celebration was attended by the Deputy Premier and Minister for Advanced Manufacturing and Defence Industries, Jeremy Rockliff. While congratulating the stakeholders for the impressive home-grown achievement, Minister Rockliff announced a further $10 million investment in Tasmania’s advanced manufacturing and defence industries, delivered over a period of 4 years.
“BusTech Group’s first fully Tasmanian-built bus rolled off the production line in November 2017 and we are incredibly proud to be delivering our 100th bus for Tasmania,” says Christian Reynolds, Executive Director, BusTech Group.
“We have a skilled workforce, and we want to support (small and medium sized) businesses… We see a great example of it today, where we celebrated the cutting of the cake for the 100th Metro bus – a highly skilled workforce right here on the North-West Coast. And we want to build capability right across Tasmania,” said Minister Rockliff.
Local suppliers supported
Thirty direct advanced manufacturing jobs and over 60 indirect jobs were created to deliver the 100 Metro buses. Local suppliers were engaged to ensure a significant proportion of local content was used to build the buses for Tasmania.
Elphinstone Executive Director, Kelly Elphinstone said, “our collaboration with BusTech Group to manufacture and deliver these state-of-the-art buses in Tasmania has given us the opportunity to develop new skills and build on our advanced manufacturing capabilities, while also securing jobs for our local workforce.”
Tasmania’s largest investment in public transport
The $45 million project was the largest single investment in public transport in Tasmania’s history. The new busses offer a more comfortable, accessible and environmentally friendly transport experience for all Tasmanians. The buses feature a modern, contemporary design with 51 seats, air-conditioning and the lowest-emitting diesel engines available resulting in a smooth, comfortable experience for both the driver and passengers.
Source: BusTech Group – bustechgroup.com.au