£Clockwise, from left: Sparks fly on the steel roof cage at Thomas' Saf-T-Liner C2 plant in High Point, N.C. School bus technicians receive in-depth training at the Thomas Built Institute. Frank Giordano of Clark County School District in Nevada benefits from factory tours at multiple OEMs.


“I’ve returned (from factory tours and training) with numerous ideas from seeing how other districts outfit their buses and have incorporated that into my specifications and subsequent purchases.”


Frank Giordano, Clark County (Nev.) School District


He added that tours can influence the


specification process, too. “A lot of times, fleet managers come


here and see things they didn’t know were available,” he said. “Actually seeing different options or new ways of doing things help them better spec their future buses. “ Collins Bus conducts multiple facility


tours every month, usually as distributors bring customers to the South Hutchinson, Kan., facility. “We’ve been in business for over 46 years,


and it’s important for visitors to see the quality of not only our employees, but our manufacturing facility as well,” Schueler said. “From the moment customers arrive they realize that we’re not just another school bus manufacturer but rather a com- pany that is passionate about what it does.” Whether requested by a prospective


customer or suggested by a salesperson, Blue Bird’s tour process typically begins with the dealer sharing key information with the fac- tory. “Tey communicate the type of person attending — whether it’s only the manage- ment in the organization or if maintenance staff and drivers will be included along with


56 School Transportation News August 2013


purchasing people, superintendents or board members — and what they want to get out of the tour,” Mitchell elaborated. Te Blue Bird staff then goes to work to


develop a message that meets the expecta- tions of individual participants yet is still easy to understand by everyone on a tour. “What is intuitive to the person working on the bus may not be for someone in purchas- ing,” Mitchell adds. Blue Bird regional sales managers often


provide an important communication link at this point in the process. “Our dealers are present on the tours and


they have a relationship with our visitors. We may say something that’s foreign to a visitor and we rely on the dealer to do the interpretation,” Mitchell said “Te result is a free flow of information with all attendees.” Mitchell added that people who visit Blue Bird’s facility, including the company’s own suppliers, see employees putting into motion the mission statements prominently displayed through the plant. It is not unusu- al, he adds, for visitors to apply those best practices to their own operations. “It’s not unusual for someone on a tour to


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