citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . february 2010 learn how and when to remove this template message thomas built buses inc. type subsidiary industry automotive industry predecessor perley a. thomas car works inc. founded 1916 founder perley a. thomas headquarters high point north carolina united states area served north america key people caley edgerly president ceo products school buses commercial buses specialty vehicles production output 15 000 vehicles year 1 owner daimler ag number of employees 1 600 parent daimler trucks north america website thomasbus.com thomas built buses inc. commonly designated thomas is an american bus manufacturer . headquartered in high point north carolina the company is a subsidiary of daimler trucks north america the parent company of freightliner . while best known for its yellow school buses thomas also produces activity buses mfsab multi function school activity buses commercial buses and bus bodies for aftermarket conversion . thomas bus bodies are produced in two facilities in high point north carolina ; thomas also produces the chassis for its saf t liner transit liner efx and hdx buses . contents 1 history 1.1 1920s streetcars 1.2 1930s transition to bus construction 1.2.1 first thomas school buses 1.3 1940s wartime production 1.4 1950s first saf t liner 1.5 1960s a move towards safety 1.6 1970s thomas built buses 1.7 1980s product diversification 1.8 1990s acquisition 1.9 2000s new generation buses 1.10 2010s second century 2 products 2.1 school buses 2.2 other buses 3 images 4 also see 5 references 6 external links history edit this article contains content that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . october 2016 learn how and when to remove this template message the oldest surviving bus manufacturer in north america thomas built buses traces its roots to 1916 beginning life in the production of wooden bodies for electric streetcars . trained as a skilled woodworker and engineer perley a. thomas had become unemployed as southern car company had closed its doors ; the company was a streetcar manufacturer based in high point north carolina . as the city was and still is a center of furniture manufacturing many workers found jobs in furniture production ; thomas initially founded a company specializing in fireplace mantles and home furnishings . 2 in the summer of 1916 thomas car works was founded as perley thomas began work in modification of existing streetcars in a car barn in high point . 2 with a 6 000 loan thomas purchased the equipment of southern car works at auction opening a facility in a former ice manufacturing plant . in 1918 the company began production of new streetcars ; 25 were produced leading the company to build its own factory in high point . 2 shortly after the company opened all steel streetcar bodies joined production of wooden bodies . 1920s streetcars edit perley a. thomas 900 series streetcar in new orleans built 1923 1924 in 1921 the company received its largest order ever as nopsi new orleans public service inc. placed an order for 150 streetcars to be delivered from 1921 to 1924 . as thomas was unable to fill the order on its own the company shared a portion of the order with j. g. brill based in philadelphia . 2 in september 1922 the high point factory was destroyed by fire after 25 streetcars were delivered . to keep the company afloat perley thomas secured 100 000 from nopsi allowing him to secure parts to build 55 more streetcars allowing the factory to be rebuilt ; a third batch of 25 streetcars would be delivered by 1928 bringing the total produced by thomas car works to 105 . 2 while most famous by their use in new orleans perley thomas streetcars would be utilized by communities across the united states though their use would largely be reduced in favor of motorized buses following world war ii . however over 90 years after their construction thomas streetcars remain in active daily use in public transportation on the st. charles line the oldest streetcar line in the world . 1930s transition to bus construction edit in the 1920s and 1930s in the united states usage of public transportation declined as a result of the increase of ownership of personal automobiles . a new trend in public transportation was the use of automotive based buses in place of rail based streetcars ; although streetcars offered higher passenger capacity buses offered additional flexibility in route design . consequently orders for new thomas streetcars and renovations began falling off . just as the company had made the transition from wooden to steel construction in streetcars thomas car works would transition from streetcars to buses entirely . in 1934 the company would build 10 transit buses as part of an order for duke power of south carolina . first thomas school buses edit in 1936 thomas ceased production of streetcars and launched a new product the school bus . the same year the company built 200 wooden bodied school buses for the state of north carolina beginning a long tradition with that state which continues to the present day . 1 in 1938 thomas made a major change to its design as it introduced its first bus body made completely of steel . 2 although not the first to build an all steel bus thomas made a major change that would be adopted through the industry . in the internal structure of the bus body thomas changed the layout of the roof bows to become constructed of a single piece of metal essentially giving the bus a multiple single piece roll bars welded to each side of the floor . 2 though their design has been modified for additional strength the usage of one piece roof bows remains universal among school bus body manufacturers . in april 1939 the design of the school bus changed forever as an industry conference led to the adoption of 44 industry wide safety standards ; most of the standards concerned aisle width and seating but the most notable result of the conference would be the development of school bus yellow as a universal color for school buses in the united states . 1940s wartime production edit in 1940 perley a. thomas retired from thomas car works though remaining president of his family owned company . 2 following the outbreak of world war ii as with its competitors thomas bus production was shifted towards the armed forces ; thomas also produced various bodies for the gmc cckw truck . 2 in another shift thomas car works supplemented its armed forces contracts by refurbishing streetcars ; while increased use of public transportation had led to demand for newer equipment rationed materials required refurbishment of existing streetcars . 2 following world war ii with a rise in student populations thomas expanded beyond the south opening dealerships in a number of states across the eastern half of the united states . 2 to better weatherproof its entry door the company developed a reinforced rubber covered door hinge ; the rubber also covered the gap between the two door panels as the closed . 2 1950s first saf t liner edit during the mid 1950s thomas car works introduced the thomas saf t liner name as it developed a new windshield design for its bus bodies . 2 during the decade thomas would become an internationally based company establishing manufacturing facilities in ecuador and peru ; thomas would ship ckd bodies from north carolina in ckd form to be constructed on locally sourced chassis . 2 in 1958 company founder perley thomas died at the age of 84 with sons john w. thomas and james thomas overseeing the operations of the company . 1960s a move towards safety edit 1961 thomas school bus on an international harvester chassis . in 1962 thomas car works officially expanded its production beyond high point as it established a factory in woodstock ontario . 2 at the time the company became the third largest producer of school buses in the united states . 2 for 1969 to reduce blind spots in front of the bus thomas introduced a convex blind spot mirror . 2 in various forms blind spot mirrors are currently required on all school buses in north america . 1970s thomas built buses edit in the early 1970s thomas underwent a number of major transitions in company leadership and market positioning . in 1972 company president john w. thomas died giving leadership to his brother james thomas who retired within a year . as the company had moved away from construction of streetcars following world war ii in 1972 company leaders chose a new name for the company tied closer to its current product lines perley a. thomas car works became thomas built buses inc a name used in its emblems since the 1950s . 1 2 a third generation of the thomas family assumed control of the company with john thomas jr. president and perley thomas ii vp international operations . 2 in the 1970s thomas built buses began to expand its product lineup beyond the saf t liner cowled chassis bus . as an alternative to the blue bird all american thomas developed the thomas saf t liner er engine rear . as with a number of other manufacturers carpenter superior ward wayne thomas was dependent on a chassis supplied by another manufacturer for its transit style school bus using ford dodge gmc international harvester and volvo . in 1978 as part of an update to the saf t liner er thomas made a major change to its design the introduction of a company sourced chassis for the er as well as a front engine ef engine front counterpart . thomas would become the first school bus manufacturer to source chassis for both front and rear engine models ahead of blue bird by a decade california manufacturers crown coach and gillig corporation did not manufacture a front engine model that competed with thomas . 1980s product diversification edit the late 1970s and early 1980s was a period of struggle for all school bus manufacturers . coupled with the slow economy manufacturers could no longer count on the factor that had driven school bus sales for the past two decades the entirety of the baby boom generation had finished school ; it would be years before student populations would create sufficient demand again . during this time a number of manufacturers either encountered financial difficulty or closed their doors altogether . thomas diversified its product lineup entering the small school bus market creating unique products and redesigning its transit style buses to compete with newly introduced competitors . in the late 1970s thomas created its first small bus with the development of the mighty mite a bus paired with the chevrolet gmc p30 stripped chassis . designed as a competitor for the carpenter cadet and blue bird mini bird the mighty mite name was first used as a narrow body variant of the saf t liner conventional . in 1980 the thomas minotour was introduced . a cutaway chassis bus the minotour was produced on both ford and general motors chassis . 2 the 1980s saw an expansion of the saf t liner model line as thomas introduced the westcoaster a heavy duty variant marketed against crown and gillig school buses ; in addition to heavier duty driveline and suspension components the westcoaster was also available with tandem rear axles on certain versions . in the late 1980s the saf t liner product line adopted the mvp suffix which stood for maneuverability visibility and protection . citation needed in 1989 the thomas vista was introduced adding a second conventional to the thomas model