private industry bus manufacturing founded 1985 as designline 2014 epv corp. founders john turton as designline tony luo epv corp. headquarters charlotte north carolina united states area served north america owner wonderland investment group website epvcorp.com environmental performance vehicles epv previously designline corporation is a manufacturer of coach electric and range extended electric hybrid buses founded in ashburton new zealand in 1985 . initially it was a manufacturer of tour coaches . in the 1990s it diversified into conventional transit buses and then added hybrid city buses in the late 1990s . it was acquired by american interests in 2006 and designline corporation s headquarters was relocated to charlotte north carolina . following a bankruptcy in 2013 the assets of designline were sold and the company was renamed . epv is no longer affiliated with the designline operations in new zealand which was placed in liquidation in 2011 1 and has since been sold to a malaysian controlled joint business venture who operate it under the name designline bus pacific . 2 contents 1 bankruptcy 2 hybrid vehicle 3 electric vehicle 4 coach vehicle 5 products 6 usage 6.1 united states 6.2 canada 6.3 new zealand 6.4 australia 6.5 other countries 7 references 8 external links bankruptcy edit as designline it filed for protection under chapter 11 of the united states bankruptcy court in delaware on august 15 2013 . the case was subsequently transferred to north carolina . they employed over 250 people in the city of charlotte . 3 katie goodman managing partner of ggg partners llc was retained as chief restructuring officer of the corporation just prior to the filing . on october 28 2013 wonderland investment group inc. acquired most of the assets of designline in an auction . several key issues of the bankruptcy including a class action suit for wrongful termination by designline employees and the potential termination of a contract with the denver regional transportation district are set to be decided on january 14 2014 . 4 wonderland renamed the company epv in january 2014 . hybrid vehicle edit one key component of the epv fleet is its range extended electric bus hybrid the ecosaver . the bus is a plug in battery powered electric vehicle . as battery power is depleted an on board diesel or compressed natural gas cng turbine engine engages . unlike other hybrid buses the on board engine does not run vehicle systems as the battery depletes . rather the turbine produces electricity that recharges the batteries . the turbines are supplied by capstone turbine of chatsworth california . the bus was originally designed as a response to the international tender for ecological buses to be used in the 2000 sydney olympics . while the design was rated as technically best citation needed it did not win the tender . this first of its kind technology has been deployed in a number of fleets as the process has been tested and improved . recent testing at the bus testing and research center at penn state university show a substantial improvement in fuel economy over traditional buses . the ecosaver will also be included as part of a national research effort coordinated by the national renewable energy lab nrel to yield performance data on clean fuel vehicles . numerous demonstration fleets of ecosaver vehicles have been deployed worldwide since 1998 . the designline electric drive system has undergone several major development cycles with the fourth generation north american system now in production . electric vehicle edit designline s ecosmart is an all electric bus powered by sodium batteries and based on the established ecosaver drive train system . the bus is 100 % emissions free . the bus plugs in to recharge and captures energy from regenerative braking technology . the bus does not need proprietary charging infrastructure . simple industrial grade electrical access is all that is required . the buses can travel more than 100 miles between charges . the ecosmart is in service internationally in australia and abu dhabi uae . the soci t de transport de laval in quebec canada is currently testing the ecosmart for use in its fleet . coach vehicle edit designline s ecocoach is a high floor single door bus powered by either compressed natural gas cng or diesel fuel . the bus is built on a lightweight frame that lowers overall vehicle weight and improves fuel economy . the bus is designed for long routes with infrequent stops such as intercity routes or limited access transit routes i.e. park and ride . designline has a contract with new jersey transit to supply the agency with 76 ecocoach buses by may 2013 . the ecocoach is also the first 45 foot cng coach to complete testing at the altoona bus testing and research center . products edit designline markets the following buses model photo features ecosmart designline electric bus the ecosmart bus produces no emissions operates for a full shift without direct recharging and captures energy traditionally lost during braking returning it to the batteries . no proprietary charging infrastructure is required . ecosmart can be produced in 30 35 and 42 foot versions . all accessories are electrically driven reducing energy losses and increasing reliability . ecosaver designline reev bus the ecosaver uses the electric vehicle drive system with additional range capabilities provided by a unique in class on board micro turbine generator . the 65 kw micro turbine allows for battery recharge as energy cells are depleted during the shift . this results in the ability to sustain battery operation continuously . it successfully completed third party shaker table testing with only minor issues evident after 500 000 simulated miles . unlike some hybrid bus systems that include an internal combustion engine that rely on conventional operation as battery capacity is depleted the on board turbine simply recharges the batteries making all systems on the ecosaver all electric at all times . the micro turbine is powered by cng or diesel and requires no urea after treatment or expensive exhaust system . the bus has no engine no transmission or engine oil which results in less maintenance and reduced cost of operation . the micro turbine has only a single moving part . the ecosaver is carb 2010 compliant and meets 2014 carb emissions levels . ecocoach designline ecocoach bus the designline coach is a high floor single door bus powered by either compressed natural gas cng or diesel fuel . the frame is an innovative design using a stainless steel chassis and aluminum body that reduces overall vehicle weight and adds to improved fuel efficiency . it features cutting edge cooling technology from emp that allows for superior performance with less maintenance and less power usage thereby improving fuel efficiency . the bus is altoona tested 45 foot cng version usage edit currently designline epv buses are used in revenue service in five countries worldwide . 5 united states edit current operators new jersey transit on the 63 64 67 and 68 lines between toms river lakewood freehold old bridge and newark jersey city hoboken . rtd denver co rtd currently operates two ecosaver iv vehicles modified for the 16th street mall shuttle . an order for additional buses was cancelled due to the bankruptcy of designline . 6 canada edit soci t de transport de laval 1 unit new zealand edit auckland nz bus north star go west metrolink waka pacific birkenhead transport richies howick and eastern airbus express urban express christchurch leopard coachlines red bus ltd go bus christchurch tauranga go bus transport dunedin ritchies transport passenger transport citibus hamilton hastings and napier palmerston north wellington go wellington australia edit adelaide mackay qld melbourne other countries edit tokyo japan newcastle upon tyne united kingdom stagecoach one olymbus diesel electric bus was evaluated in 2004 this bus became one of ten olymbus buses for quaylink bus service in newcastle upon tyne and gateshead and they were operated from 22 july 2005 until being replaced by optare versa from 10 august 2010 . this was due to difficulty coping with hills on the route . 7 references edit steeman marta 1 june 2011 . designline liquidation costs jobs . stuff.co.nz . retrieved 13 june 2011 . steeman marta 23 august 2011 . malaysians take stake in bus joint venture . businessday.co.nz . fairfax new zealand . retrieved 23 august 2011 . hybrid electric bus maker files for bankruptcy . usa today . 17 august 2013 . workers suit contract dispute drive designline court hearings on tuesday . ride a designline designline corporation . retrieved 2010 07 21 . whaley monte 22 january 2013 . rtd approves new shuttle buses for 16th street mall . denverpost.com . retrieved 2 may 2013 . 1 external links edit wikimedia commons has media related to designline international buses . official website ecosaver iv hybrid electric bus . v t e bus transport in new zealand urban bus companies go bus transport go bus christchurch nz bus go west north star link metrolink waka pacific go wellington valley flyer highland global transport howick & eastern mana coach services newlands coach services red bus ritchies transport long distance bus companies intercity manabus.com nakedbus.com tourism bus companies great sights & newmans kiwi experience nakedpassport.com bus manufacturers designline international kiwi bus builders government and regulation new zealand transport agency at auckland citylink new plymouth metlink wellington metro christchurch orc dunedin queenstown bus smart invercargill history invercargill passenger transport mount cook group new zealand railways road services infrastructure central connector auckland northern busway auckland wellington trolleybuses v t e north american bus builders active blue bird corporation dina s.a. environmental performance vehicles ford motor company gillig corporation girardin minibus glaval bus ic bus lion bus millennium transit services new flyer industries motor coach industries new flyer north american bus industries nova bus optima bus corporation proterra inc. prevost car rev group champion bus incorporated collins bus corporation eldorado national goshen coach setra stallion bus and transit corp. starcraft bus thomas built buses trans tech van con defunct acf brill aerocoach am general amtran beck canadian car and foundry carpenter body company crown coach corporation dupont industries eagle bus fageol fifth avenue bus company fitzjohn flxible general motors diesel division gm coach gm truck and coach division kenworth lag motorcoach les enterprises michel corbeil mack trucks marmon herrington masa neoplan usa orion international pullman standard st. louis car company superior coach company transportation manufacturing corporation twin coach u.s. bus corporation ward body works wayne corporation wayne wheeled vehicles white motor company yellow coach 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