News

We want to provide excellent service to our customers and therefore keep them up to date with the latest news.

Spheros at the 63rd IAA Commercial Vehicles 2010 in Hanover Pioneering technologies and innovative air conditioning concepts will be presented by Spheros at the IAA from 23 to 30 September 2010 according to the motto "This is our world: cooling, heating, ventilation". Besides the unveiling of the new REVO rooftop unit it plans to showcase the Thermo E auxiliary heater and functional roof hatches. Hybrid technology, control electronics and after-sales service will be further highlights of the trade fair display. We look forward to your visit at Stand D04 in Hall 11.

Citysphere excels Spheros wins "busplaner Innovation Award 2010" in the passenger transport category The Innovation Award of the German trade magazine busplaner, presented this year for the third time, is a recognised platform for new products and technologies in the field of buses and is conferred on companies whose services and products provide groundbreaking impetus to the bus industry. The choice of the best of the industry is made by the readers. They were won over this year by the Spheros Citysphere, which was selected Innovation of the Year 2010 in the passenger transport category. The decisive factor for the victory was the new air conditioning concept of the compact unit for city buses, the core element of which is a hermetically sealed compressor. The passenger compartment is not cooled in the conventional manner by temperature reduction, but by a combination of cooling and air movement. A radial fan generously circulates the cooled air in the interior without annoying draughts. Further benefits are the low operating and maintenance costs, together with savings in additional fuel consumption. To learn more about the Citysphere visit www.citysphere.de.

Major contract for Spheros South Africa - World Cup buses on the road with Spheros air conditioning technology On the occasion of the FIFA World Cup 2010 Spheros GmbH is scheduled to deliver a total of 490 bus air conditioners to South Africa and installing these locally into the World Cup buses of manufacturers Daimler and MAN. The World Cup in South Africa is a challenge not only in a sporting context - it is a challenge for local transport undertakings. In order to carry football fans from all over the world to the World Cup stadiums in a fast, safe and environmentally friendly manner, the partly state-owned bus company Translux, a subsidiary of Autopax, is expanding its bus fleet by 110 MAN and 460 Mercedes buses. The two companies awarded Spheros GmbH the contract to install air conditioning in their vehicles. The rooftop unit CC 350, specially developed for use in hot countries, is to be used in coaches, city and intercity buses. Its cooling capacity guarantees a cool interior at outside temperatures of up to 55° C. The five fans run silently and enable an air flow rate of 6,300 m3/h. Despite this high capacity the lightweight 230 kg unit has comparatively little impact on fuel consumption and has a reputation for low maintenance and operating costs. A total of 490 air conditioning units were produced for the World Cup buses at the Spheros plant in China and delivered to Johannesburg for installation. The complete installation and subsequent servicing lies in the hands of Spheros SA. This includes 24-hour service during the FIFA World Cup and maintenance at the various bus depots. After the World Cup the fully air-conditioned buses will be used on long-distance services between Cape Town and Gauteng, as well as between South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia. The monthly mileage is expected to be approx. 35,000 km, a further reason for choosing the Spheros A/C.

Nomination of Citysphere - ÖPV Innovation Award 2010 - March 2010 Again this year, the german trade journal busplaner will be presenting the Innovation Award of the Year in the ÖPV category. Five companies who are already today tackling the challenges of tomorrow have been nominated. Especially in times like the present, it is essential for a company to help shape the future of the industry by introducing innovations to the market (busplaner Innovation Award 2010, Issue 2/3). The industry awards for the "Innovations of the Year" will be presented by the magazine for the third time this year, an event which meanwhile constitutes a recognised platform for new products and innovations for buses. The Spheros Citysphere compact air conditioner for city buses incorporates an impressive new air conditioning concept with low life-cycle costs and savings in additional fuel consumption. Learn more about the Citysphere by visiting www.citysphere.de. We are counting on your support!

Launch of the Thermo S series of heaters - February 2010 Market leader Spheros is delivering the first Thermo S heaters to the OEMs. In addition to more compact dimensions the new series now offers a high degree of environmental compatibility, reliability and economy. A development cooperation encompassing many locations and departments has culminated in a successful product launch. The development of the new Thermo S series under the participation of the Technical University of Berlin was, more than anything, aimed at increased environmental compatibility and the reduction of life-cycle costs. And it has been successful! Already today the heater easily satisfies the legal requirements and offers significantly lower fuel consumption. The new Thermo S 160/230/300/350 and 400 heater series will be available on the market in February. With a choice of five different nominal power outputs it caters for every area of application and every bus type. Two new power classes of 16 and 40 kW are available, guaranteeing that Spheros will provide the optimum heater for your vehicles.

Special production anniversary - November 2009 The 5,000th air conditioning unit came off the production line at the Neubrandenburg plant. Since the beginning of 2008 air conditioners are also being manufactured at the Spheros plant in Neubrandenburg. As early as June 2008 Spheros was capable of 100% delivery. Now, a year later, the production team has been able to step up the production of air conditioners by almost 50 % and crack the magical 5,000 mark. About 20 people, chiefly soldering and assembly workers, are engaged for almost 380 minutes - about half a working day - on the manufacture of a high-quality unit.

Aerosphere Alu in series production - October 2009 Spheros developed new air conditioning unit a to series production stage which weighs in at only 159 kg. With 32 kW cooling capacity, it has an unrivalled quiet fan and reduced extra fuel consumption. Spheros has managed to produce the Aerosphere Alu unit in series. The light weight of 159 kg was attained by constructing the cooling circuit of the new Aerosphere to 98% of the light material aluminium. In the Aerosphere Alu a new generation of EC fans ensures that more air is circulated more quietly: the fans are 10% more efficient, conduct a higher volume of air and work up to six dBA quieter. Another advantage is the reliability of the new EC technology. The brushless axial and radial fans have IP 68 waterproofing, can withstand temperatures of up to 95°C and have a service life of 30,000 hours.

Spheros Roadshow 2009 is on the move The Spheros Tourbus is on the road again: since early May it has been stopping over at the premises of customers and partners throughout Germany Station. It features the new Citysphere air conditioning system for city buses, whose new wind-chill effect can be experienced live in the Tourbus. In the coming weeks the Spheros roadshow will be continuing its tour through Switzerland, Italy, Austria, France and England. For exact destinations and dates click here.

Spheros at Busworld Asia Spheros was present for the third time in succession at this year's Busworld Asia in Shanghai from 8-11 April. As one of 180 exhibitors the ten-member team from Spheros Asia demonstrated innovative bus climate solutions at the 60 m² exhibition stand. The Spheros Group has three locations in southeast Asia: Singapore (Sales), Yangzhou/China (Production & Sales) and Kuala Lumpur/Malaysia (Sales).

VIP visit to Neubrandenburg plant - April 2009 Jürgen Seidel, Minister of Economics, Labour and Tourism of the State of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania paid a visit to the Spheros Europe GmbH production facility in Neubrandenburg on 17 April 2009. With his visit to the Neubrandenburg plant in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Economics Minister emphasized his esteem for Spheros as a key employer in the region. In the past few years Spheros has invested large sums in the site: with a total workforce of about 170 and a new facility comprising a production area of approx. 12,000 m² Neubrandenburg is now the group's largest location. The Economic Ministry of the State of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is matching these investments with a subsidy. Minister Jürgen Seidel handed the respective notice to the Spheros management.

(From left): Dragan Angebrandt (COO Spheros GmbH), Franz Foth (Managing Director Spheros Europa GmbH), Minister of Economics Jürgen Seidel and Jens-H. Arnold (CFO Spheros GmbH).

New subsidiaries founded - March 2009 Two new Spheros sales offices in Canton/USA and Barcelona/Spain took up their work in March 2009. The teams in each subsidiary can look back on many years of experience in the bus sector and will be able to offer local customers the complete Spheros product portfolio together with competent service. A variety of different languages are spoken at Spheros. With a total of 17 sites worldwide the company is now close to all major markets of the bus industry. In Canton in the US State of Michigan Spheros takes over the long-established bus sector of Webasto AG, enabling it to fall back on proven relations to the North American bus industry. The sales office in Barcelona will be supporting Spheros Europe GmbH in the important bus markets in Spain and Portugal. "Proximity to customers and their needs, as well as to developments and trends on the bus market, is extremely important to us. An experienced, locally-based team is indispensable for competent and flexible fulfilment of all the demands made on our products," Helmut Zanker, CEO of the Spheros Group, headquartered at Gilching near Munich, explains the decision to further expand global presence.

Premiere in Jeddah - March 2009 For the first time Spheros was represented at the international trade fair "Autocare & transport Arabia" between 30th March 2009 to 2nd April 2009. The trade fair is an important event for Saudi Arabia's leading manufacturers and dealers of commercial vehicles. The team of Spheros Middle East, based in Dubai, presented amongst others the high-performance Aerosphere Tropical air conditioning, which is specially designed for the use in hot countries.