- Mid Bus
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Mid Bus Corporation Fate Acquired by Collins Industries (1998) Predecessor Superior Coach Company Founded 1981 Defunct 2008 Headquarters Lima, Ohio (1981-1995)
Bluffton, Ohio (1995-2007)Area served North America Products school buses Website http://www.midbus.com Mid Bus was a corporation which specialized in manufacturing customized school buses. Formed in 1981 by former employees of Superior Coach Company in Lima, Ohio, it grew from a dozen employees working in a small facility in Lima to become one of the country's largest manufacturers of smaller school buses, moving to a much larger facility a few miles north of Lima in 1995.
The company was acquired by Collins Bus Corporation in 1998. On September 19, 2007, Collins announced plans to close the Mid Bus plant in Ohio and consolidate all manufacturing at the Collins facility in Kansas. [1]
Contents
History
Mid Bus Guide DW
In 1980, in the US, there were six major school bus body companies building large school buses, mostly making bodies for chassis from four truck manufacturers, joined by two coach-type school bus builders on the West Coast. Most also made some smaller buses of various types. With the baby boom years which swelled the ranks of school children in the past, the manufacturing industry faced serious over-capacity as companies vied and competed for lower volumes of purchases.
In 1981, when Sheller-Globe Corporation, a diversified industrial conglomerate closed down its large Superior Coach Company bus factory in Lima, Ohio, three former managers created Mid Bus, manufacturing Superior's smallest Type A bus under the new "Superior by Mid Bus" brand name.
Initially, they had a dozen other former employees of the large factory, and worked in a small shop. As other small bus products were added, Superior by Mid Bus was shortened to Mid Bus. In the late 1980s, the company acquired the Minuteman product line from AmTran (formerly Ward Body Company) and in the early 1990s, the tooling and product rights to Busette from Wayne Corporation.
After a succession of larger facilities in Lima, around 1995, the company moved to a much larger facility in Bluffton, Ohio. Mid Bus became a subsidiary of Collins Industries, a publicly-traded stock company, in 1998. On September 19, 2007, Collins announced plans to close the Mid Bus plant in Ohio and consolidate all manufacturing at the Collins facility in Kansas. [1]
Products
- Guide SW - Ford E350 or GMC 3500/Chevy 2500 chassis
- Guide DW - Ford E350 or GMC 3500/Chevy 2500 chassis
- Guide XL - GMC 4500/5500 chassis
- Multi Function SAB - Ford E350 or GMC 3500/Chevy 2500 chassis
External links
References
Active ManufacturersFull-Size and Small Buses Small Buses Only Blue Bird Corporation
IC Bus
Lion Bus (full-size buses only)
Thomas Built Buses, IncCollins Industries (Collins, Mid Bus, Corbeil)
Girardin Minibus
Starcraft Bus
Trans TechDefunct Manufacturers (Including date of closure or last school bus manufacture)2000sCarpenter Industries, Inc (2001) • American Transportation Corporation (AmTran) (2002; became IC Bus) • Les Enterprises Michel Corbeil (2008; acquired by Collins) • Liberty Bus (2005) • U.S. Bus Corporation1990sCoach and Equipment Manufacturing (1999; still in business) • Crown Coach Corporation (1991) • Gillig Corporation (1993; still in business) • Mid Bus (1998; acquired by Collins) • TAM-USA (1991) • Wayne Corporation (1992; became Wayne Wheeled Vehicles) • Wayne Wheeled Vehicles (1995)1980sWard Body Works (1980; became AmTran) • New Bus Company (1989) • Superior Coach Company (1985)1970sNorthern Coach • Perley A. Thomas Car Works (1972; became Thomas Built Buses)1960s1950sKenworth-Pacific (1957; still in business)List of school bus manufacturersCategories:- School buses
- School bus manufacturers
- Bus manufacturers
- Companies based in Ohio
- Companies established in 1981
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