Coachwork International

Coachwork International
FormerlyNew Zealand Motor Bodies
Founded26 May 1926
Defunct5 July 1995
Headquarters
Palmerston North
,
New Zealand
Number of locations
2
Area served
Asia Pacific
ProductsBus & coach bodies
ParentJaguar Rover Australia

Coachwork International was a bus manufacturer in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Founded in 1926 as New Zealand Motor Bodies, in 1983 it merged with Hawke Coachwork to form Coachwork International. It ceased trading in 1993.

History

New Zealand Motor Bodies

Stagecoach NZMB bodied Volvo B10M
1977 Bristol REL with Carrosserie Hess bodywork built under licence by NZMB

New Zealand Motor Bodies (NZMB) was established in 1926 as Munt, Cottrell, Nielsen and Company Limited when Munt, Cottrell & Co of Wellington and Neilsen's Body Works of Dannevirke merged.[1][2]

NZMB operated from the corner of Hutt Road and Jackson Street in Petone building metal frame bus and coach bodies and other commercial bodies, hoists and other truck equipment.[1][3] It bodied over 1,000 Bedford SBs for the New Zealand Railways Department.[4]

A new factory building in Keith Street Palmerston North was opened on 3 July 1977. The new plant covered 18,000 square metres.[3][5]

Coachwork International

In 1983 NZMB merged with competitor Hawke Coachwork to form Coachwork International. Owned by Moller Corporation and Newmans, in 1987 it held an 80% share of the New Zealand bus bodying market. Production continued at the Palmerston North plant, while Hawke's plant in Takanini was retained, specialising in building and repairing buses for city authorities.[6] In 1988, Coachwork International was purchased by Jaguar Rover Australia.[7] After Jaguar Rover Australia was placed in administration, and with the impending end of tariff protection. Deloitte & Touche received no offers to purchase the business with operations ceasing in June 1993.[8][9]

Products

In 1973, it produced the first of 590 VoV bodies for imported Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and MAN bus chassis. In 1977 NZMB obtained manufacturing rights for the Swiss Carrosserie Hess system.[10][11][12] In the early-1980s, NZMB bodied 450 Volvo B58 and Mercedes-Benz buses for Singapore Bus Service.[13][14] In 1981 it began assembling Plaxton Supreme bodies delivered in CKD packs from England.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b Company Affairs Auckland Star 5 June 1926 page 11
  2. ^ New Zealand Motor Bodies Limited Pentone's First 100 Years Hutt City 1940
  3. ^ a b New Zealand Motor Bodies plant, Keith Street Manawatu Heritage
  4. ^ Godwin, John (2020). Great British Buses. Lulu. p. 26. ISBN 9780244847784.
  5. ^ New bus body plant opened by major NZ builder Truck & Bus Transportation January 1978 page 114
  6. ^ CI Sizes up the Aussie Market Truck & Bus Transportation April 1987 pages 60-63
  7. ^ Nisbet to Coachwork, Losew to Hino Australasian Bus & Coach October 1988 page 12
  8. ^ JRA Creditors Pay for its Survival Australasian Bus & Coach July 1993 page 11
  9. ^ McCeystal, John (2007). On the Buses in New Zealand. Oriental Bay: Grantham House Publishing. p. 135. ISBN 978 1 86934 101 5.
  10. ^ Aluminium buses for New Zealand Truck & Bus Transportation January 1978 page 65
  11. ^ Aluminium Alloy Bus Construction Fleetline issue 32 March 1989 page 9
  12. ^ Hess and the Co-Bolt System Rattler issue 453 July 2015 page 39
  13. ^ SBS buys bus bodies Business Times 3 July 1980 page 2
  14. ^ Contract awarded to New Zealand Motor Bodies Business Times 20 June 1981 page 5
  15. ^ NZ's first Plaxton Commercial Motor 8 August 1981

Media related to New Zealand Motor Bodies at Wikimedia Commons