Manufacturing
For a more comprehensive list, see List of school bus manufacturers.In the current North American school bus industry, there are eight active manufacturers. Three of them—Collins Industries, Girardin, and Trans Tech—specialize in small buses, while two others—Blue Bird Corporation and Lion Bus—produce only full-size school buses. The remaining three companies—IC Bus, Starcraft Bus, and Thomas Built Buses—produce both small and large buses.
In most cases, school bus manufacturers work as second stage manufacturers. However, some school buses (typically those of Type D configuration) have both the body and chassis produced from a single manufacturer.
Of the manufacturers that no longer produce school buses, several are wholly defunct (Carpenter, Crown Coach, Wayne) while others have been absorbed into different manufacturers. IC Bus is the descendant of both AmTran and Ward; Collins owns and distributes Mid Bus and Corbeil products. Other manufacturers have moved into other enterprises; Gillig Corporation makes buses for mass-transit buyers, while Kenworth lives on as a manufacturer of Class 8 trucks.
Read more about this topic: School Bus