Daimler Buses Solutions: multi-faceted electromobility from a single source

• “One Face to the Customer” from initial consultation to turnkey implementation
• Daimler Buses Solutions supports in the selection of suitable infrastructure partners
• Solutions for small and large bus companies with the right partners

The switch to electric mobility in bus fleets requires careful preparation in addition to extensive expertise. If transport operators want to use electric buses successfully, they need to consider their electromobility system from a holistic perspective. Daimler Buses has long been advising transport companies and actively supporting them on their journey to electromobility. The subsidiary Daimler Buses Solutions GmbH, founded in 2023, is now pushing forwards with this approach. The company specialises in designing, building and advising on electromobility and hydrogen infrastructure. In cooperation with experts from Daimler Buses Solutions GmbH, Daimler Buses can supply the entire eMobility ecosystem from a single source on request: from individually configured electric buses to the complete infrastructure for the depot, including construction measures, electrical installations, chargers, battery storage, charging management system and other digital services.

“One Face to the Customer” from initial consultation to turnkey implementation

At Daimler Buses Solutions, every customer is assigned a personal eMobility advisor who accompanies them from initial consultation, through the planning and construction phase, to the turnkey handover of the charging infrastructure and electric bus fleet. And Daimler Buses Solutions will continue to be there for the customer during ongoing operations, taking over the service for the charging infrastructure on request and ensuring that the charging infrastructure and electric bus fleet run smoothly. Customers benefit from short communication channels, reliable project implementation, transparent processes and a noticeable reduction in the burden on their own personnel and resources.

For Daimler Buses Solutions customers, the path to electromobility begins with comprehensive advice and a software-based feasibility analysis. No two companies are the same. Whether it’s a medium-sized family business in a rural area or transport companies in a large European city – the specialists at Daimler Buses Solutions take the customer’s individual circumstances into account in their work. They first analyse the bus routes in detail on the basis of the actual operating conditions. Based on the feasibility analysis, the customer then receives a tailor-made charging concept – from depot charging using a charging plug or pantograph to intermediate charging on the route. The supply of hydrogen is also taken into account if necessary.

Daimler Buses Solutions supports in the selection of suitable infrastructure partners

Three to four months after the initial consultation, the procurement phase for the specific infrastructure measures is usually ready to start. Countless parameters have to be taken into account: Which charging solutions can be considered? How large does the transformer for the power supply have to be? Does a stationary battery storage system or solar-powered system make sense for optimising electricity costs? Should the layout of the depot be changed in order to optimally position the charging points? What features do the charging points need to have? Plug-based charging or pantograph? Which charging management software will monitor and control the chargers? Is it possible to use a hydrogen filling station nearby or would it make sense to have your own hydrogen filling station? As part of the consultancy services, Daimler Buses Solutions can carry out a complete simulation of the planned electric bus depot and simulate the energy flows, taking into consideration PV systems and stationary battery storage units. On this basis, all optimization potentials can be analysed together with the customer. Daimler Buses Solutions not only advises on the design of the right technology, but also on the selection of experienced partners for charging infrastructure, charging management, power supply systems and construction measures.

On request, Daimler Buses can act as a general contractor and offer the customer the complete system solution from a single source.

In the implementation phase, the eMobility consultants from Daimler Buses take over the planning for all necessary construction work, for example, for the power supply of the chargers or the construction of suitable hydrogen infrastructure. A central project manager is responsible for coordination and execution. Daimler Buses Solutions attaches great importance to the long-term support of customers and therefore now offers maintenance and service of the chargers with its own service technicians. The company is thus raising the service quality for charging stations to the well-known high level of Daimler Buses buses.

However, it does not always have to be a separate H2 filling station. The consultants individually check whether the hydrogen supply can be implemented with a trailer solution or an electrolyser. If a customer decides to build their own hydrogen infrastructure, they will benefit from the partnership between Daimler Buses and H2 Mobility, the largest and thus most experienced operator and installer of hydrogen filling stations in Europe. H2 Mobility is setting up additional hydrogen filling stations in the immediate vicinity of transport companies in an effort to cater for demand. In addition, these companies can receive a H2 fuel pump directly at their own depot if required. The publicly accessible filling stations are operated by H2 Mobility, which eliminates investment and operating costs for bus operators.

To ensure that the operation of the electric buses and charging infrastructure runs smoothly, Daimler Buses is also supplying a charging management solution with Sinos, which is perfectly tailored to the needs of bus operators. This allows bus operators to permanently monitor charging processes and control the charging capacity in accordance with operational requirements. The pre-conditioning of buses is also controlled via the central system, so that the buses are ideally prepared for use. Customers’ existing IT systems can be integrated via interfaces. In addition, Sinos also reduces electricity procurement costs and offers a complete visualisation of the depot with precise display of the vehicles.

Solutions for small and large bus companies

Together with the experts from Daimler Buses Solutions, Daimler Buses has already won around 40 projects and successfully implemented many of them. These include well-known transport companies such as Stadtwerke Bonn, HTM in The Hague, Netherlands, or VYBuss in Östersund, Sweden. But even medium-sized bus companies such as RVWB in Wettingen, Switzerland, are enjoying taking advantage of the opportunity to get everything from a single source, from individually configured electric buses to complete electric mobility infrastructure. In addition, Daimler Buses offers a 360-degree solution with Charging-as-a-Service for customers who do not want to invest in the construction of charging infrastructure themselves. With this solution approach, Daimler Buses sets up the charging infrastructure at the customer’s depot at its own expense and takes care of operation and maintenance. The customer pays a pre-agreed amount per kilowatt hour for charging the buses.