21st Century's EcoManager wins innovation award
16 November 2009
Arriva North West and Merseytravel have won the Alexander Dennis Innovation Award for 21st Century's fuel saving system, EcoManager, at the UK Bus Awards. EcoManager was developed by 21st Century to allow bus operators to save fuel and reduce carbon emission whilst also giving passengers a better journey experience.
The annual UK Bus Industry Awards took place this year at London's prestigious Park Lane Hilton and was attended by over 650 industry representatives. In all there were 20 awards, covering all aspects of planning, delivering, marketing and operating bus services.
The Innovation Award recognises and rewards new thinking in the industry - amongst operators, authorities and suppliers. It focuses especially on products which can reduce environmental impact, improve efficiency or make bus travel more attractive.
Arriva's entry for EcoManager demonstrated to the judges that it contributed most to the improvement of the bus product.
EcoManager is a ‘black-box' unit fitted to the bus to monitor driving styles and measure fuel consumption. The unit provides detailed feedback to drivers after each shift to allow them to identify how they might moderate their driving style to save fuel and ranks their performance against their colleagues. Drivers are identified and linked to a particular route and shift without the need for a separate log in. The system includes an in-cab red, amber green display to alert drivers if they are driving outside of set "eco-friendly" parameters.
The implementation of EcoManager saw fuel economy improvements of up to 12 per cent, three times the target set at the beginning of the trial. Over the trial period from May 2007 to October 2008 the system saved 100,669 litres of fuel and an estimated 263 tonnes of CO2.
In addition to the 12% fuel savings and associated carbon reduction, EcoManager also lowers maintenance costs and accidents and improves passenger comfort.
Following the trials the technology and training was rolled out across Arriva's UK regional bus businesses with all new buses featuring EcoManager and the system being retrofitted to existing vehicles.
Phil Stone, Arriva North West Managing Director, commented: "One of the most rewarding things about EcoManager has been the enthusiastic way it has been embraced by our drivers - something recognised by the UK Bus Awards judges. The innovative technology is a great support but the real key to making this a success has been the people.
"The hearts and minds part of the project included two week 'Green Garage' initiatives to raise awareness of the significant environmental issues facing businesses today. We used employee road shows, newsletters, posters and branded items to make people think about the difference they could personally make.
"EcoManager delivers clear environmental benefits and helps us demonstrate to customers how they can do their bit by switching more journeys to public transport."
Nick Grimond, CEO of 21st Century, commented: "We are thrilled that EcoManager has won this award in the face of stiff competition and our congratulations go to Arriva and Merseytravel who sponsored this project. A number of copy-cat products have entered the market since we launched EcoManager, but we believe that through continuous investment in improvements, EcoManager remains the market leader. EcoManager was specifically developed for the bus market and generates the most pertinent information about driving styles and fuel consumption. Utilising a driver identification system, which does not rely on the driver remembering to separately log on to the monitor at the start of his shift, ensures the integrity of the reports generated and sets EcoManager apart from the competition."
The lunchtime ceremony was compered by BBC Economics Editor, Stephanie Flanders and the prizes were presented by Anthony Smith, chief executive of consumer watchdog Passenger Focus.
