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Energy Efficient Trucks from Volvo Break Company’s Sales Record
Volvo is the world’s second largest producer of trucks, and they have been making huge steps forward in that segment with their recent successes in their global market. Add to their success in the sales the recent awards gained by their buses in different parts of the world. They have recently posted their sakes figures for the year 2006 and it shows a two percent increase over their last year’s achievements.
The company has sold more than 105,000 trucks all over the world which surpasses their previous sales record thus making the 2006 a record breaking year for them. In the entire history of the company, they have never produced such a number as that on all their assembly plants all over the world.
The sales record breaking year rides on the back of increased demands for trucks in their global market. Territories like Eastern Europe and North America have significantly increased their demands for such heavy duty vehicles. Add to that the popularity among the consumers of their fuel efficient vehicles and you have the right ingredients to mount a successful year in terms of sales and production. The feat accomplished by Volvo Trucks makes them a serious challenge for the number one truck manufacturer. Their lineup of fuel efficient trucks will have another addition that will surely be welcomed by their customers - this is their hybrid electric truck which was developed in partnership with the US Air Force.
“Our good profitability has meant that we were able to invest more than 10 billion kronor (approximately £ 730 million) in new products over the past five years”, Staffan Jufors said, the President and CEO of Volvo Trucks. And invested they did, and the company was rewarded with good product developments that will surely be another addition to their profitability.
Eastern Europe is still a growing market for the company and this is evident in the 15 percent increase in the number of deliveries made to that territory. Their already strong markets in France, Germany and the Netherlands are still growing while Russia is fast becoming a major market for them which can be seen in the 82 percent jump in the deliveries to the said country while Poland increased their demand by 56 percent.
The North American market also delivered trucks at a record number in 2006 evident in their delivery of 340,000 vehicles which raised their market share from 10.5 percent to 10.8 percent for 2006. The increase in the demand for Volvo’s trucks is the tougher exhaust regulations imposed by EPA starting in January of this year. This made costumers order trucks which meet the standard before it was implemented.
Other markets that have performed well are in the Middle East, such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Asian markets for Volvo trucks like China, South Korea also increased their output over 2005’s figures. India is another Asian country they are making good progress where one of their buses was recently given an award for changing the attitude of the country’s commuters toward bus inter-city transportation.
One of the major reasons for the popularity of Volvo’s trucks is their fuel efficiency and very low emission level which is already meeting standards that will only be implemented in the years to come. This is due to the design of their engines and an efficient exhaust system which includes high quality parts like their Volvo catalytic converter which cleans the car’s emission. Their fuel efficiency is known for thanks to the energy efficient diesel engines the company uses in their trucks.
About the Author: Glady Reign is a 32 year old is a consultant for an automotive firm based in Detroit, Mi. she is a native of the motor city and grew up around cars hence her expertise in the automotive field.
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