Champion Bus begins limited production

IMLAY TWP. — As the ruins of one of its two production buildings was still smoldering in the wake of a Valentine’s Day fire, employees at Champion Bus began working feverishly to replace jigs and fixtures damaged in the blaze.

While many in Imlay City and surrounding communities including the Brown City area worried that work at the destroyed 100,000- square-foot building might be transferred to plants Champion’s parent company, Thor Bus, has in Indiana, Kansas and California, Champion President John Resnik

announced Monday that the company has returned to limited production.

Days after the 17- hour blaze which pulled in firefighters from 10 departments in three counties, including Brown City, Champion executives leased the former Carlisle Engineered Products building, a 59,860-square-foot building at 2120 S. Almont Ave., across the street from Toyo Seat USA. Resnik said the company has relocated it’s 3035RE production to the leased Imlay City plant.

The 3035RE is a 35- foot-long bus, seating 39 passengers, built on a Freightliner chassis.

Resnik said over the past two weeks his employees have redesigned the production lines at Champion’s south plant to accommodate the work that had been done in the now destroyed north plant. However, even with the newly-leased space that leaves Champion with more that 40,000 square feet less space then it had before the

fire.

In addition to redesigning the production lines, said Resnik, Champion employees have replaced all the data servers, critical equipment and tooling lost in the fire.

“Our employees should be commended for their prompt and aggressive response to the fire,” said Resnik. “Before the fire had stopped smoldering, our staff had begun rearranging the production lines.

Resnik said he and other company officials have already been in contact with architects and builders in the region with plans for replacing the destroyed building. “We’re trying to keep things as local as possible,” he said.

While he didn’t have a time table for construction, Resnik noted there are ways to pour concrete before the frost is out of the ground.

He did say the company plans to stabilize its production on one shift over the next 60 to 90 days and then start operating two shifts at the company’s south plant in Imlay Township. The first new bus since the fire is slated to roll out of Champion’s plant sometime early next week.

“We want to thank all of our customers and business associates who have encouraged us over the last two weeks,” said Resnik. “We are making every effort to smoothly and efficiently resume production.”