Magazine Viajante - Issue n° 3 - January | February | March 2012

Viajante Year II - #3 - January | February | March 2012

Viale BRT,Grape Festival 2012 o futuro ĂŠ agora

Marcopolo honors and supports the largest community event in the South of Brazil

Viale BRT debuts in Caxias

The city is the first one to receive bi-articulated buses designed for large urban centers

Excellence in after sales

Company expands service network to ensure great customer service

Expedient

3. Editorial

A year of opportunities Magazine Viajante is printed every trimester from Marcopolo General Coordination Marketing Marcopolo Editing Council André Luis de Oliveira José Carlos Secco Méri Steiner Paulo Corso Petras Amaral Santos Ricardo Portolan Rodrigo Pikussa Walter Cruz Web Site www.marcopolo.com.br Adress Plant Marcopolo Ana Rech Av. Rio Branco, 4889 Bairro Ana Rech Caxias do Sul - RS - Brasil CEP 95060-650 Phone number: (0800) 702-7070 (inside Brazil) or +55. 54. 2101.4000 (from abroad) E-mail: contato@marcopolo.com.br Plant Marcopolo Planalto Av. Marcopolo, 280 - Bairro Planalto Caxias do Sul - RS - Brasil CEP: 95086-200 Phones: (0800) 702-7070 (in Brazil) ou +55. 54. 2101.4000 (from Abroad) E-mail: contato@marcopolo.com.br

4. Tourism

Discover Caxias at the Grape Festival

8. Viale BRT

Bi-articulated debuts in Caxias

10. Gastronomy

With a taste of tradition

11. In Uruguay

Dusil and Ebasul, complete structure

14. Legislation

Law of the scales foresees changes

16. After sale

Service network is expanded Coordination, Production and Edition Invox Mais Comunicação Rua Bento Gonçalves, 2221, sala 502 Centro | Caxias do Sul | RS | Brazil (55) (54) 3028.2868 invox@invoxcomunica.com.br Responsible Journalists Adriana Schio MTB RS 8107 Simoni Schiavo MTB RS 8821 Art and Design Project Cíntia Colombo Press Company: São Miguel Every trimester Free edition It is prohibited to copy this edition without prior and written authorization.

All rights reserved.

18. Marcopolo World

Australia, Mexico, Peru, India and Kenya

20. Interview

Comporte Conglomerate

22. News

Martins reelected in Simefre

Editorial

JĂşlio Soares/Objetiva

A year full of opportunities The year 2012 is just beginning and although we cannot say with certainty how the economy will behave, we can say that 2012 will be full of opportunities. We just need to believe, work and make it happen!

Brazil is part of the BRICS, along with Russia, India, China and South Africa, developing countries that, according to projections, will be economically bigger than G6 (United States, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Italy). Marcopolo is present with production units in all the five countries of BRICS. Brazil is already the sixth largest economy in the world, according to the ranking of the English Center for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), from England. Our GDP was over US$ 2.5 trillion and surpassed Britain.

The country has never had a period so virtuous and positive.

And we must keep the pace. The world economy is still in turmoil, especially in the United States and Europe, and much is said about the difficulties that Brazil may face due to the slowdown in demand. The more we work and improve, the better we become to overcome the obstacles that will always exist.

The Grape Festival gives us a good reason to remember our ancestors who faced even greater difficulties. The event dates

back to the beginnings of Italian colonization in Rio Grande do Sul. After a beginning full of difficulties and hardships, the immigrants were able to establish a thriving city with an economy based on exploitation of agricultural products, especially grape and wine whose success is measured by the rapid expansion of trade and industry in the first half of the twentieth century.

See how our colonies are today: good homes, tractors, children trained in various areas of knowledge. Facing and overcoming difficulties is in our DNA. Making it happen is our business!

The Grape Festival is a symbol of overcoming and honors our first settlers. It is a ritual that every two years reaffirms the work as a means to great achievements. As we celebrate this great party, we greet our origins and traditions. It was the first settlers that forged this culture of hard work and effort that we live today in Marcopolo.

Therefore, I am sure that, however great the difficulties may be, we will always be able to see things differently and creatively move forward.

Enjoy this new issue of the Viajante magazine, learn a little more about the Grape Festival and the news of our company. And remember: it depends on each of us to make 2012 a great year!

Paulo Bellini Chairman of the Board Of Directors

Tourism

Luiz Chaves

Grape Festival, 80 years of celebration It all started with a modest exposure of grapes to celebrate the harvest of 1931. After eight decades, the National Grape Festival is the biggest community event in the South of Brazil and attracts almost 1 million visitors to Caxias do Sul. In the 2012 edition, the event is a tribute to the first national color broadcast and the Year of Italy in Brazil 4 4

When the first grape exposition was organized to celebrate the harvest, on March 7, 1931, at the headquarters of Recreio Cruzeiro, nobody imagined that this modest initiative would become the largest community event in the South of Brazil. After 80 years, the National Grape Festival of Caxias do Sul attracts almost 1 million visitors, who get dazzled by the Float Parade through the city streets, the hundreds of attractions in the Exposition Park, local and national concerts, wide range of gastronomic options and plenty of tradition. Based in a privileged area with replicas of 1885 Caxias as a backdrop, the celebration is held every two years and brings together the best of the Italian tradition of the Rio Grande do Sul Sierra region.

With the theme “Uva, Cor, Ação! A Safra da Vida na Magia das Cores” (Grape, Color, Action! The Harvest of Life in the Magic of Colors), the 2012 Grape Festival, from February 16 to March 4, pays tribute to the 40-year anniversary of the first national color broadcast – transmitted during the 1972 edition – and the Year of Italy in Brazil. The attractions include traditional food, sports, crafts, dance, theater and music distributed in several parts of the park, as in the Replicas, pavilions, church hall, in addition to the official stages. As for the national concerts, they will take place in the Multicultural Space, with capacity for 25,000 people.

The Agro-Industrial Fair is another highlight of the 18-day celebration, showing the municipality’s workforce. Marcopolo not only honors

the event since 1958, being one of its feature companies, but is also one of its sponsors.

The star of the party The grape represents one of the most important crops in Caxias do Sul and the region. The cultivation of the fruit provided and still provides sociocultural development and boosts the economy of many cities in the Rio Grande do Sul Sierra region. And, as expected, the star of the party gets special exhibition, in a thematic area that also tells part of the story of this edition’s theme. The producers compete in different categories, and the winner of each of these is awarded a technical trip of interest in the respective area.

For tasting Tasting these treats is also part of the party.

In the Grape Palace and during the Float Parade, visitors and tourists have the opportunity of tasting the fruit in natura, distributed by farmers from Caxias. It is expected to be consumed this year 250,000 kilograms of grape.

Making its debut in this edition, the Taste of the Party space will make available for the visitor to taste seven grape varieties (in natura, wine and juice), thus finding out the different savors of the fruit and its cultivar purposes. A video and explanatory material are given out during class, charged extra.

Other typical products of the region are also part of the party and are presented by agribusinesses, such as local crafts and colonial products: cheese, salami, jams, jellies e juices.

Júlio Soares/Objetiva

Special invitation The official invitation to the representatives and employees of the company that praises and supports the Grape Festival since 1958 has become traditional in the agenda of the festival’s queen and princesses. This year, the visit took place on January 17, when the queen Roberta Veber Toscan and the princesses Aline Casagrande and Kelin Zanette were received by the directors Valter Gomes Pinto and Paulo Corso. Delivering smiles and exhibiting beauty and pleasantness, the three ladies delivered the invitation, the poster and a basket of grapes.

A Marcopolo forneceu 15 unidades Paradiso 1800DD para o transporte das delegações participantes da Copa América, realizada em julho, na Argentina

55

Turismo The “sovereign” One of the most expected and valued moments of the National Grape festival is the formation of the trio of “sovereigns” who represents and promotes the event all over Brazil. The choice of a representative for the event began in the third edition of the festival, in 1933, when Adélia Eberle was crowned.

From 1958, along with the queen, two princesses are also appointed.

Currently, the pageant involves the entire community and takes place approximately six months before the festival. In this edition, the queen Roberta Veber Toscan and the princesses Aline Casagrande and Kelin Zanette were selected among 25 contestants.

The float The Float Parade was added to the festival in the second edition of the Grape Festival, in 1932. Since then, it became a tradition of the event. Taking place downtown, the “corso” portrays the life and the customs of the local people, who take part of the parade as spectators or extra. This year, the parade takes on the characteristics of a musical scenic parade.

There will be eight night-time performances, at 8:30 PM, with a total of 10 floats and 1.5 thousand extras divided in the following parts: Welcoming, Planting, Transforming and Celebrating. The parades end at Dante Alighieri square, with music and live scenic spectacle featuring the Municipal Wind Orchestra, the Municipal Choir, the Municipal Dance Company, and artists from Caxias. The bleachers will have capacity for 2,000 people.

Colonial Olympic Games Inspired by activities developed in the past by settlers for subsistence, the goal of the Colonial Olympic Games is to bring closer the festival community. These games consist in events such as Cheese Throwing, Grape Stomping, Bíguli (pasta) Making, among others, and are held in several locations across the city. Originality is the main feature that makes the game fun and greatly attended. The finals take place downtown.

More information www.festanacionaldauva.com.br

Luiz Chaves

Dance, music, theater, exhibits, wide range of gastronomic options, float parade, local and national concerts, and plenty of tradition ensure the success of the festival

Memory

Marcopolo first participated in the National Grape Festival in 1958 (photo).

The event was already renowned nationwide and, for the second time, was held at the current Exposition Park. Since then, Marcopolo is a constant presence and a supporter of the festival. In 1981, the celebration coincided with the opening of the Marcopolo plant in Ana Rech, and had the visit of João Batista Figueiredo, then president of Brazil.

6

Fábio Grison

Other itineraries Anyone visiting Caxias do Sul is going to find much more than the Grape Festival. The city includes six Tours, which offer a range of different attractions.

Criúva: the district of Criúva shows the country side of Caxias do Sul with great hospitality, wide range of gastronomic options and beautiful scenery. Ideal for those who enjoy fresh country air and the atmosphere of adventure.

Colonial paths: the bucolic landscape and the typical Italo-Gaucho cuisine are the attractions in the interior of Caxias and Flores da Cunha. On the way, tourists can find cantinas for tasting and purchase of wine, century-old churches, vineyards, native vegetation and geography formed by mountains and streams.

La Cittá: unveils Caxias’s urban trails and its traditional sights, such as Diocesan Cathedral, San Pellegrino church, the Monument to the Immigrant, the Casa de Pedra Ambient Museum e the Municipal Museum.

Andrei Cardoso

Ana Rech: Italian and Portuguese cultures mingle in the town that, in the past, served as passage and host point for the drovers. Nowadays, the visitors are received with exquisite wines, home-made bread and hospitality.

Trentino Valley: the itinerary involves the tourist attractions of Caxias and Farroupilha, combining beautiful scenery and many vineyards. In this tour it is possible to learn the history of wine production.

Divulgation

Immigrant Road: in this itinerary it is possible to know the roads through where passed the first Italian immigrants to arrive to Caxias do Sul. The legacy of this adventure through the woods is the characteristic architecture of century-old buildings.

For all itineraries the prediction of visitation is a whole day.

7

Urban Public Transport

Viale BRT debuts in 2012 Grape Festival Articulated vehicle acquired by Visate makes the transportation between the Grape Festival pavilions and downtown Caxias The city of Caxias do Sul was the first one in Brazil to receive the Viale BRT produced by Marcopolo. The Viação Santa Tereza (Visate) acquired the modern bus that started operating during the Grape Festival, on the route between Visconde de Pelotas street, downtown, and the Exposition Park.

“Seeking satisfaction of its user, Visate incorporates to the public transportation fleet a stateof-the-art, technologically advanced vehicle, with innovative design, comfort and elevated transportation capacity. The Grape Festival is an outstand-

8

ing occasion for its launching”, states Fernando Ribeiro, managing director of the company.

According to Paulo Corso, Marcopolo director of commercial operation for the Brazilian market, it is very important for the company and the city the fact that Visate be the first company to acquire and use the Viale BRT in its lines. “The initiative will allow the user and especially the Grape Festival visitors to be transported more comfortably, safely, quickly and in one of the best urban vehicles ever produced in the country”, says Corso.

The Marcopolo Viale BRT articulated was developed for application in advanced public transportation systems in large urban centers and consumed two years of research and development. The articulated version is up to 21 meters long, has capacity for transporting up to 145 passengers, and was conceived with unprecedented concepts of design, ergonomics, comfort, safety and efficiency.

Paulo Corso highlights that the company’s design and development engineering areas used experience and knowledge gathered in almost 40 years of enhancing for the public transportation road systems of many countries. “This is the great advantage of Viale BRT in comparison to any other vehicle in its category, for no other manufacturer has such experience nor developed nor provided as many buses for systems like BRT all around the world.” Experience and knowledge that make a huge difference when defining the model features, both in cost reduction and operational efficiency for the fleet owner as in comfort, safety and well-being for passengers and users.

Júlio Soares/Objetiva

The Viale BRT vFuturistic design, inspired by modern high speed trains. vBonded side windows, which give greater visibility and panoramic view to the passengers. vExclusive LED highlighting head and taillights, which provide better lighting and reinforce brand identity. vDaytime running light – first urban bus in the Brazilian market with this technology. vGreater internal width which, combined to the seat configuration, facilitates the passenger circulation. vGreater internal height, allowing the inclusion air ducts, speakers and ample space for advertising on upper side.

Robust and reliable The Viale BRT’s design is that of a robust and extremely reliable vehicle, an impression that people who use it have, and of excellent cost-benefit ratio, attribute recognized by the business sector of urban public transportation. Other important features are cost reduction, product sustainability, practicality and embedded technology.

In order to achieve the goal of adding value to bus trips and providing operational gains for entrepreneurs, the Viale BRT can be offered with GPS, digital TV, wireless internet, security cameras, on-board computer, as well as audiovisual stop indication systems and fleet management.

Ideal for urban transportation, the Viale has automatic transmission and a security system that prevents the bus from moving with its doors open. The vehicle meets all requirements of the boarding platform systems existing in the country, with an option of door with 1,100 mm free room in front of the front wheel and raised floor, adapted to accessibility.

9

Gastronomy

JĂşlio Soares/Objetiva

Italo-Gaucho style * The plentiful, tasteful and varied gastronomy is one of the main attractions of the Rio Grande do Sul Sierra region. The mix of Italian and Gaucho cuisines is one of the characteristics that delight tourists coming from many places. In honor to the National Grape Festival and this mix of cultures, chef Cesar Augusto Chies, from the Truques de Cozinha Culinary School, created a unique recipe that has grape as a feature ingredient. Easy to make, it invites you to gather your friends and taste the best of the Italo-Gaucho cuisine.

Steak with wine sauce and glace grapes Steak and sauce 800g file mignon 8 strips of bacon 100g table grapes rubi and black 20g sugar | Salt and pepper 200ml Oporto wine Extra virgin olive oil

Polenta 500ml water 80g fine cornmeal 50g fontina cheese 50g butter Salt and pepper

Preparation Wrap the steak in plastic film for cylindrical shape. Cut it in four pieces and put them in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Cut the grapes in half, remove the seeds and set aside. In a saucepan, put the water to boil. When it starts boiling, add gradually the cornmeal, stirring constantly. Season with salt and cook over low heat. Remove the plastic film from the steak and wrap it in the bacon strips. In a hot frying pan with a drizzle of oil, seal all sides of the steak, including the part with the bacon. Take them off and bake them for five minutes at 356 degrees F. In the same frying pan add the sugar and the grapes. Let them caramelize and add the Oporto wine, reducing until reaching the consistency of syrup. Add cheese and butter to the polenta.

To assemble the plate, make a bed with the polenta and place over it the steak and the wine with grape sauce. Use fresh grapes and a sprig of rosemary for garnish.

Yield: 4 portions Preparation time: 1 hour 30 min

* Recipe that mixes Italian and Rio Grande do Sul cooking, in the Southern of Brazil.

10

Júlio Soares/Objetiva

Representative

Excellence service in Uruguay Dusil and Ebasul offer full structure of Marcopolo products e services to the Uruguayan market Quality customer support, innovation, constant update and first-rate service, provided by a well-trained and qualified staff, are the components of the success that Dusil and Ebasul reached in Uruguay, where both have been obtaining a 20 to 25% growth average rate per year. “We have a motto: we are different to be better”, says Jorge Antonio Del Rio de La Cruz.

He founded Ebasul in 1998, in Montevideo, when he realized that there was a latent need for spare parts in the Uruguayan market.

Therefore, Ebasul started supplying Uruguayan clients with Marcopolo parts and after sales services. In 2002 Eduardo da Costa joined as business partner. Shortly after that, in 2005, as a result of their dedication, Dusil was created, representing Marcopolo and Volare products in Uruguay. Since then, both companies offer a full structure of Marcopolo and Volare car bodies, parts and after-sales to all Uruguayan market.

With a structure of 26 thousand square meters considering the showroom, spare part resale and workshops, Dusil e Ebasul have a team of 38 professionals with direct jobs and another 16 with indirect ones, offering excellence in customer support. Other advantages are the workshop service, available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and a routine of daily visits to all clients. “We treat the clients as friends, as fam-

Jorge Antonio Del Rio de La Cruz and Eduardo da Costa take Marcopolo quality to Dusil and Ebasul customers

ily”, stresses Del Rio de La Cruz.

Dusil and Ebasul are continuously surprising their customers with new products and services. One of them, pioneering in the Uruguayan transport segment, was implemented in early December. It is a computerized system where the client programs their attendance and monitors all the service being performed while the bus is at an Ebasul workshop. The vehicle is filmed during all the time that it is at the shop, making possible for the client to follow the service online. Furthermore, it was implanted a differentiated structure for attending the drivers.

For 2012, new investments are already planned, including the expansion of Ebasul workshop in over 2 thousand square meters.

“For us, the customer always comes first.

And the thing I’m most proud is our team, which is very strong and dedicated. Whoever is with us is because wants to and knows exactly what they have to do”, says a touched Del Rio de La Cruz.

11

Paradiso 1600 Low Driver Paradiso 1800 Double Decker Delivered recently, the two new buses of singer Daniel were photographed by JĂşlio Soares at the Grape Festival pavilions, having as a backdrop the replica of 1885 Caxias do Sul

Legislation

2012 waits for final decision in the segment Current law of the scales has limits that, if maintained or reduced, will represent another challenge for bus manufacturers and the operators

14

The year of 2012 marks the beginning of the validity for the new regulation for pollutant emission Proconve P7 (equivalent to the Euro 5 regulation), that will affect manufacturers and alter the routine of operators and fleet owners, especially when it comes to acquisition and maintenance costs, and the management of their fleets.

But there are more changes and challenges.

Other key aspect for the segment and that has been discussed, but without a clear-cut definition, is the weight issue (total and per axle), better known as the law of the scales. Despite being extended until the middle of this year, the current legislation has limits that, if maintained or reduced, will represent another critical challenge for bus manufacturers and operators.

The industry, through Anfavea and Fabus, and supported by Abrati and other organizations, has already expressed official-

ly such concerns, since the new Proconve P7 motorization and the Contran 316 Resolution (regarding rigidity and structural resistance of bus bodies) result on an increase of the bus total weight by 500 kg.

That is, if maintained the current limits for total weight and weight per axle, it may represent up to eight less passengers per bus for each trip.

The new regulations are important for environmental preservation, pollutant emission reduction and passenger safety. However, its adoption implies in deep changes for the entire segment and that will cause rising costs, greater complexity for fleet management and vehicle maintenance, and increase in the total weight of the buses, which will lower the capacity for passenger transportation.

Throughout the year, operators will face a new reality in their fleets, with the co-existence of vehicle of different technologies that will require two different types of diesel, in addition to the ARLA 32 additive (urea). This will occasion

greater complexity in fleet management and bus maintenance, making costs rise.

From the perspective of manufacturers, it is important to note that these changes, in tandem with other regulatory requirements related to vehicle safety established

by Contran, result in more work and delay to obtain LCVM’s (License to use the Configuration and Motor Vehicles). They also demand investments in the development of new technologies to address the weight increase of the vehicles on account of several legal demands. In order to meet increasingly rigorous rules, it is necessary that the regulation about the law of the scales be revised and amended, according to studies conducted and presented

by Anfavea and Fabus.

The modifications resulting from the implementation of the new engine and fuel Diesel S50 alone will cause a cost increase for fleet owners and operators. If the vehicles’ transportation capacity were to be reduced, the fleet management will grow even harder, making its renovation take longer, possibly causing an impact on the service provided to passengers.

15

Service Network

After-sales qualification Marcopolo remodels its technical support and spare parts structure in order to provide excellence service to clients Since generation 7, Marcopolo has remodelled its after Sales system, which takes part technical assistance and spare parts focusing to offer a distinguished competitive quality to the market and provide an excellent service through enlarging its service net in Brazil and Abroad. Company does not save any efforts to reach customers’ satisfaction through support; company is always looking for continuous improvement and satisfaction.

JĂşlio Soares/Objetiva

Clinic Program The Clinic Program is an important help in the after sales. Through it, Marcopolo gathers groups of customers to discuss problems found in daily work and contribute for the development of new products and technical adjustments.

Website and e-learning The distance was reduced and communication with customers was facilitated and expanded with the new website – www.marcopolo.com. br. There they will find important information in three languages, such as videos, operation and maintenance technical instructions, in addition to the time table of the trainings scheduled for 2012. On the website is also available the elearning, distance training system.

16

Divulgation

Training and technical delivery Marcopolo invested much in training. No Generation 7 vehicle was delivered before the customer was trained at the head office, in Caxias do Sul. The company also implemented the technical delivery, which means the buses are delivered with a Marcopolo representative, responsible for passing on the vehicle operational instructions and evaluate the customer satisfaction.

Photos JĂşlio Soares/Objetiva

Basic kit for stores The company created a basic kit for stores, a set of spare parts that will integrate the spare parts storage of stores all over Brazil and abroad. The objective of the kit is to quicken solutions for customers, keeping the service and decreasing considerably the bus downtime.

Mobile workshops Another new feature introduced with Generation 7 is the mobile workshops: Fiat Doblo equipped with tools and equipment that allow the solving of any kind of technical problem in the bus body. With agility and autonomy, they go to the customer and are also used in trainings at the customer’s workshop. There are already 18 working units in Brazil and one in Paraguay, being the first unit to operate abroad.

17

Marcopolo World

Participation in Australia Leader in the production of bus bodies, Marcopolo expands its international operations by acquiring 75% stake in the company Volgren Australia Pty. Limited, based in Melbourne, Australia. With the deal, the company carries on with its plans of international expansion, entering Oceania and making way for other production segments in the country.

Volgren, the largest bus bodybuilder in Australia, has more than 560 employees and is present all over the country, with over 40% market share. From July 2010 to July 2011, the company sold 698 units, generating revenue of R$ 383 million.

Specialized in city bus production and has the technology of bus bodies made entirely of aluminum, which provides weight reduction and is completely recyclable.

Photos divulgation

The Australian market grows an average 12% per year, which promotes the development and supplying for other segments, such as coaches, chartering and receptive tourism, as well as exportation to neighbor countries. After three years, Marcopolo will have the right to exercise the remaining 25% stake.

Award in Mexico

DD launched in Peru Marcopolo launched in Lima, Peru, Paradiso 1800 Double Decker. Company’s second greatest market for the product, the event took place in Lima, by the end of 2011, and gathered around 200 people in the new Mercobus plant, which is the manufacturer’s representative in the country. The presentation given by the Strategy and Marketing manager, Walter Cruz, introduced the bus innovations, which has 12 sleep seats on the lower floor and 48 semi-sleep seats on the upper floor, all leather-flex covered. The comfort includes restroom and monitors with DVD. Before the launching, 60 buses were already sold.

18

Polomex, joint venture between Marcopolo and Mercedes-Benz to assemble buses in Mexico, was chosen as one of the companies with the best safety practices and hygiene in the work place by Nuevo León state government. The manufacturer participates in the annual guide Mejores Prácticas em Seguridad e Higiene em Nuevo León, published by the State Labor Department. Among the Polomex activities highlighted in the guide are its occupational health and safety management system and the environmental system that, besides ensuring less environmental impact, promotes and stimulates a better application of raw materials and inputs on the production lines and proper waste materials destination.

School bus in India The Indian market got a bus especially produced for student transport. After 18 months of development, the Starbus Ultra Skool was manufactured by Tata Marcopolo Motors, joint venture between Marcopolo S.A. and Tata Motors. The project followed the specifications of the country legislation and all the items, from the body structure to the size of the seats, were designed to ensure high safety, comfort and much practicality for

the traffic.

The vehicle has individual seats, with larger free room between them and the floor to stow the students’ bags and luggage, wider windows, anti-sliding floor, protection bars in the windows, emergency door at the floor level and first-aid kit. In addition, it is equipped with a GPS system and sold in two different configurations, with 42 or 46 seats.

Rinaldo Calheiros

Even in Kenya Everybody knows Marcopolo crosses boundaries.

Brand of the company from Brazil appeared among the Masai, in Kenya. With about 883 thousand individuals, this people characterizes for being very tall, living in circular settlements and for the cultural life full of celebrations. The picture was shot by Rinaldo Calheiros, early this year.

19

Interview

Comporte Group, Marcopolo customer since 1958 A Marcopolo customer since 1958 and with 80% of its fleet manufactured by the company from Caxias, Comporte is headed by Joaquim Constantino, who highlights the innovation, good service in technical and commercial after sale in addition to the quality of products as differential.

Leader in the passenger transportation market, the group gathers several companies and focus on continuous growth with quality, social and environmental responsibility. Comporte operates in various industry segments, such as urban and intercity transportation, tourism and chartering.

VJ: How did Comporte Group start?

Joaquim Constantino: Comporte Group started with chartering in the 40s and began transporting passengers in 1957 with the name Expresso União, in Minas Gerais. My father, Nenê Constantino, was a truck driver and, during a trip to the Northeast transporting butter, he had the idea of transporting passengers. The trip to the Northeast

20

took 26 days, because the truck kept getting stuck in the dirt roads. So it would take many stops to unstuck the vehicle. At that time, people would always travel with a driver’s assistant and sometimes they would need aid from other people to continue the journey, hence the delay. The return trip to São Paulo, however, took only a week. In addition to not having a load, the truck worked as a “pau-de-arara” (an irregular transportation for workers), transporting people. So, when the truck would get stuck, there was a great amount of “passengers” to help and the job was quickly done. Since then, my father entered this niche.

VJ: How many companies constitute the conglomerate, with how many buses and collaborators?

Constantino: Comporte Group is constituted by many companies, such as Expresso União, Quality Bus, Top Bus, Turb, Expresso Maringá, V. Piracicabana, Princesa, Expresso Itamarati, and Expresso

Caxiense (Caxias do Sul). They are divided in urban public and intercity transportation and passenger chartering. Currently, our fleet has 6.4 thousand vehicles and almost 16 thousand workers.

VJ: How long has the group been a Marcopolo customer and how much of the fleet is made of their buses?

Constantino: We are customers of Marcopolo since 1958, firstly with Nicola Bus Bodies and later Marcopolo. 80% of our fleet is Marcopolo. We have all models, from Volare to Double Decker.

VJ: What would you point as differential in Marcopolo in all these years using their buses?

Constantino: I’d point the good service in technical and commercial after sales, certainly the quality of products and the good resale value of Marcopolo. This factor is vital for the fleet owner, for it allows a better cash flow for the purchase of new buses. And the fleet renovation guarantees more quality, safety and comfort for users. It is a privilege to work along with Caxias do Sul industry, which is always seeking to improve its products and has an easy delivery system. Paulo Bellini and all the directors always gave us great service.

transport areas. In addition to passenger transportation, manages Gol and also entered the highway concession branch. Are there plans to operate in any other segments or areas?

Constantino: Right now, we want to keep improving the passenger transport sector the best we can, both in the city and short, medium and long distance intercity segments, in addition to the chartering for companies and special tourism areas, in which we also operate. And, of course, take the opportunities that may appear in this market.

VJ: With an experience of more than 50 years, what can you say about the transport sector in Brazil and future challenges?

Constantino: Nowadays, Brazil offers many opportunities for the passenger transport segment, I can think of some examples, such as Pre-Salt, the 2014 World Cup, 2016 Olympics, as well as public transport, with improvements in the BRT buses (Bus Rapid Transport). For the future, we are working to grow even more in this sector.

Fotos Diego Wellington Chaves

VJ: What were the greatest challenges for Comporte in those 60 years of existence?

Constantino: Besides beating the dirt roads in the beginning of our operations, we have passed through some political changes in the country that resulted in difficulties for the entire transport sector, such as fuel rationing in the 70s. At that time, even if we wanted to expand our fleet it wouldn’t be possible due to the lack of fuel. Now, our greatest challenge is to always give our users good service with good practices and sustainability. Companies must always keep in mind the issue of social responsibility and environment. An example is the necessity of respecting fuel standards not to pollute the ground. A behavior not seen in a “pirate”, that buys any bus, gets fuel anywhere and gives it to any driver. It is important to have in mind that behind a bus there is much more.

VJ: Constantino family operates in several

21

News

Martins reelected in Simefre Divulgation Simefre

Fighting the strong deindustrialization that ails many segments of the transformation industry is the major goal of the new director board of Simefre (Interstate Union of the Industry of Railway and Roadway Materials and Equipment), which took office in December for a term until 2015. According to the president, José Antonio Fernandes Martins, elected for his fourth mandate ahead of the organization, the deficit in 2011 in the sector reached US$ 60 billion, whereas five years ago the numbers were positive - US$ 6 to 7 billion.

Besides fighting the deindustrialization and triangulation, another of Simefre’s priorities is to strive for the implantation and expansion of the Brazil Major Plan in its entirety, increase of competitiveness, among others.

Visiting Marcopolo Júlio Soares/Objetiva

José Moacir Borsoi and Rosangela Borsoi, from Pedra Azul Turismo (ES) company, with the Grape Festival queen and princesses

Busologist Vlademir Monteiro (second on the left), with the Teledomingo TV show crew (RBS TV), in January 2012 Photos divulgation

Jacob Barata Group Team from a passenger’s transport company visited Marcopolo in January this year

22

ADO Group team from a Mexican intercity transport company has been in Caxias do Sul City, in January

CURTA A MARCOPOLO NAS REDES SOCIAIS. facebook.com/OnibusMarcopolo

twitter.com/OnibusMarcopolo

youtube.com/OnibusMarcopolo

23