
David Cole of Bus & Coach Buyer pays a visit to Bluestripe Remanufacturing – a company with both the know-how and engineering facilities to remanufacture even today’s electronically-controlled gearboxes.
Gearboxes are in Clive Randle’s DNA, his father built them for cars at Longbridge and he himself has been involved with bus transmissions throughout his working life. As owner and MD of Bluestripe Remanufacturing, he believes in offering bus operators a quality exchange service for ailing transmissions.
On a trading estate tucked between the railway and the River Stour, Bluestripe Remanufacturing’s premises are current being refinished externally with the company’s signature blue colour and new logo, part of the rebranding exercise that the company embarked on early in 2017.
The new image alongside a new website promotes the message that this is a business moving forward and follows significant investment in new technology and equipment to streamline the process for more recent generations of automatic transmission. Moving all the remanufacturing processes for these electronically controlled gearboxes in house was a major step for the company says Clive:
“It was a huge change which required investment in a lot of training and equipment. We have spent a lot on machinery to give us an advantage in remanufacturing both the Allison 2000 series and the associated torque converters. It supports the concept of the way I work, pursuing the quality angle using as many original equipment parts and products as possible. It is important that customers have confidence in the way we operate.”
Services
Bluestripe Remanufacturing is primarily focussed on Allison products but also undertakes work on units from Voith and ZF (and occasionally the Leyland units where it all started!). The recent upgrade significantly increases the company’s capability in respect of the Allison 2000 series with electronic control in addition to the earlier AT545 series models.
A comprehensive stock of OEM parts is held for Allison products, aided by that manufacturer’s relatively limited specification variations. Remanufactured Allison units are available from stock on a unit exchange basis, the company also offering a full exchange and fit service at customers’ premises across the UK. A skilled technician and fully equipped mobile workshop supports this process which takes around six hours on site.
A trade counter at the Stourbridge workshops offers a range of components to support transmission servicing by customers, including filters and gaskets. In addition to supplying exchange units, Bluestripe Remanufacturing will also rebuild customers’ units, retaining their original core. Remanufacturing of differentials is another service offered and some airbrake component work continues to order.