Warren's TPI Composites lands composite bus contract

Will build high-tech bus bodies for California firm

By Ted Hayes
Posted 11/13/17

TPI Composites, which operates a large plant on Market Street in Warren, has entered into a five-year agreement with a California firm that builds high tech zero-emission electric buses, and will …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Register to post events


If you'd like to post an event to our calendar, you can create a free account by clicking here.

Note that free accounts do not have access to our subscriber-only content.

Day pass subscribers

Are you a day pass subscriber who needs to log in? Click here to continue.


Warren's TPI Composites lands composite bus contract

Will build high-tech bus bodies for California firm

Posted

TPI Composites, which operates a large plant on Market Street in Warren, has entered into a five-year agreement with a California firm that builds high tech zero-emission electric buses, and will build several thousand high-tech composite bus bodies over the next five years.
Proterra’s “Catalyst” buses are used in dozens of cities across the country, and the deal announced last week will see 3,350 bodies produced over the duration of the contract. The bodies will be built at TPI’s existing Warren facility on Market Street, and another that will be built in Iowa. TPI is headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz.
“We are excited to expand our relationship with Proterra and to support Proterra’s continued growth in the electric bus market,” said Steve Lockard, TPI’s President and CEO.
TPI’s roots are in yachting, but the company builds a myriad of composite structures, including wind turbine blades. To that end they are a good fit for Proterra, whose buses’ composite structure utilizes a combination of materials including fiberglass and carbon fiber that enable a lightweight body structure that weighs thousands of pounds less than conventional metallic space frames.
“As cities and municipalities throughout North America transition to zero-emission buses, TPI’s expanded manufacturing footprint and advanced composites technology will help us to scale the production of our electric buses,” said Proterra CEO Ryan Popple.
TPI Composites, Inc. is the only independent manufacturer of composite wind blades for the wind energy market with a global footprint and is an innovation leader for composite structures in the transportation market.

2024 by East Bay Media Group

Barrington · Bristol · East Providence · Little Compton · Portsmouth · Tiverton · Warren · Westport
Meet our staff
Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.