DIWA Excellence is the comprehensive worldwide service and consulting program from Voith all around the DIWA transmission. During the UITP World Congress in Geneva, visitors will learn how this program increases economy, reduces downtimes and ensures more sustainable bus services. In Switzerland, too, transport operators have been relying for years on DIWA automatics and DIWA Excellence.
In Switzerland, Antriebe Rüti AG ensures as a long-standing and competent partner of Voith that the country's transport operators can utilize DIWA Excellence. The largest Swiss DIWA customers — Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich (VBZ) as well as the operators Zürichsee and Oberland VZO — have been relying on Voith since 2003. Apart from quality, availability and service are on top of the requirement list. With the transmission exchange concept of DIWA Excellence, these requirements are met in full: in up to 95 percent of all cases, customers receive a completely overhauled transmission within 24 hours and can thus restore their vehicle availability quickly.
With DIWA Excellence Voith offers operators and manufacturers a customer-oriented service and consulting program, which starts with the design of the driveline and reaches across the entire lifecycle of the transmission. Apart from targeted measures aimed at optimized fuel consumption, the modular program also provides solutions for preventive maintenance, as well as individual service and maintenance contracts.
For efficient and economical bus services, vehicle availability is of vital importance. Every minute that a bus does not spend on the road costs money. Preventive maintenance helps to reduce downtimes and plan workshop stops - long before costly damage can occur. With the Transmission Health Check and the DIWA SmartNet telemetric system, DIWA Excellence offers the ideal solution. DIWA SmartNet permanently monitors the condition of the transmission. As a result, there are fewer downtimes, while availability is increased. In the event of a transmission failure, fully overhauled exchange units are available at shortest notice and thus reduce downtimes to a minimum.
Another important element is optimized fuel consumption. Fuel takes up a substantial proportion of the overall operating budget. DIWA Excellence offers a number of possibilities to drive these costs down. An optimally configured driveline is the best prerequisite for saving fuel - and thus money - right from the start. With its worldwide experience in optimum driveline design, Voith can give comprehensive advice. The evaluation of operating data provides an insight into the vehicle operation, the driver behavior and the condition of the transmission and points out optimization potential. These findings are also part of the DIWA Excellence driver training. Fuel consumption and CO2emissions can be considerably improved by appropriate vehicle handling.
The topography-dependent gear-shifting program SensoTop also contributes significantly to fuel efficiency. Back in 2008, Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich VBZ was one of the Voith reference customers who tested the SensoTop program. At the time, consumption could be reduced by five percent. A positive result - not only for the operator, but also for the drivers, the passengers and the environment.