COMPANY·HISTORIES
NAIC 336211

Bus Bodies Manufacturing

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

19companies1899–1999founding years19still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedHella KGaA Hueck & Co.
1899
FoundedMack Trucks, Inc.
1901
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedFiat SpA
1906
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedGeneral Motors Corporation
1916
FoundedSuzuki Motor Corporation
1920
FoundedAmerican Standard Companies Inc.
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
FoundedBlue Bird Corporation
1932
FoundedNissan Motor Co., Ltd.
1933
FoundedIsuzu Motors, Ltd.FoundedToyota Motor Corporation
1937
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedHonda Motor Company Limited
1948
FoundedDover Corporation
1955
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedMcClain Industries, Inc.
1968
FoundedMark IV Industries, Inc.
1970
FoundedCollins Industries, Inc.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
FoundedThor Industries, Inc.
1980
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
FoundedFeatherlite Inc.
1988
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
FoundedMetso Corporation
1999
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Hella KGaA Hueck & Co. →
Active · founded 1899 · Germany
Hella KG Hueck & Co.
Mack Trucks, Inc. →
Active · founded 1901
A prominent fixture in the U.S.
Fiat SpA →
Active · founded 1906 · Italy
Fiat SpA, one of Europe's largest companies, is perhaps best known as a manufacturer of automobiles.
General Motors Corporation →
Active · founded 1916
General Motors Corporation (GM) is the world's largest full-line vehicle manufacturer and marketer.
Suzuki Motor Corporation →
Active · founded 1920 · Japan
Suzuki Motor Corporation is Japan's fourth largest automaker (trailing Toyota Motor Corporation, Nissan Motor Co.,…
American Standard Companies Inc. →
Active · founded 1929
American Standard Companies Inc.
Blue Bird Corporation →
Active · founded 1932
Blue Bird Corporation, based in Macon, Georgia, is the leading manufacturer of school buses in North America.
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1933 · Japan
Early 1940s:During World War II, the company makes military trucks and engines for airplanes and torpedo boats.
Isuzu Motors, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1937 · Japan
One of the largest producers of medium- and heavy-duty trucks in the world, Isuzu Motors, Ltd.
Toyota Motor Corporation →
Active · founded 1937 · Japan
Toyota Motor Corporation was Japan's largest car company and the world's third largest by the year 2000.
Honda Motor Company Limited →
Active · founded 1948
Honda Motor Company Limited is perhaps best known as an automaker--it is the third largest automaker in Japan--but the…
Dover Corporation →
Active · founded 1955
Dover Corporation is a diversified industrial manufacturing holding company composed of about 50 subsidiaries with…
McClain Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1968
McClain Industries, Inc.
Mark IV Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1970
Mark IV Industries, Inc.
Collins Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1971
Collins Industries, Inc.
Thor Industries, Inc. →
Active · founded 1980
Thor Industries, Inc., is the nation's second largest manufacturer of recreation vehicles and the largest builder of…
Featherlite Inc. →
Active · founded 1988
Featherlite Inc.
Metso Corporation →
Active · founded 1999 · Finland
Metso Corporation, a leading worldwide manufacturer of forestry, pulping, and paper machinery, is the product of the…
Thyssen Krupp AG →
Active · founded 1999 · Germany
Thyssen Krupp AG was created in March 1999 from the merger of two of Germany's oldest industrial giants, Thyssen AG and…
Build It Today

Starting a bus bodies manufacturing company now

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.