The Wright Way | Company History
Having joined Wrights back in 1955 and “lived and breathed” Wrights for 50 years, until his eventual retirement in 2005, Jack Kernohan documents the fascinating history of The Wright Group.
Featuring some iconic images and witty banter, the book takes the reader on a journey through time.
“The Wright Way”, published in hardback by Colourpoint Books, is available in selected bookstores (ISBN-10: 1906578508).
Company history
Travel anywhere in the United Kingdom by public transport today and the chances are high that at some stage you will use the products of a factory in Ballymena, Northern Ireland. That modern, hi-tech factory is at Galgorm and is the home of The Wright Group of companies. But it wasn’t always like this – gleaming and full of hi-tech equipment . . .
Reflection drives us forwards...
The Wright Group’s originality, cutting edge technology and continual strive to innovate drive our success. Having established a platform in the PSV industry (c.1988), William Wright recognised that buses needed to be both passenger friendly and capable of serving ALL the community, from young parents with children and buggies to the elderly and handicapped. Hence, in 1993, The Wright Group was the first British manufacturer to design, develop and market a fully accessible low floor, easily accessible, public bus in the United Kingdom. Later, in 1999, we were also the first in the United Kingdom to engineer and build an articulated city bus.
Wright Group manufactures buses for many niche market segments including midi, middleweight, full size city bus, school bus, double deck, and Bus Rapid Transit vehicles utilising both diesel and hybrid electric drivelines. Notable milestones include the launch of the world’s first hybrid-electric double deck at London’s City Hall in 2006 and the development of the ground breaking StreetCar RTV, a unique combination of both Bus Rapid Transit and hybrid electric technologies; fifty of these vehicles now in operation in Las Vegas! Today, every fourth bus sold in the United Kingdom on a PSV chassis is made in Ballymena.
Wrights Group is still a family owned and managed business, with over 70 years’ experience in passenger transit solutions. While remaining a family company in every respect, and proudly independent, Wright buses blend traditional values with innovative designs and technological excellence. This winning combination has laid a foundation upon which the company has grown from strength to strength, to the extent that the Group now employs more than 2000 people.