It’s been in the works for months, but the partnership between Specialty Vehicles and Brown Industries has now become official. Brown Industries in Lawrence, Kansas is the manufacturer of the American Heritage line of trolleys for Specialty Vehicles, the exclusive domestic and international distributor.
“It is a perfect match combining the industry experience and sales capacity of SVI with the manufacturing expertise of Brown,” said Dane Jennison, President of Brown Industries. “While it has been a challenge to start a new product line of this magnitude from scratch, I am proud to say that we are making tremendous progress. With an 8 man engineering department and the recent startup of our dedicated Trolley second shift, we will not only offer the finest trolleys in the industry but will have a competitive lead time as well. I see a great future in Trolleys for SVI and Brown.”
Specialty Vehicles shares the same enthusiasm. “We are thrilled about the new relationship with Brown Industries. With their experience, capabilities and willingness to build high quality vehicles for the trolley industry we are looking forward to a successful relationship while providing beautiful trolleys for every type of application,” added Nancy Munoz, CEO of Specialty Vehicles.
Last summer Specialty Vehicles started the trolley discussion with Brown Industries. After some major shifts in the industry, Specialty Vehicles needed a manufacturer and Brown was interested in building trolleys. After several meetings, factory visits, phone calls and planning hours, Brown started on the first units last fall. Several trolleys have been completed and delivered and many more are in production.
Brown Industries manufactures both front engine and rear engine trolleys, with seating from 18-40 passengers, built on either a Ford or Freightliner chassis, with a variety of fueling options and ADA accessibility. Aesthetic options such as a conductor’s platform, brass or stainless steel stanchions, single or dual door entries, a variety of seating configurations and a multitude of upgrades are also available.
Brown Industries has been manufacturing van bodies and custom truck equipment for over 70 years, with manufacturing facilities in Lawrence, KS and Henderson, CO and sales offices in Kansas City, Minneapolis, and Chicago. Van bodies have typically been the backbone of the business, but Brown enjoys the challenge of manufacturing custom products. Specialty Vehicles is a family owned and operated Nevada-based business who has been the premiere provider of trolleys, trams and mini electric vehicles for the last 35 years.