Bernd Gutmann expertly eases the Setra high-decker through a narrow underpass. Gutmann is one of the three OMNIplus trainers who have thoroughly prepared themselves for the new vehicles. Timo Weberruss, a trainer, and Nils Ungericht, Coordinator of Driver Training at OMNIplus (head trainer) are also on board. All three are ready. Ungericht: “as soon as the first customer gets in touch we can start the first Expert Handling Training.”

The trio forms the core team training drivers to handle the next-generation TopClass and ComfortClass. All of them only in their thirties, they still bring extensive experience to their job. This includes: training as a vehicle mechanic and mechatronics engineer, further training as an automotive technician or professional trainer, employment in the workshop or testing departments. Obviously with all with the relevant licences.

And, it goes without saying, loads of practical experience behind the wheel of a bus. Bernd Gutmann, for his part, mainly works in testing at Daimler Buses: “I cover 40,000 kilometres per year.” He helps in driver training operations and also trains test drivers. Earlier on in his career, Nils Ungericht was a professional coach driver as a sideline, criss-crossing Europe in his spare time. And Timo Weberruss has “travelled and been on the road a lot” thanks to his job in the workshop area.

The trio complement each other perfectly. Ungericht: “Timo Weberruss brings phenomenal technical knowledge. Bernd Gutmann is the one who knows about coach operations and equipment. I’m the one who enjoys presenting to the bus drivers the most.” The advantage for all: company communication is swift. “We get information about the new features very early on and have been able to get to know them in the testing phase already. And as soon as the prototype vehicle was ready to drive, it was off we go.”

The trio tried out the new vehicles extensively on motorways and country roads a year before they were introduced to the market. The advantage of this was that Bernd Gutmann was able to provide his own experience from many test drives: “I see myself as a link in the knowledge chain – from development, through training, to the customer.”

The trainers also keep their ears open to what drivers are saying. We listened very carefully to the reports of drivers from the customer road tests with the new coaches,” Nils Ungericht explains. In the Expert Handling Training, the focus is on practice drives on real roads, in real traffic. Ungericht: “this is so bus drivers can also train with the assistance systems they need for comfortable, safe and economic driving.”

What sort of tips do the three practical experts have to offer, besides the spectacular new topics like Active Drive Assist 2, Predictive Powertrain Control on rural highways and Active Brake Assist 5?

Timo Weberruss immediately thinks of safety: “with the electronic handbrake, the vehicle can never roll away from a parked position if the driver leaves the cockpit after switching off the ignition. With Emergency Stop, the bus will come to a controlled halt if the driver suffers a medical emergency.” Bernd Gutmann points at once to the electrically supported steering: “it is so smooth, it is a real advantage.” Nils Ungericht looks to the new multimedia coach infotainment series: “phenomenal functions, simple operation via steering-wheel buttons, speech and touchscreen. You can play music from a smartphone or give presentations from a laptop.”

We circle back again through the narrow underpass. Bernd Gutmann steers the Setra with casual elegance and an unhurried sense of self-assurance. It’s perfect when trainers are fully fit not just for the classroom, but also for practical work.