no longer limited by contracts with Neoplan, and all ties to that company were rendered invalid. On 1 July 2005 the company was transformed into joint-stock company (pol.spółka akcyjna) Solaris Bus & Coach S.A.. Years later Solange Olszewska notes: “My husband and I were looking for a name that would evoke positive connotations in all languages, that would be easy to pronounce and would be related to the future. We were unable to find anything suitable. Then, among hundreds of words, we noticed “solaris” – a simple name, bringing to mind positive associations with sunshine and beginning with the same letter as my first name. Acquisition by CAF On 5 September 2018 Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) finalised its acquisition of Solaris Bus & Coach. This was following an announcement on 3 July 2018. Additionally, CAF has entered into an agreement with the Polish Development Fund for the acquisition by the latter of a minority stake in Solaris (35%) in the same terms and conditions agreed in by CAF in the acquisition of Solaris. On 4 October 2018, Javier Calleja was named CEO. Models City and intercity buses The first buses of the Solaris Urbino family were designed by a group of Polish engineers in collaboration with Berlin-based designer office IFS Designatelier under the leadership of Krzysztof Olszewski. In May 1999, at the Poznań International Fair Motor Show, the company unveiled its low-floor city bus MAXI class Solaris Urbino 12. Two other models of the MEGA class premièred that same year – the Solaris Urbino 15 and the Solaris Urbino 18. 2000 saw the market launch of the smallest member of the bus family – Solaris Urbino 9. A bodyframe made completely of stainless steel and the asymmetric front windscreen are turning into typical features of all buses of the Urbino family. The new series of city buses was characterised by the modern design and innovative technical solutions (e.g. the asymmetric line of the front windscreen improves the driver's field of vision). The first generation buses were made chiefly for the Polish market. In March 2000 the company sold the first vehicle to a non-Polish company; the Solaris Urbino 15 went to DPO from the Czech city of Ostrava. The first-generation Solaris Urbino buses have also made it to Slovakia, Latvia, and Germany. The second generation Urbinos premièred in 2002. The manufacturer introduced small modifications compared to the predecessors,