Inside the Apparatus Industry: Apparatus Industry Rumblings

Looking back at 2007 & forward at 2008

2007 has proven to be a banner year for the fire apparatus industry, both in terms of management changes and introduction of new chassis and products. Manufacturers have seemed chiefly concerned with firefighter safety in apparatus design. I have seen more vehicles coming off the assembly line with front and rear air bags, stability control, bigger seatbelts with warning devices, improved LED lighting, lower ergonomic hose beds and a load of other safety options. This is a great accomplishment for the fire service, at least I think so.

Apparatus Orders
Most fire departments took a wait-and-see attitude when ordering new apparatus the beginning of this year, so they could see how the 2007 EPA-approved diesel engines operated. For the most part, I haven䴜t seen any major problems so far.
Many departments placed large orders in the second half of the year. Some of those orders included but are not limited to:

• Seagrave: FDNY - 59 engines, 11 towers
• American LaFrance: Los Angeles (city) - Four 100' TDAs in addition to the 14 already delivered
• Liberty Rescue: Lamar County (Miss.) - 10 pumpers
• Rosenbauer: Tempe (Ariz.) - two pumpers; Calgary, Canada - three pumpers; Miami-Dade (Fla.) - 5-year contract for quints and pumpers
• Pierce: San Bernardino (Calif.) - seven PUC pumpers; Baltimore City - four 100' TDAs; Jacksonville (Fla.) - seven Dash pumpers and one rescue pumper; and Eugene (Ore.) - five Velocity pumpers, one Velocity 100' platform and one WUI pumper
• KME: Pittsburgh - three Predator Severe Service pumpers in 2007 (three more in 2008); and Myrtle Beach (S.C.) - six Predator XL pumpers
• Ferrara: Houston - six rescue pumpers; St. George (La.) - six rescue pumpers and one 77' rear-mount platform
• HME: California (OES, CAL FIRE and Department of Corrections) - 38 structural pumpers and 72 4 x 4 wildland pumpers

Not too shabby, to say the least!

Management Changes
Some management changes that have taken place are as follows:

Federal Signal Corporation/E-One
Federal Signal Corporation announced changes in the organization of its Fire Rescue Group. Peter Guile has been named president of E-One, with responsibility for the company‰¥ús U.S.-based fire apparatus business. Guile, 42, most recently served as division president of the industrial systems business within the Safety and Security Systems Group. The division has become a leader in providing sophisticated security solutions for high-profile industrial plants and U.S. government buildings. Also during his tenure, Guile led the turnaround of an unsuccessful business in the U.K. In his new role, Guile will report to Federal Signal‰¥ús president and CEO, Robert Welding. Guile and his family will relocate to the Ocala, Fla., area.
Separately, Esa Peltola, 56, vice president and general manager of Bronto Skylift in Finland, has been named president of that business, and will also report directly to Robert Welding. Peltola joined Bronto in 1980, and has led the business to its technological and market leadership position enjoyed today. The Bronto articulated aerial platform for the firefighting industry will continue to be distributed in the North American market exclusively by E-One.
Marc Gustafson, previously president of the Fire Rescue Group, left the company.

American LaFrance
American LaFrance (ALF) announced that Bill Hinz joined Patriarch Partners Management Group as the managing director, platform leader for ALF, Global Automotive Systems and MD Helicopters. Hinz also assumed the role as president and CEO of ALF. His primary focus will be to restructure and institute the necessary processes to ensure the company continues its great heritage in the fire, emergency services and vocational vehicle industries. He will be responsible for the daily operations at ALF and the senior staff will report directly to him.
John Stevenson will be working with Hinz on various special projects that the company is currently executing. Hinz has more than 40 years of experience leading manufacturing companies in the aerospace, biotechnology, and telecommunications industries.
In addition, ALF has just opened its new headquarters in Summerville, S.C., with 440,000 square feet of manufacturing space and 57,000 square feet for offices, sales and engineering space.

Seagrave
Seagrave announced the appointment of a new senior management team, all promoted within the company䴜s ranks. Nathan Nick, the former head of engineering, was appointed COO; Mary Jo Wenzel, formerly controller, was appointed CFO; and Matt McMorran, former head of dealer development, was appointed vice president of Sales and Marketing.
Scott Mintier, former chief executive, resigned in connection with the new appointments along with several other members of his team.
Upon assuming his chief operating role, Nick said, ‰¥þSeagrave remains committed to building high-quality custom fire trucks and serving its customer base and dealer network with the highest standards of excellence.‰¥ÿ

Conclusion
With all of these new changes in place, 2008 will prove interesting in the number of total apparatus manufactured, as well as seeing who comes out the winners in the No. 2, 3 and 4 spots in the industry.

Bob Vaccaro has 30 years of fire service experience. He is a former chief of the Deer Park (N.Y.) Fire Department. Vaccaro has also worked for the Insurance Services Officeå¨, the New York Fire Patrol and several major insurance companies as a senior loss control representative.