Accurate information is not only important on the fire ground and the pre-hospital setting; it is paramount to the timely and safe repair of fire department vehicles. For that reason it is important to discuss this topic in detail explaining some of the common issues fire department mechanics face. The security of our careers as mechanics in the fire service relies on the ability to provide confident repairs that follow the manufacturer specification. With so much riding on our work, we must be able to access the information we seek in a timely manner.
Unfortunately there hasn’t been the creation of an all-encompassing fire apparatus service manual that sells for $19.99 at your local parts store. Even the best of maintenance manuals provided by apparatus manufacturers commonly lack complete information on chassis or powertrain components that were purchased from a company either as a partially complete commercial chassis, cutaway, or as individual modules. This information can be collected over time and stuck into a three ring binder, but this is very labor intensive, can lead to inaccurate information and can cost literally thousands of dollars. It doesn’t really matter who assembles the vehicles in your fleet, most manufacturers pick and choose the parts that are either specified in your original design or they feel is superior enough that they are willing to put their name next to it. Some manufacturers may also have proprietary designs purchased or manufactured exclusively for their company that may or may not have the same specifications as a similar product offered to the general public or other agencies. The manuals that relate to those “similar” products may or may not contain the proper specifications or troubleshooting information.
It can be a very labor intensive task for example to find the part numbers for a particular axle installed in your apparatus. The axle may no longer carry the supplier’s part number, or this information decal may be damaged, covered with a thick layer of red paint, or have an entirely different part number assigned to it. This may require calling the manufacturer and waiting for an extended amount of time to find information on the axle’s part numbers or the factory service information needed to verify one procedure or torque specification.
So how do we make this literature more readily available? Vehicle specification and design is the first step in this process. We can simply specify that a comprehensive manual be provided on acceptance of a vehicle, this can also be included in an initial bid requirement. Is the ability of the manufacturer to provide comprehensive literature with their product grounds for rejection of a bid? It may or may not be that big of an issue for the person making that decision, however, the lack of ability to provide such information should give you some insight into the company’s ability to provide information to your repair shop in a time of need. It is also important to define in your specification what comprehensive means to you, the end user. This definition should include, but not be limited to statements such as vehicle manufacturer, part, and supplier service, maintenance, diagrams, and troubleshooting manuals. By doing this, we can roll the high cost of the information or licensing the electronic copies of the information into the cost of the vehicle which may or may not be funded by a grant, bond, or equipment replacement fund. A complete parts list with drawings and part numbers can also be extremely helpful in locating parts in a timely manner. Even if your department does not have its own maintenance facility, the local repair shop that is approved to make your repairs will greatly appreciate the availability of these manuals.
In the end, acquisition of this information will lead to less time locating needed service information, shorten out of service time, and reduce diagnosis and repair costs.
By: Justin Claibourn, Washington Fire Mechanics Board Member