Editor’s Note: Since early 2025, there has been scrutiny on fire apparatus manufacturers resulting from industry-wide lead time and cost increases. Build times are well beyond the traditional 18 months to which we have become accustomed, and costs have increased far more quickly than in previous years. There are many reasons for this, and on September 10, 2025, representatives from Pierce Manufacturing, REV Specialty Vehicles Group, the Kansas City (KS) Fire Department, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), and the Antimonopoly Counsel testified before Senators Hawley and Kim on the challenges our industry faces. What follows are the opening remarks from Dan Meyer, Vice President of Sales, Pierce Manufacturing as well as resources you can use to learn more about the current apparatus purchasing atmosphere.
—Chris Mc Loone, Editor in Chief
“Chairman Hawley, Ranking Member Kim, and members of the Subcommittee:
“Thank you for the opportunity to discuss Pierce’s mission of delivering high-quality, innovative fire trucks that help firefighters protect and serve our communities. It’s my honor to assist the Subcommittee’s work on important issues facing fire apparatus manufacturers. My name is Dan Meyer, and I’m the Vice President of Sales at Pierce Manufacturing, an Oshkosh Corporation business. I’ve spent the vast majority of my career at Pierce because I believe in our mission and know firsthand the impact that Pierce has on my community.
“I was born and raised in Appleton, Wisconsin, where Pierce started over a century ago and continues to operate to this day. Our story is uniquely American. Pierce began as a father-and-son shop building truck bodies on Model T Ford chassis. Today, Pierce proudly builds American-made fire trucks manufactured by over 3,000 craftsmen, welders, and engineers across 10 principal facilities in Wisconsin, Florida, and Tennessee. We do so with firefighters top of mind. Whether supporting them as Pierce builds the trucks they need, walking them throughout our facilities along the build cycle, or standing beside them on the final inspection of their apparatus, I have the honor of engaging with these heroes daily. At Pierce, I also work alongside more than 100 active and former firefighters and other first responders. I think it’s clear, our mission is personal.
“It’s a privilege to be here alongside witnesses that include such distinguished fire service leaders. President Kelly and Chief Rubin are public servants dedicated to making our communities safer. That is why I take their concerns so seriously. At Pierce, we are unwavering in our support of the American fire service. We will always honor our more than century-long commitment to being transparent with our customers.
“I share the Subcommittee’s serious concern about the industry-wide prolonged lead times seen since the pandemic, when demand for fire apparatus skyrocketed as supply chains and labor became strained. The current lead times, which are a function of that demand spike, are unacceptable, and Pierce remains laser-focused on reducing them to pre-pandemic norms.
“I’m happy to share that – while there is work left to do, Pierce has been making progress. We shipped more trucks last quarter than any other in Pierce’s history. We acknowledged the lead time problem as soon as it emerged, and we have made – and will continue to make – historic investments to increase throughput.
“Since lead times began to extend in 2022, Pierce has invested approximately $50 million to increase throughput, and we have another $100 million on the way. In less than three years, Pierce grew our workforce by more than 25%, adding nearly 800 good-paying American jobs.
“We expanded our manufacturing space by 28%, adding nearly 500,000 square feet. In short, we are significantly increasing