The cost of fire apparatus has risen significantly in recent years because of a combination of material price volatility, evolving regulations, increased demand, and the complexity of custom-built vehicles. Understanding these underlying factors can help address the confusion and misinformation about pricing that is circulating in the media and can provide important context to better address today’s pricing challenges through collaborative solutions.
MATERIALS
In most fire apparatus procurements, the purchase price is set at contract award and must account for expected input costs over the manufacturing window, which can be affected by the market conditions for labor and materials at the time of order.
Historically, labor and material costs have risen at stable rates that manufacturers could estimate with a reasonable degree of confidence. Recently, however, labor and material prices have been impacted by a confluence of factors, including the Pandemic, inflation, and tariffs, which make it difficult for apparatus manufacturers and component suppliers to reliably project future costs.
Material costing started to impact fire apparatus and component manufacturers in 2018 when tariffs on steel and aluminum were first introduced. The shortage of microchips needed to manufacture vehicles that followed in 2022 further drove up costs and slowed production lines dramatically.
Graph 1: Midwest Premium Transaction Price – USD/lb
In the case of aluminum—a major material used for apparatus manufacturing—Graph 1 shows that the price has risen from $1.18/pound in January 2024, to $1.41/pound in January 2025, and up to $1.72/pound in June 2025, reflecting an increase of 19.5% over the initial 12 months and more than 45% over the 18-month period. This rapid rise in aluminum pricing represented at the far right of Graph 1 is largely a result of recently announced aluminum tariffs, and the full impact of this increase has not yet worked its way into the market. The United States produces less than 1% of the primary aluminum produced worldwide, so it relies on imports, which means the tariffs will continue to influence aluminum costs.
Steel is the other commonly used material for manufacturing fire apparatus and components, and the United States imports approximately 25% of the steel used here. Tariffs on steel also add to manufacturing costs.
REGULATION
The most recent round of EPA regulations mandated changes to engines manufactured after January 1, 2027. These changes had impacts to not only fire apparatus design, but also pricing. Truck manufacturers had to take into account the additional costs of not only the new engine, but also the engineering costs associated with modifying truck chassis and bodies to accommodate the new engine designs and syste