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Posted: Jun 7, 2016
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| 1 The Rosenbauer CrossFire pumper built for the Roseville (MN) Fire Department is on a Commander 4000 R611 chassis, with a heavy-duty extruded aluminum body, powered by a Cummins 450-hp ISL 9 diesel engine, and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission. (Photos courtesy of Rosenbauer.) |
The Roseville (MN) Fire Department, situated north of the twin Minnesota cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, had to replace a 1990 custom pumper on a Volvo chassis but wanted a new pumper that was shorter, had a larger water tank, and had more horsepower from its diesel engine.
Neil Sjostrom, Roseville’s battalion chief, says the chief officers turned to the department’s firefighters to determine what the new pumper should have in terms of improvements over the retiring vehicle, eventually coming up with the three major elements needed in the vehicle. “We approached the project with the idea that we were open to all manufacturers,” Sjostrom says. “Each original equipment manufacturer (OEM) brought a chassis to show us, which our firefighters were able to drive and then give us feedback on. Most of the best compliments were about the Rosenbauer and Pierce apparatus. Once that was done, the chiefs met and decided to purchase from Rosenbauer, especially because their factory is just up the road from us.”
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| 2 The Roseville Fire Department pumper carries Rosenbauer’s N1500 direct-drive 1,500-gpm PTO pump, a 750-gallon UPF water tank, a 30-gallon integral foam cell, a Fire Research Corp. Turbo Foam system, and Rosenbauer’s LCS2.0 pressure governor. |
Pumper Features
Steve Harris, owner of General Safety Fire Apparatus, who sold the pumper to Roseville, says he has a working relationship with the department that goes back to a Rosenbauer rescue-pumper and a Rosenbauer mini rescue truck built on a Ford F-550 chassis. “They wanted a short-wheelbase pumper to make the apparatus more maneuverable,” he says, “but with as large a water tank as we could give them, along with more horsepower and lots of storage.”
The end result was a Rosenbauer CrossFire pumper built on a Commander 4000 R611 chassis that is powered by a 450-horsepower Cummins ISL 9 diesel engine and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission. It has a Rosenbauer N1500 direct-drive 1,500-gallon-per-minute (gpm) power takeoff (PTO) pump, a 750-gallon UPF water tank, a 30-gallon integral foam cell, and an FRC Turbo Foam system. The vehicle’s wheelbase is 190 inches, its overall height is 10 feet 2 inches, and its overall length is 31 feet 11 inches.
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Posted: Jun 7, 2016
|
| 1 The Rosenbauer CrossFire pumper built for the Roseville (MN) Fire Department is on a Commander 4000 R611 chassis, with a heavy-duty extruded aluminum body, powered by a Cummins 450-hp ISL 9 diesel engine, and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission. (Photos courtesy of Rosenbauer.) |
The Roseville (MN) Fire Department, situated north of the twin Minnesota cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, had to replace a 1990 custom pumper on a Volvo chassis but wanted a new pumper that was shorter, had a larger water tank, and had more horsepower from its diesel engine.
Neil Sjostrom, Roseville’s battalion chief, says the chief officers turned to the department’s firefighters to determine what the new pumper should have in terms of improvements over the retiring vehicle, eventually coming up with the three major elements needed in the vehicle. “We approached the project with the idea that we were open to all manufacturers,” Sjostrom says. “Each original equipment manufacturer (OEM) brought a chassis to show us, which our firefighters were able to drive and then give us feedback on. Most of the best compliments were about the Rosenbauer and Pierce apparatus. Once that was done, the chiefs met and decided to purchase from Rosenbauer, especially because their factory is just up the road from us.”
|
| 2 The Roseville Fire Department pumper carries Rosenbauer’s N1500 direct-drive 1,500-gpm PTO pump, a 750-gallon UPF water tank, a 30-gallon integral foam cell, a Fire Research Corp. Turbo Foam system, and Rosenbauer’s LCS2.0 pressure governor. |
Pumper Features
Steve Harris, owner of General Safety Fire Apparatus, who sold the pumper to Roseville, says he has a working relationship with the department that goes back to a Rosenbauer rescue-pumper and a Rosenbauer mini rescue truck built on a Ford F-550 chassis. “They wanted a short-wheelbase pumper to make the apparatus more maneuverable,” he says, “but with as large a water tank as we could give them, along with more horsepower and lots of storage.”
The end result was a Rosenbauer CrossFire pumper built on a Commander 4000 R611 chassis that is powered by a 450-horsepower Cummins ISL 9 diesel engine and an Allison 3000 EVS automatic transmission. It has a Rosenbauer N1500 direct-drive 1,500-gallon-per-minute (gpm) power takeoff (PTO) pump, a 750-gallon UPF water tank, a 30-gallon integral foam cell, and an FRC Turbo Foam system. The vehicle’s wheelbase is 190 inches, its overall height is 10 feet 2 inches, and its overall length is 31 feet 11 inches.
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Posted: Jun 7, 2016
Robert Corrigan
Deputy Commissioner Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department
I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Deputy Commissioner Robert Corrigan to discuss recent apparatus acquisitions and orders by the Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department (PFD). After our discussion, I had the opportunity to visit Ladder 14, which recently took delivery of one of the city’s brand new tractor-drawn aerials. While speaking with Corrigan, he answered a few questions about the city’s apparatus acquisition program and the challenges he’s faced since being given the responsibility for replacing or upgrading the PFD’s fleet.
Since you were placed in charge of apparatus acquisition, what has been your biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge is always funding. Apparatus costs have skyrocketed over the past 10 years for all municipalities, and when a department falls behind in regularly scheduled acquisitions because of recession, it’s even more difficult to catch up. In Philadelphia, our apparatus are purchased by the Office of Fleet Management (OFM), and the PFD has worked to be a better partner with them by developing our own five-year plan of apparatus priorities. This plan allows city leadership to properly assess needs and risk and understand costs. The PFD has also submitted for the maximum allowed for apparatus in AFG grants, $3.4 million. Through the administration proposal for $9.8 million for new apparatus along with our AFG grant request, we believe we are on a solid path to renew our fleet.
In recent years, Philadelphia has used apparatus manufactured by other manufacturers, so the Spartan ER rigs are going to be a new experience for you. What led you to choose Spartan ER as your vendor for the new pumpers?
In Philadelphia, after a specification is written, it goes out to bid. Spartan won the contract, and we have very high hopes for these vehicles. Spartan won’t be a totally new experience; we have very positive history with the vendor, Campbell Supply Company, and are very excited to work with them again. The first two units are on track to be completed ahead of schedule and are expected to be in service this spring.
Talk about the Spartan ER order for the pumpers. Describe the new rigs and how they will differ from current pumpers in Philly’s fleet.
These are pure fire suppression engines, and we took a lot of input from our firefighters on their design. One noticeable feature is a very low (40 inches above the tailboard) hosebed, a direct result of firefighter feedback. Another change is the return to a mounted deck gun, which was not provided on the previous pumper contract. We wanted to allow company officers to have the option of a blitz or exterior attack. Fires now are burning hotter and faster, and more lightweight construction is appearing in our city. All of these reasons necessitated a return to a piped deck gun. After the first two units, we will return to a 10-inch raised roof to provide more headroom for our members. We also have better lighting, taking advantage of new LED technology, and better use of storage space, including a compartment for backboard storage in the pump house.
Talk about the PFD’s apparatus purchasing process.
As I mentioned, Philadelphia’s Office of Fleet Management signs our specifications and budgets and purchases our vehicles. This is a great system for our city; OFM is staffed with seasoned vehicle technicians, and they won’t let us make a mistake regarding the mechanical comp
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Posted: Jun 7, 2016
Robert Corrigan
Deputy Commissioner Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department
I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Deputy Commissioner Robert Corrigan to discuss recent apparatus acquisitions and orders by the Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department (PFD). After our discussion, I had the opportunity to visit Ladder 14, which recently took delivery of one of the city’s brand new tractor-drawn aerials. While speaking with Corrigan, he answered a few questions about the city’s apparatus acquisition program and the challenges he’s faced since being given the responsibility for replacing or upgrading the PFD’s fleet.
Since you were placed in charge of apparatus acquisition, what has been your biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge is always funding. Apparatus costs have skyrocketed over the past 10 years for all municipalities, and when a department falls behind in regularly scheduled acquisitions because of recession, it’s even more difficult to catch up. In Philadelphia, our apparatus are purchased by the Office of Fleet Management (OFM), and the PFD has worked to be a better partner with them by developing our own five-year plan of apparatus priorities. This plan allows city leadership to properly assess needs and risk and understand costs. The PFD has also submitted for the maximum allowed for apparatus in AFG grants, $3.4 million. Through the administration proposal for $9.8 million for new apparatus along with our AFG grant request, we believe we are on a solid path to renew our fleet.
In recent years, Philadelphia has used apparatus manufactured by other manufacturers, so the Spartan ER rigs are going to be a new experience for you. What led you to choose Spartan ER as your vendor for the new pumpers?
In Philadelphia, after a specification is written, it goes out to bid. Spartan won the contract, and we have very high hopes for these vehicles. Spartan won’t be a totally new experience; we have very positive history with the vendor, Campbell Supply Company, and are very excited to work with them again. The first two units are on track to be completed ahead of schedule and are expected to be in service this spring.
Talk about the Spartan ER order for the pumpers. Describe the new rigs and how they will differ from current pumpers in Philly’s fleet.
These are pure fire suppression engines, and we took a lot of input from our firefighters on their design. One noticeable feature is a very low (40 inches above the tailboard) hosebed, a direct result of firefighter feedback. Another change is the return to a mounted deck gun, which was not provided on the previous pumper contract. We wanted to allow company officers to have the option of a blitz or exterior attack. Fires now are burning hotter and faster, and more lightweight construction is appearing in our city. All of these reasons necessitated a return to a piped deck gun. After the first two units, we will return to a 10-inch raised roof to provide more headroom for our members. We also have better lighting, taking advantage of new LED technology, and better use of storage space, including a compartment for backboard storage in the pump house.
Talk about the PFD’s apparatus purchasing process.
As I mentioned, Philadelphia’s Office of Fleet Management signs our specifications and budgets and purchases our vehicles. This is a great system for our city; OFM is staffed with seasoned vehicle technicians, and they won’t let us make a mistake regarding the mechanical comp
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