CHARLOTTE, Mich., Jan. 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Spartan Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPAR) ("Spartan" or the "Company"), a global leader in specialty chassis and vehicle design, manufacturing, and assembly, today announced its wholly-owned subsidiary, Spartan Motors USA, Inc., has completed the previously announced acquisition of Smeal Fire Apparatus Co. ("Smeal") and its subsidiaries effective January 1, 2017. Smeal, an industry-leading innovator and manufacturer of fire apparatus in North America, was acquired for approximately $36.3 million (subject to a customary net working capital adjustment), the Company's forgiveness of certain liabilities owed by Smeal to the Company, and a subsequent tax gross-up payment, which is expected to be more than offset by tax benefits accruing to the Company.
Smeal generated 2016 revenues of approximately $100 million, which includes approximately $30 million of Spartan chassis sold to Smeal. The newly combined Spartan Emergency Response business unit will rank as one of the top-four North American fire apparatus manufacturers in an increasingly consolidating industry. With its expanded geographic reach spanning 44 states in the U.S., 10 provinces and 3 territories in Canada, the Company is even better positioned to deliver a robust and respected portfolio of leading products, services, and technologies to its broad range of customers, including original equipment manufacturers and dealers.
"This transaction marks a significant event for our Company, and we are excited to add Smeal's industry-leading product portfolio and manufacturing expertise to Spartan Motors," said Daryl Adams, President and Chief Executive Officer of Spartan Motors. "The addition of Smeal complements our own Spartan Emergency Response business unit while also allowing us to provide an expanded, innovative product offering to both new and existing customers. We expect the transaction to be accretive to 2017 earnings and accelerate the turnaround of the Spartan Emergency Response business unit."
About Spartan Motors
Spartan Motors, Inc. is a leading designer, engineer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialty vehicles, specialty chassis, vehicle bodies and parts for the fleet and delivery, recreational vehicle (RV), emergency response, defense forces and contract assembly (light/medium duty truck) markets. The Company's brand names— Spartan Motors, Spartan Specialty Vehicles, Spartan Emergency Response, Spartan Parts and Accessories, and Utilimaster®, a Spartan Motors Company— are known for quality, durability, performance, customer service and first-to-market innovation. The Company operates facilities in Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Wisconsin, Nebraska, South Dakota, Saltillo, Mexico; and Lima, Peru. Spartan reported sales of $550 million in 2015. Visit Spartan Motors at www.spartanmotors.com.
About Smeal
Smeal, including U.S. Tanker Co. and Ladder Tower Co., is recognized as a premier manufacturer, inventor and innovator of customized fire apparatus. The company offers a full line of custom and commercial pumpers, stainless steel tanker, aerial ladders, platforms, TDA's and wildland urban interface vehicles (WUI). Smeal is committed to leading the industry in high quality fire apparatus, delivery times and customer experience. Smeal sells its products worldwide and is based in Snyder, Neb. To learn more, visit smeal.com
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Posted: Jan 3, 2017
Every engine with the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District is now equipped with a Lucas Chest Compression System. It's a device that performs CPR on patients in the field. TMFPD has been using the device for the last year. All its crews are ALS-certified so paramedics on those trucks are able to provide the highest level of pre-hospital care.
"Having this machine is like having another firefighter on the engine because with CPR, that takes one person out automatically," said Captain Jamie Rivera of Truckee Meadows Fire. "Usually our operator will start CPR and do it for two minutes, pause, do it again. He'll get tired, we'll switch. With this device we program it, get it going and it never stops, all the way to the hospital."
He says that leaves the other paramedics free to handle other aspects of the call. Eighty percent of their calls are EMS calls.
"Now, instead of one person being dedicated to doing CPR, they can start an IV, work on creating an airway, try to get information about what could have put that patient into cardiac arrest," Rivera said. "It's a lot safer in the back of the ambulance too because you don't have to have that person standing over the patient during transport."
All of the district's 11 engines now have the new compression system and monitors. According to Fire Chief Charles Moore, the total investment is $438,600.
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Posted: Jan 3, 2017
In response to a growing number of medical calls, the Janesville Fire Department is taking steps to better equip fire engines with medical supplies.
Starting in early January, all fire engines will be stocked with more medicine and equipment to provide advanced life support to patients.
As of Friday afternoon, the fire department had responded to 9,795 calls since Jan. 1. Some 8,211 of them—or about 83.8 percent—were medical calls.
“What we've found is our ambulances are getting busier every year,” said Deputy Chief Jim Ponkauskas.
Increasingly, fire engines are reaching medical calls before ambulances. That's because ambulances can be at a different incidents when calls come in, which means fire engines are sometimes closer to medical emergencies, Ponkauskas said.
With that in mind, the fire department administration wants fire engines equipped to handle a variety of medical calls.
The new equipment will allow paramedics aboard fire engines to better respond to medical emergencies until an ambulance arrives. Each engine will have a medical box that includes IV fluids and medicine to respond to cardiac arrest and opiate overdoses, among other things, said Capt. Tom Brunner.
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