Ah, the Fire Apparatus Consultant . . . a subject near and dear to my heart. I have done some of this for other departments (and I'm not looking for business) so I will tell you what I think, and I hope it will be helpful. Taylor is entirely correct in that a consultant is not always necessary . . . however, they can be extremely useful (and cost-effective) for those departments that lack the expertise to write their own bid specifications. Unfortunately, I have rarely met a department that did not - at least initially - feel that they were all experts and did not require any "outsider" telling them what they should buy. Eventually, most of them come around to the understanding that a modern fire apparatus is an extremely complex piece of machinery, and several different layers of laws, rules, regulations and requirements apply to them. In today's litigious society where anyone can sue anyone for anything, it's important to pay attention to all of those things. They also eventually realize that long-time Apparatus Committee member Cletus, although he drives a dump truck for the county, may not in fact be their best resident expert because "He knows trucks". Likewise, ex-Chief Smith, who has been a member of the Apparatus Committee since . . . well, since anyone can remember, may not be as "up to date" on current NFPA, DOT and EPA requirements as he needs to be. It's been a while since that 1947 500 gpm Peter Pirsch he helped the department buy (They were great trucks, by the way . . . for their time). Then there's the current Chief's son, who is on the committee to either (A) Keep an eye on things and make sure the Chief's buddy who works for an apparatus manufacturer gets the bid, or worse yet, (B) Is there because he's the Chief's son, dammit, and Daddy said so. Now, don't get me entirely wrong here - there are actually Apparatus Committees that function well. They are rare, but they're out there. Typically, the successful ones are small, spend a lot of time talking and even more listening, and don't let any manufacturer write their specs for them. I know when I first became Chairman of the Apparatus Advisory Committee in 1996, I took two years to write the bid specifications for a series of four 2000 gpm engines with 50-foot TeleSqurt booms. TWO YEARS, starting with a clean sheet of paper. Remember that unless you are in an "emergency purchase" situation, it's much more important to get it right than to get it right now. Your department should have a Capital Improvements Plan (ours runs over a six-year period), and update it every year. That way purchases can be planned for, funding can be arranged, and any necessary political battles can be fought. Always start with a Mission Statement: What will this vehicle be required to do? Where will it respond from, and to? With how many personnel? What is their level of training? What does your district look like . . . special hazards, limiting roads or bridges, etc.? As you can see, all of this can be a bit daunting, even for some pretty large full-time paid departments with the luxury of assigning personnel to work on drawing up the specifications. For many smaller departments, it's just not realistic to expect them to be able to do this critical job well.
And this is where a consultant can help. A good one (Like Tom Shand & Mike Wibur's Emergency Vehicle Response firm) will ask the right questions. While I have always been happy to provide a copy of our apparatus specs to other departments, I always stress to them that what's right for the City of Syracuse may be a poor choice for their department. You need to do the homework, invest the time, and get it right. Your firefighters and the citizens they protect deserve no less. Most good consultants charge a percentage of the cost of the delivered vehicle, and it can be well worth it. Some charge a flat fee. ASK. The cost of being saddled with a rig that performs poorly, does not meet your needs, or that you just plain don't like is pretty damned high, very long lasting, and tends to stick in the memory of your members (and local politicians) with short fuses and long memories. A good consultant will assess your department's needs, work within the budgetary constraints you give them, and not have any particular axe to grind for or against any particular manufacturer. I frequently hear comments from fire departments concerning how the brand of truck they buy is the only one worth a damn, or even more frequently how this or that manufacturer builds nothing but junk. Neither of those things is true. I have, over the last 40+ years, heard horror stories about every single manufacturer now in business, and most of those who are no longer with us. Conversely, I firmly believe that any one of the current major manufacturers is capable of building your department a quality, reliable apparatus. About 90% of it is in the specifications that you provided to them . . . they built what you said you wanted.
Know what you want - or more importantly, what you need. Know how to ask for it, how to ensure you get it, and how to tell whether or not you got it when the vehicle is inspected. Good consultants will be with you through the entire process . . . design, specifications writing, the bid process, assessment of proposals, award of bid, the pre-build construction conference at the manufacturer's facility, the mid-point construction conference when the chassis is essentially complete but the body is not yet mounted where it will hide a lot, and the final inspection where a line-by-line review of YOUR bid specifications for compliance is done. These trips are not vacation junkets - take as few people as possible, and leave your golf clubs home. You're going to be inside, underneath and on top of this vehicle all day long. Yes, it's work . . . but it's worth it. When the new rig backs into quarters, and especially after it gets its first few fires under its belt, that quiet, passing comment from one of your senior drivers . . . "Nice rig" . . . will tell you you've done your job. Hope some of this was helpful. Don't be afraid to ask for help, but be careful where the help comes from. Manufacturer's representatives will be all too happy to make the Apparatus Committee's job "easy" for them. Don't take the easy way out. Good luck.
And this is where a consultant can help. A good one (Like Tom Shand & Mike Wibur's Emergency Vehicle Response firm) will ask the right questions. While I have always been happy to provide a copy of our apparatus specs to other departments, I always stress to them that what's right for the City of Syracuse may be a poor choice for their department. You need to do the homework, invest the time, and get it right. Your firefighters and the citizens they protect deserve no less. Most good consultants charge a percentage of the cost of the delivered vehicle, and it can be well worth it. Some charge a flat fee. ASK. The cost of being saddled with a rig that performs poorly, does not meet your needs, or that you just plain don't like is pretty damned high, very long lasting, and tends to stick in the memory of your members (and local politicians) with short fuses and long memories. A good consultant will assess your department's needs, work within the budgetary constraints you give them, and not have any particular axe to grind for or against any particular manufacturer. I frequently hear comments from fire departments concerning how the brand of truck they buy is the only one worth a damn, or even more frequently how this or that manufacturer builds nothing but junk. Neither of those things is true. I have, over the last 40+ years, heard horror stories about every single manufacturer now in business, and most of those who are no longer with us. Conversely, I firmly believe that any one of the current major manufacturers is capable of building your department a quality, reliable apparatus. About 90% of it is in the specifications that you provided to them . . . they built what you said you wanted.
Know what you want - or more importantly, what you need. Know how to ask for it, how to ensure you get it, and how to tell whether or not you got it when the vehicle is inspected. Good consultants will be with you through the entire process . . . design, specifications writing, the bid process, assessment of proposals, award of bid, the pre-build construction conference at the manufacturer's facility, the mid-point construction conference when the chassis is essentially complete but the body is not yet mounted where it will hide a lot, and the final inspection where a line-by-line review of YOUR bid specifications for compliance is done. These trips are not vacation junkets - take as few people as possible, and leave your golf clubs home. You're going to be inside, underneath and on top of this vehicle all day long. Yes, it's work . . . but it's worth it. When the new rig backs into quarters, and especially after it gets its first few fires under its belt, that quiet, passing comment from one of your senior drivers . . . "Nice rig" . . . will tell you you've done your job. Hope some of this was helpful. Don't be afraid to ask for help, but be careful where the help comes from. Manufacturer's representatives will be all too happy to make the Apparatus Committee's job "easy" for them. Don't take the easy way out. Good luck.
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