Q NBS TECHNICAL NOTE

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE/ National Bureau of Standards

Issues in

Fire Vehicle Replacement:

Users' Views and Synthesis
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Issues in Fire Vehicle Replacement: hJ8197B

Users' Views and Synthesis

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P. B. Saunders, R. H. F. Jackson,

P. R. Meyers, and M. H. Pearl C i 9-

Applied Mathematics Division

Institute for Basic Standards

National Bureau of Standards

Washington, D.C. 20234

A technical report prepared for the Center for Fire Research

Institute for Applied Technology

National Bureau of Standards Washington, D.C. 20234

•%*

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, Rogers C. B. Morton, Secretary

James A. Baker, III, Under Secretary

Dr. Betsy Ancker-Johnson, Assistant Secretary for Science and Technology

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS, Ernest Ambler, Acting Director

Issued January 1976
National Bureau of Standards Technical Note 891

Nat. Bur. Stand. (U.S.), Tech. Note 891, 19 pages (Jan. 1976) CODEN: NBTNAE

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON: 1976

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 (Order by SD Catalog No. C13.46:891). Price $1.10 (Add 25 percent additional for other than U.S. mailing).
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

I. INTRODUCTION 1

II. FIRE VEHICLE REPLACEMENT: AN OVERVIEW 3

III. THE REPLACEMENT DECISION 4

A. Repowering and Rebuilding 4

B. Data and Analysis 5

C. Maintenance Facilities 7

D. Availability of Parts 7

IV. THE REPLACEMENT PROCESS 9

A. Custom Versus Commercial 9

B. Specifications 9

C. Budget Considerations 11

D. Acceptance Testing and Evaluation 11

V. SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS 13

VI. REFERENCES 15

ISSUES IN FIRE VEHICLE REPLACEMENT:

USERS' VIEWS AND SYNTHESIS

P. B. Saunders

R. H. F. Jackson

P. R. Meyers

M. H. Pearl

ABSTRACT

This report documents the findings and recommendations from a study of fire vehicle

replacement procedures. Exploration of that subject proved to require consideration of

related issues arising in: (1) writing apparatus specifications, (2) maintaining and

repairing vehicles, and (3) obtaining spare parts. The topics and most of the recommendations described herein are synthesized directly from visits and/or telephone interviews

with fire department officials across the country. The recommendations of the study call

for greatly increased communication among departments, the development of standards for

vehicle performance, maintenance staff size, etc., and national and/or regional centers

for training personnel and establishing standard vehicle testing procedures.

Key words: Engine pumper; fire vehicle; ladder truck; maintenance; replacement; specifications; standards.

I. INTRODUCTION

This report documents an exploration of the policies and procedures used by fire

departments in their replacement of pumpers and trucks. Wide variations in these policies

and procedures were found, reflecting both their relationships with other aspects of overall fire department operation and the substantial differences, nationwide, among local

government structures and regulations. Despite these variations, it proved possible to identify several broad areas perceived commonly as "problems"; such identification was a major goal of our effort.

How vehicle replacement is or should be carried out depends on a number of other

elements in a department's activities. Proposed innovations or improvements in replacement policies cannot be evaluated without considering both what options are available in

these other aspects of departmental operation, and how much control over replacement the

fire department is given by the jurisdiction it serves. This report is intended to illuminate and emphasize the options for change and to indicate areas for practical improvement. It is hoped that our articulation of difficulties and potential remedies will

stimulate further thought and discussion by members of the fire services, both within

individual departments and on a nationwide interdepartmental level, leading ultimately

to resolution of at least some of the apparatus-related problems associated with fire

protection.

Equipment replacement problems have a long history in industrial engineering and

operations research. In an earlier paper [1}(2) 5 fire vehicle replacement was studied

on an idealized mathematical basis comparing the trade-off between (a) avoidance, through

early replacement, of older vehicles' increasing maintenance costs, and (b) the cost of

purchasing new vehicles. Although interesting from a theoretical standpoint and as a framework for analytical discussions, the model developed in that early study is not directly applicable for use by most fire departments today. Nevertheless, its announcement generated inquiries and expressions of interest from numerous officials of fire

Sponsored by the National Bureau of Standards' Fire Service Technology Program

(head: Dr. B.M. Levin), a part of the Bureau's Programmatic Center for Fire Research

(head: Dr. J.W. Lyons). During the course of the project, sponsorship was transferred

to the National Fire Prevention and Control Administration.

(2) Numbers in brackets indicate references listed in Section VI of this report.
departments and city administrations, thus indicating considerable and widespread concern

over fire vehicle replacement problems. These requests stimulated initiation of the

current study, to examine more closely the nature of the fire vehicle replacement "scenario"

with the aim of identifying its less satisfactory aspects and arriving at practical

recommendations for dealing with them.

Our approach was to systematically collect information about all facets of vehicle

replacement through interviews with "numerous fire department officials. In addition to contacting most of the fire departments that had expressed interest in the earlier study

[1], members of the project team spoke by phone and/or in person with officials from

additional fire departments chosen to secure a wider geographical distribution across the

country. Discussions were conducted with a total of 30 departments, and about half of

these were visited; those contacted ranged in size from large city to small town, and in

location represented both coasts, the far Northwest, the Southwest, the South, the Midwest,

the Rocky Mountain Area, and New England.' '

We want at this point to acknowledge with appreciation the hospitality, cooperativeness, and warm interest accorded our visits by fire department staffs (both chiefs and

subordinates) , as well as the similar responsiveness typical of those we could "visit"

only via the impersonal medium of the telephone. The importance of such a reaction,

for a study such as this, will be obvious to the reader. Many fire chiefs took the

opportunity offered by our interview to discuss the principal problems they saw confronting

them, often in a context broader than the "vehicle replacement" theme governing this study.

A limitation of the study's scope is made evident in the title of this report. We have

served mainly as reporters and synthesizers of fire departments' views as to the nature and

relative importance of the' various replacement-related problems which face them . Our

information-gathering sessions were relatively brief; no independent observations or verifications were undertaken; the (possibly) distinctive views and insights of fire vehicle

manufacturers and city managements were not solicited . (*) We therefore do not consider

ourselves entitled to adopt (and hope to have avoided), in what follows, the dogmatic tone

of "instant experts".

At the present time, guidelines range from a 10 year replacement policy in New York * City (where engine companies respond to as many as 25,000 alarms by the time of replacement),

to policies of keeping vehicles in good operating condition as long as possible, sometimes

as long as 30 to 35 years. However, the policy most frequently encountered is that referred

to in Municipal Fire Administration [2] which states, "Pumpers will probably last an average

of 15 to 20 years; ladder trucks, 20 to 25 years, plus a reserve service of about 5 years."

Even though the book goes on to make allowances for situations in which other replacement

policies are appropriate, it seems to be the single sentence quoted above which many fire

departments feel is imposed too rigidly by city budget officials. This study should clarify

the need for, and possible directions of, more flexible guidelines.

The predominant opinion of the fire officials interviewed is that the expected vehicle

life called for in the above policy is far too long. One responding department, however,

is required to assume an even longer expected vehicle life, and would be delighted to obtain replacements according to the above policy. On the other hand, several other departments felt "pressured" to comply with this standard because of its influence on underwriters' ratings, even though they feel capable of maintaining in good condition vehicles

older than the recommended age. The disparity of these two situations becomes understandable when traced to differences in other aspects of the overall fire department

operation.

Section II, below, gives an overview of vehicle replacement. Sections III-IV present

in some detail discussions of various factors directly involved in the replacement process

as well as other elements of the total operation which affect replacement decisions.

Suggestions, recapitulated in Section V, are made for possible improvements in several

areas.

Alaska and Hawaii are not represented.

^Solicitation of these views would be a natural follow-up to the present study.

2
II. FIRE VEHICLE REPLACEMENT: AN OVERVIEW (5)

In an ideal vehicle replacement process, one would rationally decide that a vehicle

needed to be replaced, and then proceed to replace it directly thereafter. Unfortunately,

for many reasons fire departments are not free to operate in this ideal manner.

In practice, replacement is indicated if a vehicle is irreparably broken down, or is

thought to be undependable, ("' or if its cost of repairs becomes too high, or if it breaks down too often. Except possibly in the first case, however, a subjective judgment is

required to determine how much is "too high" or "too often". Furthermore, a vehicle may

be regarded as "irreparably broken down" simply because parts needed for repair are not available, even though the "fix" itself would be relatively minor were the proper materials

at hand.

A second complication concerns the part of the replacement process which comes after

the decision to replace has been made.*' ' There is typically a long delay between deciding

on replacement and being able actually to put a new vehicle into service (currently the

manufacturer's delivery period alone is 18 to 24 months!), yet service must be maintained

in the interim. Here the difficulties can be divided into two general categories:

1. Funds for replacement must be committed. This required both the availability

of funds in the municipal government and the ability to convince the relevant

funding agents of the need for replacement.

2. Specifications must be written, bids must be made and accepted, orders must

be written, and finally the vehicle must be delivered and tested prior to being placed in active service.

These two areas of complication, deciding to replace and replacing, are closely

related. For example, if the post-decision part of the replacement process itself can

take three years, then it is obviously not feasible to wait for total breakdown to occur before beginning a replacement action. On the other hand, the further a vehicle is

from total breakdown, the more difficult it is to convince others that replacement is

needed. This dilemma points up the need to set up a systematic policy for replacement . Development or revision of such a vehicle replacement policy should consider all relevant

aspects of the replacement process, including alternatives to replacement.

A formal replacement policy serves the following important purposes.

1. It is a plan designed to avoid being underequipped while waiting for replacements

to arrive and enter service. By ordering a new vehicle sufficiently in advance

of the need for it, there will always be a full fleet of first line vehicles.

2. It is a way to help avoid unexpected "clustering" of replacements in time by

distributing purchases more evenly. This reduces the likelihood of a large

strain on the budget being concentrated during a short time period.

The entire discussion is phrased in terms of replacement rather than increasing

the working fleet of vehicles; however, much of the text is relevant to the latter objective

as well.

Some departments will not repair a vehicle that has suffered a severe collision,

for fear that there might be invisible damage which could cause a failure at a time of

critical stress. This sharp division of the replacement process into two phases is somewhat oversimplified, but will be retained for purposes of clearer discussion.
3. It eliminates repeated arguments over essentially the same issues at each new replacement incident, thereby lifting an unnecessary burden from personnel

both in the fire department and in the municipal comptroller's office.

4. For cities in which replacements are supported by bond issues, the details

of a formal replacement policy should influence the terms of the bonds. Often

replacements can occur only at the time of a bond issue, which can be as infrequent as every 3 to 5 years. Under these conditions it is especially important

to have an estimate of how many of each type of vehicle will need to be replaced

prior to the next bond issue, so that the amount of the current issue will be

sufficient to cover the required purchases. Furthermore, if vehicles bought

with bond money cannot be replaced until the bonds are paid off, then the

expected vehicle life should be considered in setting the terms of the bonds,

i.e. prior to the bond issue.

These advantages of a formal replacement policy should make evident the need for

such a policy, and emphasize that the considerable care and effort required for its

development are warranted.

III. THE REPLACEMENT DECISION

Except for the obvious case when the vehicle simply cannot be made to operate,

deciding when to replace it is not a simple matter. If the decision must be defended and

justified to others, supporting evidence will be useful and may be required. Such evidence,

which should also play a role in making the decision in the first place, may consist of

the following information:

(i) data describing the present condition of the vehicle in question, and its

history of repair and reliability,

(ii) data describing the future performance of vehicles which were at one time

in the same condition,

(iii) a list of alternatives to outright replacement which have been considered

plus the reasons for their rejection.

This section will discuss some of the possible alternatives, and describe the types of

data and analysis which pertain to the replacement decision.

A. Repowering and Rebuilding . One obvious alternative to immediate replacement is

that of rebuilding vehicles. In some cases it may be cheaper to repower a vehicle, even

to install a new transmission and perhaps a new pump for a pumper, than to buy a new

vehicle. In fact, if the body and frame are intact one might (as at least one department

has done) build an otherwise "new" vehicle for a fraction of the cost of replacement.

To accomplish this, however, one needs an extensive maintenance facility, available either

in-house or under contract, fully staffed and adequately equipped for large scale repair

and maintenance work. Naturally, the economic justification for an in-house facility

of this type increases with the size of the department. In smaller departments where the

need to rebuild would occur rarely, such an extensive in-house facility is impractical.

More common than complete rebuilding is the practice of repowering or replacing a damaged motor. At present many decisions to repower are in part motivated by the resultant

opportunity to convert from gasoline to diesel engines. It is generally accepted that

diesel engines not only require less maintenance and repair but also are more economical

to operate (cheaper fuel and better mileage) , a factor well worth considering in view of

the current energy crisis and its implications for the future.

In the process of deciding whether or not to rebuild or repower, the following

factors should be considered.
1. The current condition of a vehicle, together with its anticipated future usage

and the availability of parts for future repairs, indicate how much longer it can be

expected to function after an overhaul. If the vehicle in question is nearing the end

of its expected life, it may be preferable not to repair it, but instead to utilize in its

place a vehicle from the reserve fleet until a new replacement vehicle is obtained.

2. In many cases, older inoperative vehicles are more valuable as sources of cannibalized parts than as "decrepit" pieces of apparatus requiring extensive repairs. In

fact, such a vehicle may provide the only source of parts for maintaining other vehicles

in the fleet.

3. When a department's current equipment lacks certain new design improvements,

e.g. enclosed cabs, heavier chassis for carrying additional equipment, etc., the advantages

offered by a new replacement vehicle with these features can outweigh the dollar savings

associated with rebuilding an older vehicle.

4. The extent to which the age of older vehicles has detrimental effects on department morale and insurance ratings must be considered. Some departments, fearing insurance

penalties, do not keep older vehicles even though they feel capable of maintaining them

in first line condition. In other departments, using only the most up-to-date apparatus

available is considered of paramount importance to both the fire department and the

community.

B. Data and Analysis . Some form of information and analysis is used in every decision

process. Often the analysis is not conscious and the information simply consists of

recollections 'of past events, e.g. trips to the maintenance shop. If the number of vehicles

is small and the replacement decision does not require formal justification, then perhaps

this informal type of decision process is sufficient. As the number of vehicles increases,

however, it becomes more difficult to keep mental records on each individual vehicle.

Furthermore, concrete data and formal analysis can certainly be useful when justifying to others the development or revision of a replacement policy.

Before continuing, it is important to distinguish between "data" and even the most

carefully kept "records". the term "records" is used here to refer to a written history of

events, usually organized for ease in recording. Sometimes records are organized for each

vehicle or for each company. Sometimes they are simply a chronological list of jobs com- pleted at the maintenance shop, with the vehicle or company noted, but not organized by

vehicle or company. The term "data", however, will refer to information which can be

readily retrieved and is in a form organized to aid in answering the particular questions

posed. A simple example: even if there is a detailed and accessible log of all repairs for

each vehicle, including dates, down time, odometer readings, and cost of parts and labor,

it is still no easy chore to determine whether or not the repair cost over time of, for

example, clutches or the transmission for a particular vehicle, has been excessive relative

to that for other similar vehicles. It is not that such a question couldn't be answered,

but rather that the effort required discourages raising of the question. Yet this is precisely the type of question which should be raised in deciding whether and what to replace.

It is interesting that although almost every fire department has records, some of them

extremely well kept, the type of data described above was not found in any department

contacted. Perhaps justifications supported by data are not as yet so necessary, or perhaps

the time and cost of assembling data are felt to outweigh the likely value. Certainly,

so long as the majority of records are kept by hand, the labor needed to maintain and

utilize comprehensive data will remain inhibiting.

Without attempting a complete treatment, we present next a description of the kinds of

data and analysis that would be needed to establish a full basis of evidence for a rational

replacement decision for even a single vehicle. First, the past history of maintenance

and repair costs would need to be known. These costs include parts, labor, and amortization of the maintenance facility where applicable. (If maintenance and repairs are handled by an outside facility then the cost is simply the charges incurred. If, however,

repairs and maintenance are performed by the fire department itself, then the cost of

operating the maintenance facility, staff, and equipment must be included.) Based on the
past records for the vehicle in question as compared to those for other similar vehicles,

future maintenance and repair costs as well as down time must be projected. Also needed

is an estimate of the analogous future costs if a new vehicle should be purchased. A conscientious effort to arrive at any of these figures can be a complex matter involving

judgments, approximations, and (sometimes gross) simplifications. Even these are only

part of what is required, since the current and future cost of money, based on current

interest rates and estimates of future interest and inflation rates, should also be considered. As indicated earlier, there are yet other factors to examine, e.g. insurance

ratings, and the possibility of rebuilding the vehicle. Finally, vehicles cannot be considere

as totally independent entities, and their replacements may not be identical. Rather,

each vehicle is a part of the fleet and willingness to replace it depends somewhat on the

overall condition of that entire fleet. As mentioned previously, the economic justification

for replacement may be less critical if a replacement vehicle would provide a needed extra

capability.

A further factor that influences replacement policy is the pride and esprit de corps

characteristic of fire departments throughout the country, and the constant desire to maintain this high level of morale. Surprisingly, these factors manifest themselves in

seemingly contradictory ways. whereas one fire department may wish to keep its vehicles

as long as possible, reflecting the strength of its maintenance capabilities, other departments opt for the newest and most sophisticated apparatus, showing how up-to-date they are. Both philosophies of vehicle replacement seem to have proven successful in keeping morale

high.

In practice, analysis of the factors described above has rarely been attempted, and

probably justifiably so under past circumstances. Collecting data and undertaking analysis

are time consuming and costly tasks distant from the interests and talents that motivate

a career in the fire services. Lacking even that portion of the data that does not require

prediction, an analyst would be forced to rely on assumptions and judgments which could

easily be rejected by those with different opinions.

Even the most elaborate replacement policies in use today were not developed through

the analysis of factors such as those described above. Where analysis has been attempted,

historical records have been inadequate so that estimates about the past and future of

vehicles are not firmly based on data. The resulting policies then are merely rough guidelines in the form of upper limits on dollar amounts of maintenance costs, and/or time

limits on age, before replacement. Such guidelines must, of course, be tempered by

subjective judgments, e.g. a newly repowered vehicle with a large repair cost recently

added to its ledger would not be replaced simply because the total maintenance cost had

just exceeded its prescribed upper limit.

In this discussion one final point should be made about comparing different replacement policies. Implicit in the current practice of describing a replacement policy in terms of the ages of the oldest pumpers and trucks, is the assumption that age reflects

the most relevant characteristics of the vehicle, i.e. its general condition and the

modernity of its features. This assumption, however, is not always true. In departments

capable of rebuilding vehicles, the up-to-date features may be incorporated in older

vehicles. Furthermore, "condition" itself is related to several other factors in addition

to age: the quality of the vehicle when purchased originally, the amount and type of usage,

the quality of preventive maintenance and repair, etc. Of these factors, only the amount

of usage is readily quantifiable and easily identified. In practice, however, it is the

age of a vehicle, a characteristic entirely predictable but only imperfectly indicative

of usage, (°) whic i is used to describe a replacement policy. Because the replacementdemanding vehicle conditions and features conveniently summarized by "maximum age" are not generally stated explicitly, caution must be exercised by those inclined to justify their

own "age based" replacement policy by pointing to a similar policy in existence elsewhere,

where conditions may be quite different.

(81 Rotation of vehicles is useful to equalize usage so that age does, to some extent,

imply usage within a single department. If vehicles are rotated, it is essential to keep

both usage and maintenance records by vehicle rather than, or in addition to, records

organized by company.

6
C. Maintenance . The nature of the maintenance provided is a factor vitally affecting

replacement decisions. With better maintenance, vehicles can be expected to last longer.

However, in determining a sound maintenance-replacement policy, a department should compare

the costs and benefits of providing less maintenance and replacing vehicles sooner with

those having more maintenance and delaying replacement.

The type of maintenance facility which is used impacts on replacement policy through

its effects on costs. There are three major types of such facilities: (i) those wholly

operated by the fire department, (ii) those operated by the city for the maintenance of

all city vehicles, and (iii) commercial garages which handle fire vehicle repair on some

type of contractual basis. The second category can be further divided into facilities in

which the fire department maintains its own staff of mechanics, and those in which all city

vehicles are repaired by the same crews. In the first category, some specialized types of

repair work (e.g. radiators, body work, etc.) may be sent to commercial establishments.

Each category displays wide variation in that some maintenance facilities are capable of

virtually building an entire vehicle, while others have relatively meager capability. It should be noted that the traditional practice of fire departments performing their own maintenance and repairs, with their own staff, takes advantage of the direct interest,

motivation, and esprit de corps in a highly dedicated service. Employees in a citywide

facility may not be as well motivated, but such facilities often do allow economies of

scale in their operation. Furthermore, as cities grow larger and as vehicles become more

complex, the maintenance-repair job becomes larger, more technical, and farther removed

from fire fighting. Thus the personal dedication of the traditional fire department

maintenance facility becomes harder to retain.

A number of fire departments expressed concern over the current and future state of

fire vehicle maintenance. One of the most frequently mentioned causes of concern is the

number of authorized maintenance personnel. Fire departments are growing; more vehicles

and other equipment are in use and require maintenance and repair. In addition, newer vehicles are often more complex than older ones and require more time to repair. This

increased work- load on a fixed-size maintenance facility means that some of the work done

in the past is now either not done at all or not done as well. For some departments this

implies that less time can be spent fabricating parts or rebuilding vehicles, thus creating

greater dependence on the ability to purchase parts when needed and an increase in the

tendency to replace vehicles which formerly would have been repaired. In other departments

the increased workload has led to less time being spent on' preventive maintenance.

Obviously the options involved in this problem include (i) increasing the maintenance

facility staff, (ii) replacing vehicles and other equipment sooner because staff is not available to make certain repairs, and (iii) maintaining the status quo , realizing that

with less preventive maintenance, reliability is likely to decline. (This last alternative

is generally regarded by fire departments as unacceptable.) It was recommended by several

departments that nationwide guidelines on the size of maintenance staff relative to fleet size would be useful in determining the adequacy of maintenance staffs for various levels

of repair and maintenance capability.

A related problem in the area of maintenance is the difficulty some fire departments

experience in attracting and retaining highly qualified mechanics. This was especially

true of several of the maintenance facilities in which it is common practice to machine parts

not otherwise available, a skill apparently rare among younger mechanics. Many departments

currently offer specialized training to mechanics, and the possibility of expanding this

training should be explored.

D. Availability of Parts . In discussions with fire departments across the country,

problems in obtaining parts were cited continually. Many incidents involving a lack of

parts were recounted. One such incident involved new vehicles which had been delivered

but could not be placed in service because certain parts were not available from the manufacturer's supplier. The fire department suffers in that the vehicles are of no use to them; the manufacturer suffers because vehicles will not be paid for until they can be

put into operation. More frequent than this extreme case were stories of ten to twenty

year old vehicles which had to be kept out of service for long periods of time awaiting

the arrival of ordered parts. Because fire fighting vehicles are expected to last for
a long time (relative to commercial trucks) , it is important that spare parts be available

throughout the relatively long time span. Yet, most fire vehicle manufacturers are very

small relative to the auto-making firms, so that maintaining an extensive inventory of

spare parts over so many years is an expensive burden for them. Furthermore, the present

general shortage of raw materials is affecting the availability of many items.

There are at least two possibilities for improving the parts situation. First, any

standardization of parts would be extremely helpful. Second, as suggested by several fire

departments, a nationwide information clearinghouse for spare parts could be established.

(A similar facility reportedly operates to the advantage of truckers stranded on highways.)

Currently, when a department needs a part which is unavailable from the manufacturer or his suppliers, the fire official charged with the repair will make telephone calls —

usually on a random basis — throughout the country trying to find another department

which has the needed part and is willing to sell or trade it. The general idea of such

a clearinghouse is that fire departments would submit and subsequently update lists of

spare parts which they would be willing to sell or trade to other departments. An old

vehicle being sold for scrap, perhaps the last of its kind in a particular fleet, may have

parts which are badly needed in some other department, yet at present these parts are seldom salvaged. Although the details of such a plan would have to be worked out, it

certainly appears to warrant further consideration.
IV. THE REPLACEMENT PROCESS

This section of the report is concerned with the process of replacing a vehicle once

the decision to replace has been made. That process includes the following steps:

(i) deciding what type of replacement vehicle is desired,

(ii) obtaining a commitment of funds for the purchase,

(iii) writing specifications,

(iv) awarding contracts, and

(v) acceptance testing the delivered vehicle.

A. Custom Versus Commercial . The terms "custom" and "commercial" are frequently used

as descriptors of fire vehicles. Because definitions for these terms vary with the

opinions and experiences of the various fire departments, it is easier to explain their

usage by describing some of the characteristics ascribed to vehicles in each class. For

example, "custom" sometimes refers to fire vehicles with chassis built exclusively for

fire vehicle use. "Commercial", on the other hand, refers to chassis produced by the

large automotive manufacturers for multiple uses, of which fire vehicles are but one. There is sometimes the implication that commercial vehicles are produced "assembly-line

style" with only superficial customizations available. The corresponding implication is

that custom vehicles are built "from scratch" to meet the specific requirements of each

individual fire department. An associated inference is that custom vehicles must be

described through a very detailed set of specifications, whereas commercial vehicles could

just as well be ordered by model number. Although these characterizations may not provide

an entirely accurate picture of the differences between custom and commercial fire vehicles,

they do convey the general attitudes with which many fire departments view the distinction.

The opinion of the majority of fire departments contacted in this study is that

"custom" vehicles are far superior to "commercial" vehicles. Many departments which have

or have had commercial vehicles have resolved to buy only custom vehicles from now on. The general feeling is that fire vehicles with commercial chassis "just don't stand up as well." There are, however, departments which like and buy the commercial vehicles. This

is partly (but not exclusively) because they are cheaper or because maintenance and repair

service is then available through local automobile service centers. Opinions were divided

as to whether parts were more readily available for commercial or for custom makes.

The important issue in buying fire vehicles is, of course, that the purchased vehicle

be capable of performing the required jobs for an appropriate period of time. If a lower

quality vehicle can be purchased at considerable savings and can perform well for some reasonable period of time, it may be cost effective to purchase such a vehicle and plan to replace it sooner than would be necessary for a superior one. Furthermore, a vehicle said not to last long enough in one city may enjoy an entirely adequate life-span in an area where there are fewer alarms or in another city where there are fewer hills, milder climate,

or a shorter replacement period. However, in a heavy-duty environment where vehicles must , for some reason, be kept for a long time, it is certainly wise to insist on purchasing the most durable vehicles available. And, in those cities where funds can be obtained, it is not uncommon to buy only "the best there is", since the additional reliability of and

departmental pride in these vehicles compensates for the additional expense.

B. Specifications . To insure that a vehicle will be capable of performing as desired,

fire departments write purchase specifications ("specs") . But even with the aid of the

National Fire Protection Association Pamphlet Number 19, Automotive Fire Apparatus [3], many

departments still feel they lack sufficient technical information and mechanical background

to develop good specs for their own needs. Some large departments which purchase vehicles

at frequent regular intervals have personnel specifically assigned to the job of writing

specs, and may have an up-to-date set of specs readily available at all times. But for

smaller departments, though, the task of writing specs can be awesome, and frequently they must call upon city engineers and the local sales representatives for assistance. In either case a great deal of time and effort is involved in writing specs, and there is no real assurance that the result actually does specify an appropriate vehicle or that the

written specs truly succeed in describing the vehicle they are intended to describe.
There are actually two steps involved in preparing specs: deciding on an appropriate

vehicle, and describing that vehicle in the specs. Determining that a vehicle is appropriate requires evaluation of the vehicle in terms of how well it meets the needs of the

department. Because specs are now written in fairly extensive detail, proper evaluation

requires up-to-date knowledge of individual components and understanding of how they

function in relation to the vehicle as a whole. Having conceptualized an appropriate

vehicle, a written description of it must then be prepared. At present, many specifications

explicitly require features which seemingly should go without saying, for example, this

extract from [3], "The engine oil fill pipe shall be large enough and so located as to permit easy filling." Such a statement is probably included as a result of previous unpleasant

experiences with vehicle designs which made adding oil a difficult chore. That lack of

sufficient detail in the specifications has had serious implications is illustrated by the

following "horror story" recorded during our interviews. One department found that a new

pumper could not achieve the specified pumping capability. The manufacturer pointed out in response to the department's complaint that the pumper had successfully passed tests conducted at sea level, and no qualification as to altitude had been included in the specs.

Another factor complicating the task of spec writing is that it is not sufficient to specify a level of performance: to be complete, specs should also require a long duration

for that performance. Thus purchasers specify, for example, a particular grade or thickness

of material because this is apparently the only way to attempt to guarantee in advance the

maintenance of a particular performance level over many years. (Lack of this kind of specification is sometimes used as a characterization of the so called "commercial" vehicles.)

Knowing what materials are available and desirable requires either a time-consuming effort

at keeping abreast of current technology or else further dependence on sales representatives

to help write specs.

One possibility for reducing some of the burddn of spec writing is the adoption of

standard industry-wide "basic" vehicles for each of several usage categories, for example,

light, average, and heavy. Specifications for these basic vehicles might be drawn up by a committee composed of representatives from fire departments and fire vehicle manufacturers.

Approval of the specs by the NFPA might be sought. Once these basic specifications are properly documented, fire departments could then prepare most of their vehicle-descriptions

simply by citing these documented specs, giving detailed specs only for deviations from the

standard. The concept here is the seemingly contradictory one of providing "customized

standard" vehicles.

In addition to facilitating the job of writing specs, the formulation of such standard

basic vehicles may prove beneficial in other ways. To the extent that virtually identical

vehicles would be requested by many fire departments, manufacturers may be able better to anticipate the demand for their products and to take advantage of economies of scale so as

to produce these standard vehicles at lower cost. Shorter delivery times may be possible

than are now experienced for the same vehicles without the philosophy of standardization.

Furthermore, since the basic vehicles would be experiencing widespread use, features which

are undesirable should be more readily noticeable so that the specs could be revised to incorporate the indicated changes. This should result in greater assurance of the requested

vehicle's being appropriate for the anticipated duty. Still another advantage is the

possibility of developing acceptance tests specifically designed for each standard vehicle.

(This possibility will be discussed in more detail later.)

There are also benefits for any fire department desiring non-standard specs or innovations. New ideas could be presented through a designated committee or organization for

nationwide distribution and comments. Even if such ideas were not accepted for incorporation into the standards, those departments supporting the idea could then approach the

manufacturers and bargain as a group in order to spread the amortization costs more evenly

among the interested departments. With the cost of requesting nonstandard items thus

reduced, new or "special" items could be put into use more easily and quickly.

10
C. Budget Considerations . Which type of budgeting is employed is determined by the

city's governmental structure, and can greatly influence how much leeway a department has

in deciding how to use the money allotted to it. Generally funds for capital equipment are provided either through bond issues, or in a separate capital budget, or as part of an operating budget. When funds are dependent on bonds, there can be extraordinary time con- straints on replacement because the pre-order lead time is greatly extended. Some

localities restrict the use of bond money, so that expenditures must be made as soon as the funds are available. Other areas stipulate that vehicles can not be replaced until

the bonds financing their purchase have been paid off, and so the vehicles must be kept

in service until then. '"•' (A community enforcing such restrictions on its fire department

should be aware that it is in effect removing a large part of the replacement decision from

the hands of the officials most knowledgeable on the subject.)

Justification for funds may be required at different levels of detail . Here again

(cf. p. 6) data, as opposed to records, may be important since people farther removed from

a vehicle may be less inclined to make subjective decisions about replacing it, and may

not share (or necessarily trust) the intuitive perceptions of those "on the front line".

As the 'budgeting process becomes more formal it may behoove a fire department to have

built into its budget a fixed level of replacement, e.g. so many pumpers and/or trucks to be replaced each year. With an established policy such as this, a department will have

less difficulty obtaining a minimum number of vehicles. The reasonability of such a policy

depends on several factors. If a city is changing in any substantial way (e.g. annexation,

population explosion, urban renewal featuring highrise buildings, etc.), this should be

considered in forming the policy. Also to be considered is the current condition of the

inventory. Clearly, if the fleet is basically new then such a policy is not reasonable.

On the other hand, if the fleet is currently old there may not be enough time to spread

out the replacement of vehicles over a number of years. If a fixed-level policy is to be

instituted, then it is important to choose it carefully since by its very nature such a policy should not require annual reformulation. Many fire departments are using or starting to use such a policy, and the tendency is toward shorter replacement cycles. Although

there are cities in which shorter cycles are called for, it is not clear that every

department aiming for a shorter replacement cycle is really justified in that objective,

or has seriously considered all of the alternatives in order to be certain that the

shorter cycle really represents the best possible decision.

D. Acceptance Testing and Evaluation . In many areas it is standard practice (and

often a legal requirement) for all new vehicles to be acceptance tested prior to being

placed in active service. The primary aim of such tests is to insure that the delivered

vehicle meets the specs. Devising and executing good tests can be a costly and time

consuming process, particularly if some new technology is involved for which adequate

tests may not yet be established. It is likely that numerous departments across the

country are executing the same tests on virtually identical vehicles, with neither the

test procedures nor the results generally made available to other departments.

There are several immediately obvious ideas worthy of further exploration in the

area of testing. First is the idea that both the procedures and the results of local

departmental tests be made available to other departments. Knowledge of test procedures

used elsewhere could help a department in establishing or modifying its own procedures.

Knowledge of the results obtained elsewhere would help the decision process in departments

which may be considering purchase of a similar vehicle. Also, comparing the results

obtained by several different departments could reveal areas in which more definitive

specs are necessary, e.g. the need to specify the altitude at which a specific pumping

capability must be achieved.

(9) If the bond issue is for a sum of money to be used for replacement as necessary

over the time frame of the issue, without restriction as to how long the vehicles must be

utilized, then the bond money is very similar to an annual capital budget.

11
Another idea is that of establishing standard acceptance tests developed specifically

for the proposed basic vehicles described earlier in this section. As indicated in the

previous paragraph, the existence of standard tests for a particular vehicle type would

lessen the need for locally devised testing procedures and would permit direct comparison

of test results obtained by numerous departments. If a particular vehicle type were not performing well in some specific test, a significant amount of data would be available both

to back up the observation and to indicate to the manufacturer the extent of the problem.

Although some information on acceptance testing is included in Pamphlet 19 of the

NFPA'^', Automotive Fire Apparatus , many fire departments have expressed a need for

further guidance in this area. The NFPA Committee on Fire Department Equipment, which

prepares Pamphlet 19, might act on these needs. Alternatively, there may be need for a national center devoted to the establishment of sound test procedures. Such a center

would accept responsibility for publicizing test procedures and results submitted by fire

departments, as well as establishing detailed test procedures for the proposed basic

vehicles and for new technology. Although no external group can completely relieve a fire

department of the responsibility for acceptance testing its own equipment, it is hoped that

follow-up efforts on these suggestions might help to lighten the testing burden under which

many departments now labor.

National Fire Protection Association.

12
V. SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Our aim in this report has been to present and build upon the thoughts of fire

departments regarding various issues and problems relating to vehicle replacement.

Although, as mentioned previously, comments were not solicited from either city management

officials or vehicle manufacturers, it is clear from the departments alone that there is no one "vehicle replacement problem," nor is there a single answer to any one of the more

specific problems that exist. There is, however, a single logical approach to problem

solving, namely that of considering a variety of alternatives and making a reasoned choice

from among them. This approach requires a thorough knowledge of the local situation, including the ability to distinguish those procedures which are rigid or highly resistant to change from those in which there is some flexibility and room for improvement. Data and

analysis to support a particular argument may become increasingly important in the future

if others are to be convinced of the need for changes.

Considering all alternatives requires first knowing what alternatives exist. To this

end, improved communications among departments are imperative. In many organizations new

ideas, information, and channels of communication accompany personnel who transfer between

the particular group and other similar ones, frequently to obtain higher salaries or positions. The traditional fire department practice of promoting vertically from within the

ranks discourages lateral transfers of personnel from other departments, thereby eliminating

at least one common medium for communication. Although the practices of one department are

not in general best for all, knowledge of what other departments are doing will at the very

least reveal additional alternatives, and may actually provide useful new techniques.

Communications among departments should be expanded at all levels of the fire service.

In the interviews conducted during this study, fire officials stressed that the pamphlets

and journals of the NFPA are valuable, as are the numerous meetings and conventions they

attend in order to exchange views on many aspects of fire department operation. However,

this simply is not enough. There should be journals and reports aimed, for example, at maintenance shop foremen, where problems, issues, and solutions specific to this particular

area of fire service can be readily presented and discussed. In the course of the study

many incidents were related to our staff in which a particular department had spent much

time and effort deliberating about a problem such as the purchase of some new equipment

(e.g. a new fabric for turnout coats), or developing a new technique (e.g. a different way

to dry hose), only to learn much later that other departments, sometimes nearby ones, had

earlier gone through the same process. During our visit to one department, the head of the

maintenance facility explained that he had installed a thermostat in some pumpers so that

the fan belt and cooling system did not operate until a certain temperature was reached, in

order to provide extra motor power on short runs (especially desirable in hilly areas) . In

a later interview with another department, a member of the project staff repeated this

story. The fire chief being interviewed immediately discussed the idea with his maintenance

chief and on the spot they jointly decided it was an idea worth trying in their own vehicles.

Perhaps something as simple as periodic newsletters, containing information, reports, and

suggestions solicited from all departments and distributed to all departments, for various

aspects of the fire service, could prove a valuable asset to everyone concerned.

In the same general vein of improving interdepartmental communications are the recommendations, earlier in this report, for a national clearinghouse for spare parts, nationally

accepted performance standards for vehicles at various levels of usage, and standards for

determining minimum staffing requirements at maintenance shops for various levels of fleet

size, maintenance, and repair. Again, in order to be useful, these suggestions must be

developed in detail and widely supported by members of the fire service.

One of the opportunities and responsibilities of the National Fire Prevention and

Control Administration might well be to support such efforts, to assist fire departments

nationwide to develop a clearinghouse for all kinds of useful information (including reports

on testing and implementation of new technology) , and to provide a forum in which to discuss

and define standards in all areas of the fire service. This agency could also find it

natural to offer help in the areas of data collection and analysis, showing fire departments

13
what types of data can be useful and assisting in the implementation of adequate data collection and analysis procedures. Decisions made on the basis of greatly expanded data

(both local and national), together with some general guidelines, would in all likelihood

be distinctly superior to those currently being made.

On the other hand, fire departments of various sizes in various parts of the country

have vastly different problems, so that very few, if any, hard and fast rules can be for- , mulated. The dividing line between rules and guidelines or standards can be very fine.

Nothing in this report should be construed as implying any intention to pry the power of

decision away from the local level. There is a great deal of pride and a sense of unique

identity in local fire departments, and efforts to "help" would backfire should they cor- rode this feeling which is so vital to the performance of the organization.

To conclude, the principal recommendations arising from this study are recapitulated

in list form.

On the local level:

(1) Expand efforts to determine what other fire departments are doing, including

problems encountered and "solutions" attempted.

(2) Publicize operational procedures, including problems and the approaches tried for

solving them. Disseminate information about what has worked as well as what

hasn't so that others can follow recommendations and heed warnings.

(3) Consider alternatives to current or traditional administrative procedures and

organization. The alternatives may prove preferable to the present system, they

may be the only solution when unprecedented situations arise, e.g. a budget

squeeze coinciding with increased demand for fire protection, and even if rejected, the evidence that alternatives have been considered and the reasons given

for rejection will strengthen the case for not adopting them.

These local recommendations require national-level efforts to facilitate the processes

of (1) finding out what other departments are doing, (2) publicizing procedures, and

(3) determining what alternatives exist for consideration. This report has discussed

several possibilities for improving communications and has given a number of ideas indicative of the broad spectrum of administrative and organizational policies currently in use. Undoubtedly many other alternatives exist, and will become apparent if the channels of

communication among departments are more firmly established. All of the national-level

recommendations presented below for consideration by the National Fire Prevention and Control Administration imply improved communications and will establish channels through

which departments can share their experiences in many aspects of the fire service.

On the national level:

(1) Establish an organization (or utilize one which already exists) devoted to improving communications among departments about all aspects of the fire service.

(2) Establish a national clearinghouse for spare parts. ,

(3) Establish nationally accepted performance standards for vehicles in various usage

categories.

(4) Establish standards for determining minimum staffing requirements at maintenance

shops for various levels of fleet size, maintenance, and repair.

(5) Explore the possibility of establishing national or regional centers for training

fire service personnel (e.g., courses for fire vehicle mechanics) and for

establishing tests on vehicles- and other equipment.

14
Although our recommendations have been summarized separately under the categories of

"local" and "national", the success of any or all of them requires participation by many

local departments. Obviously, no one fire department can single-handedly undertake any of

the tasks listed above. But at the same time, no one fire department agreeing with these

recommendations can afford to sit back and assume that others will institute the programs.

Support for these ideas should be verbalized at every opportunity, to secure the level of

participation which is essential as the tasks are undertaken.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT S

The authors wish to thank the many fire department officials across the country who

generously contributed their time and insights in discussing the subject of the report with

members of the project staff. Their cooperation was an essential ingredient in this study.

The assistance, suggestions, and editorial review provided by A. J. Goldman and W. A. Steele

of the Applied Mathematics Division are greatly appreciated.

VI . REFERENCES

1. Saunders, P. B. and Ku, R. , "Sequencing the Purchase and Retirement of Fire Engines",

Fire Safety Research , NBS Special Publication 411, Nov. 1974, pp. 201-214.

2. Municipal Fire Admin istration , International City Managers' Association, 1967, pp. 128-157.

3. Automotive Fire Apparatus , National Fire Protection Association Pamphlet No. 19, 1973.

4. "Fire Equipment Management", Urban Data Service Report , Vol. 4 No . 12, International

City Management Association, December 1972.

5. Saunders, P. B., A Computer Model for Simulating the Response Activities of a Fire

Department , unpublished report, September 1971.

15
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4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

Issues in Fire Vehicle Replacement:

Users' Views and Synthesis

5. Publication Date January 19 76

6. Performing Organization Code

7. AUTHOR(S)

P. B. Saunders, R. H„ F. Jackson, P. R. Meyers, M. H. Pearl

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16. ABSTRACT (A 200-word or less (actual summary ol most significant information. If document includes a significant

bibliography or literature survey, mention it here.)

This report documents the findings and recommendations from a study of fire

vehicle replacement procedi-es. Exploration of that subject proved to require

consideration of related issues arising in: (1) writing apparatus specifications,

(2) maintaining and repairing vehicles, and (3) obtaining spare parts. The topics

and most of the recommendations described herein are synthesized directly from

visits and/or telephone interviews with fire department officials across the count]

The recommendations of the study call for greatly increased communication amonj

departments, the development of standards for vehicle performance, maintenance

staff size, etc. , and national and/or regional centers for training personnel and

establishing standard vehicle testing procedures.

17. KEY WORDS (six to twelve entries; alphabetical order; capitalize only the first letter of the first key word unless a proper name; separated by semicolons)

Engine pumper; fire vehicle; ladder truck; maintenance; replacement;

specifications; standards.

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