WATERAX

WATERAX is an American / Canadian fire equipment manufacturer. The company can trace its history back to 1898 with the Canadian-based Watson Jack & Co. The company provides a variety of firefighting tools and equipment including several small engine-driven pumps primarily used for wildland firefighting. The company's MARK-3 and BB-4 pumps have become well established with forestry agencies around the world. 
==History==
In 1898, Watson Jack & Co. was established in Montreal, Canada. The company developed a portable pump for firefighting in 1925, which it named the Wajax (a contraction of Watson Jack). The company was acquired in 1954, and the company name was changed to Wajax Equipment Ltd in 1959. 
Pacific Marine Supply of Seattle, Washington produced a line of portable pumps for marine and forestry use in the late 1930s. During WW2 Pacific Marine would provide more than 40,000 portable pumps to the US Navy. In 1964, Wajax Ltd acquired the Pacific Marine Fire Equipment Division creating the subsidiary Pacific Pumpers Inc. In the early 1980s Pacific Pumper became Wajax-Pacific Fire Equipment. Then in 1983 Wajax Ltd merged Wajax-Pacific with Montreal based Wajax Manufacturing to create the Wajax Fire Control Division. 
In 1995, Wildfire Fire Equipment Inc. purchased the Fire Control Division from Wajax Ltd. In 2000, Tyco Fire and Security acquired Wildfire Fire Equipment. In 2010, Wildfire became independent of Tyco following a management buy out. The company announced the current name Waterax in 2015. As of 2023, the Wajax name lives on as an industrial equipment company. 
==Products==
WATERAX provides a full line of wildland fire hose and appliances, but the company is best known for its lightweight engine driven pumps. 
=== MARK-3 ===
:This pump was introduced in 1964, as an improved version of a pump introduced in 1958. It has remained in continuous production with minor changes for more than 50 years. The standard Mk3 uses a high pressure four stage centrifugal pump, but an optional 2 stage centrifugal pump providing a greater volume at lower pressure is available. With a weight of 58lbs it is often used as a portable unit carried by a single person. This pump has seen wide adoption by forest fire agencies around the world.
=== BB-4 ===
:This is an adaption of the MARK-3 high pressure pump head for use with more powerful gasoline or diesel engines. The larger engine makes it better suited for use as a pump on brush trucks.
=== B2X ===
:Similar to the BB-4 this pump uses the 2 stage centrifugal pump head, providing greater volume at a lower pressure.
Category:Apparatus Component Manufacturers