Pierce Manufacturing, an Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK) company, has delivered a pair of Pierce® Arrow XT™ 100-foot aluminum aerial ladders to the City of Houston Fire Department in Houston, Texas. The vehicles represent the first ever Pierce aluminum aerials in the city of Houston. Martin Apparatus, Pierce’s dealer for the region, placed the vehicles into service earlier this month after equipment installation.
“The Houston Fire Department is one of the nation’s largest, and we’re elated to have Pierce heavy-duty aluminum ladders selected by such a noteworthy and respected department,” said Jim Johnson, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Fire & Emergency. “We engineered these aerials to set a new standard for performance and strength. This sale is a significant benchmark and a vote of confidence in our aluminum aerial line-up.”
The identically equipped, heavy-duty 100-foot aluminum ladders feature a 750-pound tip load capacity and are primarily designed for search and rescue, ventilation, salvage, and overhaul operations. The vehicles are engineered to maximize storage space to carry a wide range of equipment – including EMS gear, rescue equipment, a portable generator, ventilation tools, forced entry tools, power saws, salvage covers and a wide assortment of shovels, water vacs, and more.
“The Houston Fire Department conducted extensive research before making this purchase and our firefighters had a great deal of input. Safety, space utilization, service and on going support were among the top priorities,” said Jack Williams, Assistant Fire Chief for the Houston Fire Department. “These are our first Pierce aluminum ladders, and we were impressed by their ability to manufacture vehicles that meet our requirements and, at the same time, deliver excellent value for the citizens of Houston. We look forward to having these Pierce apparatus on duty in Stations 28 and 68 on the south side of our metro area.”
The vehicles were purchased through the Houston Galveston Area Council (H-GAC), a region- wide voluntary association of local governments that provides, among its many services, cooperative purchasing programs that promote the safety and welfare of the citizens in a 13-county Gulf Coast Planning region of Texas.
Pierce Manufacturing Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation [NYSE: OSK] company, is the leading North American manufacturer of custom fire apparatus. Products include custom and commercial pumpers, aerials, rescue trucks, wildland trucks, minipumpers, elliptical tankers, and homeland security apparatus. In addition, Pierce designs its own foam systems and was the first company to introduce frontal airbags and the Side Roll Protection system to fire apparatus. To learn more about Pierce, visit www.piercemfg.com
