HomeMy WebLinkAbout16 - Ladder Truck and Fire Engine PurchaseCITY OF NEWPORT BEACH
CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Agenda Item No. 16
November 24, 2009
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: Fire Department and General Services Department
Steve Lewis, 644 -3101, slewis @nbfd.net
Mark Harmon, 644 -3055, mharmon @newportbeachca.gov
SUBJECT: Approval of a Negotiated Purchase of One (1) Ladder Truck and
Two (2) Fire Engines from Pierce Manufacturing Inc.
RECOMMENDATION
City Council waive Council policy F -5 and Council adopted purchasing procedures and
authorize staff to negotiate with Pierce Manufacturing Inc. from Wisconsin for the purchase
of one (1) new 100' heavy duty tiller ladder truck and two (2) new 1250 GPM Triple
Combination pumpers.
DISCUSSION
Background on Truck: In March, 2007, the City Council approved the purchase of one new
100' tractor -drawn aerial ladder from American LaFrance. Subsequent to that approval,
American LaFrance had repeated time delays on the manufacturing of the truck. We
continued working with American LaFrance until such time that we were notified that they
had filed for Chapter Seven bankruptcy on January 28, 2008. Shortly thereafter, we met
with authorities from American LaFrance and they reassured us that they were in the
process of restructuring their company and that we needed to give them some time to
achieve restructuring.
Staff set up a production time -line for them to follow and requested bi- weekly updates on
their progress. Within months, staff realized that the company continued to be in financial
trouble and American LaFrance continued to miss updates on their progress that we had
requested. During these ensuing months the Fire Department sent two employees back to
their manufacturing site in South Carolina to check on any progress on our specific
apparatus. The report back was dismal on our apparatus and on the stability of American
LaFrance as a company. Production on all vehicles at their building plant had come to a
virtual stop. We continued to try to pursue communications with American LaFrance on the
situation but again and again we were given vague and incomplete information on our
vehicle.
We notified American LaFrance of our decision to terminate our agreement with them in
June of 2009. The City Attorney's Office was in agreement with our decision.
After we notified American LaFrance of our decision, the Apparatus Committee, which is
comprised of members from the General Services and the Fire Department reconvened as
a group to begin the process of evaluating vendors once again. The process that the
committee embarked on was systematic, thorough, in- depth, and without any
preconceived bias towards one vendor versus another. The first criteria was each of the
vendor's tractor drawn truck and pumpers needed to meet the specific specifications that
we required for Newport Beach.
Newport Beach is unique in its diversity of terrain. Though many cities have their own set
of challenges, there are few that have the degree of elevation changes, narrow streets,
and tight turns that Newport Beach has. The specifications that vendors need to meet have
been used for decades in Newport Beach. The specifications were items such as "cramp
angle" or turning angles, departure angles of 16 degrees that helps eliminate the dragging
of the rear end, the need to eliminate "high centering" issues, adequate storage space, and
cab height due to the lower height apparatus bay doors at our older stations.
Other items that were included in the Committee's consideration were apparatus safety
components, company history/financial stability, repair continuity, recent purchases of fire
apparatus by surrounding cities, and overall fit and finish quality.
The committee took the time to interview each vendor to find out if their company could
meet these specifications. The vendors were Pierce, Crimson, E -One, Spartan, and
Seagrave. Seagrave was eliminated because of what the Committee felt was a poorly
constructed aerial ladder. At this point in time, Spartan had no reliable track record in the
fire apparatus industry, so no comparable analysis could be done. The information that
was obtained was done through direct interviews with each vendor and through an
investigative process of interviewing those in the fire apparatus industry, and from
departments who presently own or have considered each of these vendors.
After following this exhaustive process, there were two vendors that remained: Pierce and
Crimson. In order to make head to head comparisons, both vendors brought their trucks to
one location and put them through live tests where we tested their capabilities. The
Committee members also went to surrounding cities that have these brands of apparatus
in service. and discussed the pros and cons of each with those users.
After several months, the Committee finished their analysis of both vendors and
recommended Pierce Manufacturing, Inc. Pierce Manufacturing's apparatus is the only one
that offers a proprietary independent front suspension that allows for shortening the
stopping distance, improves ride quality, and enhances vehicle control. As part of Pierce's
commitment to safety they also crash test their fire apparatus chassis and provide rollover
impact testing.
Pierce is currently the largest manufacturer of fire apparatus in the nation. They only
manufacturer emergency apparatus and their products are third party certified. Pierce is
also a "single source" manufacturer, which means the entire fire apparatus is designed,
engineered and built from the ground up at their plant in Wisconsin.
Background on Engines: The Fiscal Year 2008 -09 and 2009 -10 budgets have each
included funding for the purchase of pumpers under the normal replacement cycle.
Consequently, the Committee has been looking at and doing research on pumpers for over
a year. The Committee began looking at current American LaFrance designs in the second
half of calendar year 2008, with the intention of purchasing another American LaFrance
pumper. The City has eight American LaFrance pumpers in frontline service at this time.
However, when it became apparent that American LaFrance was in financial trouble and
would have issues delivering the truck we currently had ordered, the Committee began to
work simultaneously on looking at tiller trucks and researching pumpers. The same
exhaustive procedure that we used for looking at the trucks was used for these pumpers.
The same vendors were examined, to help the Committee make the most appropriate
recommendation. It was decided that Pierce Manufacturing Inc. could provide the best
apparatus for the criteria we were asking for. Some of the criteria were turning radius,
water tank capacity, equipment storage, cab height, and pump capacity /gallons per minute
output.
Consequently, staff is requesting Council authorization to meet with representatives of
Pierce Manufacturing to discuss and negotiate the purchase of one 100' aerial truck and
two pumpers. Following these negotiations, we will return at a future Council meeting for
consideration of a contract to purchase the three pieces of equipment.
FISCAL IMPACT
The FY 2009 -10 Budget includes funding for both the engines discussed above. Funding
from the cancelled purchase of the American LaFrance truck has been encumbered and
available to be used towards the purchase of a new truck. While we will not know the cost
of the equipment prior to negotiating with Pierce, we are aware that additional funding will
be necessary for the tiller, as the cancelled order was based on pricing from early 2007,
and included a $75,000 credit for delays American LaFrance had incurred in the delivery of
previous engines. Further detail on the fiscal impact will be included in the future agenda
item once actual prices are known.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
No environmental review required. The truck and pumpers will meet or exceed all local and
federal environmental standards.
Prepared by:
Te laszewski
Fire upport Services Manager
Niff e Pisani, Deputy Director
General Services
Steve Lewis, Fire Chief j
Fire Denartment /
Mark Harmon,`Dii
General Services