From the very humble beginning of Bob Wormser building his fire truck body in his own garage, to a sprawling, multi-building campus that builds a variety of high-tech and response-ready fire trucks, E-ONE celebrated their 50th anniversary on Wednesday.
Dozens gathered in the Welcome Center at the E-ONE campus off of Interstate 75 in Ocala, FL, with proclamations being issued, longtime workers being lauded and several fire departments from throughout the state being thanked for their longtime business and partnerships.
The company started in Wormser's garage in 1974 when he built the first modular extruded aluminum fire apparatus body, which was the start of Emergency One, Inc.
"It was a game changer for the fire industry at that time and has continued to be so in the last 50 years, this launched the company's reputation for pioneering innovation," said Chris McClung, vice president of sales for REV Fire Group. "This is still evidenced 50 years later in the fire apparatus we produce for fire departments around the world."
In 1978, Wormser opened an 82,000-square-foot factory in Ocala, FL, about 90 minutes north of Orlando. The company was first called Emergency One and later renamed E-ONE.
By 1981, they rolled out their first aerial ladder, which was a 110-foot welded, extruded aluminum aerial that featured E-ONE's popular integral torque box chassis.
When they started, E-ONE employed 25 people. They now have more than 1,000 employees between their Ocala operation and a smaller plant in Hamburg, NY. The Hamburg plant opened in 2010 to build a stainless steel apparatus, meeting the needs of customers in harsher winter climates.
"This is a great milestone to be able to celebrate," Marion County Commissioner Michelle Stone said. "We saw 50 seconds for 50 years (a video you can watch below), but what it didn't show were the highs and lows that have come through 50 years of being in business and riding out the ebbs and flows of the economy. We're just so grateful for the partnership and the many lives that you impact, not just because of your large employment base, but also because of the quality product that you produce for us, the citizens of Marion County."
Innovative apparatus over the decades
"Our tagline is 'Delivering strength through excellence,' and we use this every day because we see it as imperative to what we do," McClung said. "It's what we're renowned for. It's our innovation, it's our advanced engineering, it's our highly skilled team, all to build a world-class, heavy-duty firetruck for our end users and our departments out there."
In an effort to reduce noise in the cab, E-ONE introduced the HUSH model in the mid-80s, locating the motor at the back of the chassis.
E-ONE has developed a number of other innovations, including the Hurricane, the Typhoon, an array of heavy-duty industrial rigs, the HP series (which have fire flows rated at 3,000 gpm), low-profile Titan ARFF rigs that can be transported on C-130 aircraft, and the Bronto Skylift aerial devices.
In the 90s, they introduced the HP 75 ladder, which boasted a 500-pound tip load, plus rigs for urban and rural fire departments.
The most recent model is the Vector, an all-electric pumper. The first Vector was placed in service in Mesa, AZ, with the second to be delivered to Toronto. The Mesa rig, McClung said, will be featured on Jay Leno's television show, "Jay Leno's Garage" on April 15.
Larry Daniels, senior director of sales for REV Fire Group, acknowledged the 35 dealers across the U.S. that put E-ONE's vehicles into fire stations. Among those dealers are Absolute Fire Protection in New Jersey and Sunbelt Fire based in Alabama. They both have been selling E-ONE products for more than 40 years.
Whether you stop by a fire station in big cities like Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, or Cleveland, or visit the Phoenix metro area, it’s common to find an array of E-ONE apparatus on the front lines. Pasco and Marion counties in Florida are longtime customers, as are Toronto and Ottawa in Canada, Oklahoma City, OK, and Aurora, CO, and of course their hometown, Ocala Fire Rescue.
In 2010, REV group acquired E-ONE in their first purchase of fire/rescue vehicle manufacturers, which now includes Ferrara Fire Apparatus, KME, Ladder Tower, Smeal and Spartan Emergency Response.
From apparatus sander to sales director
Larry Daniels, who entered the company as a body sander on the night shift, worked hard, and was promoted to senior director of sales for REV Fire Group.
He spoke about his 32-year journey through the E-ONE brand and smiled from ear to ear as he talked about meeting his wife at the company. Dee originally worked for E-ONE and became the sales director for the Florida dealer, REV RTC.
"I am very glad for that," he said, noting that special part of the company's history.
Daniels mentioned many of the colleagues have longevity with the company. There are some multi-generation family employees there today, too.
"I was shocked when we looked at it and did the numbers and realized that we have nearly 60 employees that have 35 years with E-ONE," McClung said. "It's the better part of their professional lives that they dedicated to the fire service. And to me that's just incredible."
"I hope everyone has an E-ONE-derful day," Daniels said as he stepped away from the podium.
Marking the 50th anniversary
Inside the delivery bays, E-ONE created a detailed timeline of the company history, which highlights their notable achievements.
"I saw Danny standing up there earlier and he was looking at it. He made a comment to me, 'You know, as I stand here and I look at this, I realize, my God, I've been here for about three quarters of this. It starts dating you after a while, but it shows all the innovation and all the things that we successfully integrated with our dealer partners and our customers,'" McClung said. "And we're incredibly excited for that."
This summer, during E-ONE's annual picnic, they will honor all those who have dedicated their careers to building fire apparatus, McClung said.
"We are going to honor these employees in front of their coworkers and their family and friends this summer. So, it'll be a little bit more intimate for them."
On hand for the event was Thomas McClendon with Sunbelt Fire, who brought with him a 40-year-old E-ONE pumper that was originally in service with the Pedal, MS, Fire Department.
This was one of the first 100 custom pumpers built by E-ONE, and, Daniel said, was in service for 25 years. He had pewter mugs from the delivery, plus the original paperwork and manuals.
"He drove it back from Florida as a teenager and didn't even have a driver's license, but that's a different story," Daniels said with a laugh.
To celebrate this milestone, E-ONE will paint a 50th anniversary badge all apparatus delivered this year. The first truck to be adorned with this special artwork is from Pasco County, FL, which served as the backdrop for Wednesday's event. As the ceremony ended, the chief jumped in the cab and turned on the rig's lights to applause.
"Since its first days in 1974, E-ONE has been a leader in the fire industry with innovation and we have no plans on slowing down."
