CHARLOTTE, Mich. – September 1, 2011 – Spartan Chassis, Inc., a subsidiary of Spartan Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPAR), is supplying 25 Metro Star® emergency response cab and chassis to the Beijing, Shenyang, Suzhou, Taiyuan, Wenzhou and Wuhan Fire Departments in China. This brings the total number of Spartan emergency response cab and chassis purchased by China to 94.
Under the terms of the contracts, Spartan will provide the emergency response cab and chassis to Itasca, Illinois-based W.S. Darley & Company in the fourth quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012 for the addition of the body and pump systems to fulfill the order. The vehicles are scheduled for delivery to the departments during the second quarter 2012.
“As a result of Spartan’s customer-centric approach and innovative products, we have a strong domestic reputation that is now creating incredible opportunities outside of North America,” said Tom Gorman, Chief Operating Officer of Spartan Motors. “International customers, including these six Chinese fire departments, are in need of unique, premium products that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. We are honored to once again work alongside W.S. Darley & Company to provide customized vehicle solutions.”
Each Metro Star chassis will be customized to conform to Chinese standards and features Spartan’s trademark spacious cab design, which includes a flat floor, various seating configurations and raised roof. The design provides up to 10 crew members with extended leg and headroom, improved visibility and additional space for storage, along with the industry’s tallest and widest cab doors, the widest steps, and the lowest step heights for enhanced entrance and exit safety.
W.S. Darley & Co. will be installing a heavy duty CAFS (Compressed Air Foam System) on several of the Spartan Chassis units. This unique system features special pumps with the ability to pump water and foam to the top floors of buildings that are more than 300 meters tall.
