APPLETON, Wis. (FEB. 14, 2012) – Pierce Manufacturing, an Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK) company, has placed two Pierce® Arrow XT™ pumpers into front line duty with the Rapid City Fire Department in Rapid City, S.D. The department’s Pierce fleet now includes six front line engines, one reserve engine, one aerial, and five wildland brush trucks. In addition, the Department runs five Medtec ambulances.
“We’re a high call volume department, and can put 20,000 miles on a pumper in a single year, so ruggedness and durability are key,” said Fire Chief Mike Maltaverne of the Rapid City Fire Department. “The Arrow XTs have been a great fit for Rapid City – they’re heavy-duty and have proven themselves to be extremely reliable. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find any Pierce truck sitting in our maintenance facility. They’re always in service – and that’s a good thing for our department’s bottom line.”
“Pierce is proud to be the emergency response vehicle of choice for the Rapid City Fire Department, as they deliver a wide range of essential emergency services throughout their region,” said Jim Johnson, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Fire & Emergency. “The Arrow XT is built from the frame rails up to deliver reliability and performance mile after mile, and we’re pleased to see these meet the diverse challenges they encounter in the Mount Rushmore state.”
The Arrow XT pumpers are each equipped with a Detroit Diesel 470 hp engine, 152-inch long aluminum body, 10-inch raised roof cab, seating for four firefighters, and three EMS cabinets inside the cab. The vehicles also feature frontal impact and side roll protection systems, TAK-4® independent front suspension, Command Zone™ advanced electronics, a 1,500-gpm pump, 750-gallon water tank, Husky™ 12 foam system, 25-gallon foam cell, and lowered crosslays.
“Pierce and the team at Front Range Fire Apparatus do an excellent job for us,” added Chief Maltaverne. “It makes a big difference for our firefighters and incident commanders to know that we’ve got good, functional, and well maintained fire apparatus. Everyone who works here definitely loves the Pierce apparatus we’re running.”
The Rapid City Fire Department is comprised of 135 paid firefighters who respond to 14,000 calls annually in a protection district of 55 square miles and a population of 67,000. The department provides structural and wildland fire suppression, hazardous materials response, technical rescue, EMS and advanced life support, aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF), as well as comprehensive public education and prevention initiatives.
Pierce dealer, Front Range Fire Apparatus of Longmont, Colo., provides local service and support.
Photo Caption: A pair of Pierce® Arrow XT™ pumpers have joined the fleet of Pierce vehicles in Rapid City, S.D. (Photo courtesy of Joyce Sauer.)
About Pierce Manufacturing
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
About Oshkosh Corporation
Oshkosh Corporation is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialty access equipment, commercial, fire & emergency and military vehicles and vehicle bodies. Oshkosh Corporation manufactures, distributes and services products under the brands of Oshkosh®, JLG®, Pierce®, McNeilus®, Medtec®, Jerr-Dan®, Oshkosh Specialty Vehicles, Frontline™, SMIT™, CON-E-CO®, London® and IMT®. Oshkosh products are valued worldwide in businesses where high quality, superior performance, rugged reliability and long-term value are paramount. For more information, visit www.oshkoshcorporation.com.
®, TM All brand names referred to in this news release are trademarks of Oshkosh Corporation or its subsidiary companies.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements that the Company believes to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company’s future financial position, business strategy, targets, projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “should,” “project” or “plan” or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include the expected level and timing of the DoD’s procurement of products and services and funding thereof, including the impact of the DoD’s allocation of certain tires which will restrict and delay certain FHTV sales; risks related to reductions in government expenditures in light of U.S. defense budget pressures and an uncertain DoD tactical wheeled vehicle strategy; the cyclical nature of the Company’s access equipment, commercial and fire & emergency markets, especially during periods of global economic uncertainty, lower municipal spending and tight credit markets; the Company’s ability to produce vehicles under the FMTV
