WHAT ARE WE GOING TO CALL THIS RIG?

BY WILLIAM C. PETERS

The fire department had come to love its old quint. Once “state of the art,” the truck had a 90-foot articulating boom and platform, a pump, a hosebed that packed to the rear step, a 500-gallon water tank, stacks of ground ladders on each side, and even a booster reel.

Operationally, the unit performed quite well. With a large turnout for fire calls, the members had become accustomed to performing the duties of both engine and ladder company with the single piece of apparatus.

Like all mechanical equipment, the truck was showing its age. Rust was forming on its steel body, mechanical problems became more frequent, and repair parts were getting very scarce for this unit, which was nearing 30 years of service. In addition, the members felt that the safety of a fully enclosed cab and creature comforts such as air-conditioning would enhance their operations.

Given the success of the current piece of apparatus, the membership of the volunteer fire company was fully in favor of replacing their faithful rig with another quint. Being an independent fire company, and ever mindful of cost, they were looking for an economical replacement.

Several manufacturers were contacted and made presentations of their quint apparatus before the Truck Committee. The committee wrote specifications, the item went out for bid, and the bid was awarded to the lowest responsible bidder.

Many months later, the new quint was delivered, and training was scheduled. When it arrived, almost every member of the fire company was on hand to examine their new acquisition. Some of the senior members of the fire company who were not intimately involved in the specifications process were shocked to find only a few ground ladders, a 300-gallon water tank, a hosebed hidden under the aerial device and deployed through two chutes at the rear of the apparatus, and no booster reel! They questioned, “What kind of ‘quint’ is this?” The answer is, a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1901-compliant quint.

HISTORY OF NFPA 1901
Prior to 1991, NFPA 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus, was a single standard for all fire apparatus. It guided purchasers and manufacturers in speccing and purchasing fire apparatus. In 1991, sweeping changes were made to the standard. In addition to landmark changes such as requiring a fully enclosed riding compartment and stronger aerial ladders, the requirements were divided into four individual standards to cover each type of apparatus: NFPA 1901, Pumper Apparatus; 1902, Initial Attack Apparatus; 1903, Mobile Water Supply Apparatus; and 1904, Aerial Apparatus. The committee was also developing NFPA 1905, Special Service Apparatus.

During the five-year upgrade, the committee decided that because of a great deal of redundancy in the separate standards, the requirements for all five types of apparatus (including special service) would all be placed back in a single edition, to be known as NFPA 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus.

With the changes in the 1996 edition came a new way of applying the requirements based on the apparatus type. A chart listing each of the 23 chapters in the standard was developed; depending on the type of apparatus, each chapter would be either “required” or “if specified.” For example, a piece of apparatus classified as a pumper would be required to meet the provisions of the fire pump and water tank chapters, but other accessories such as a generator or aerial device would come under the category “if specified.” Some chapters were listed as ‘N/A” (not applicable), depending on the apparatus type.

The 1999 version of NFPA 1901 added two “new” types of apparatus to the standard. It defined the minimum requirements for a quint and addressed mobile foam apparatus, which were previously covered by NFPA 11C. This added two new chapters to the chart, bringing the current total to 25.

The following chapters are listed as “required” and pertain to all apparatus:

Chapter 1—Administration
Chapter 2—General Requirements
Chapter 10—Chassis and Vehicle Requirements
Chapter 11—Low Voltage Electrical and Warning Devices
Chapter 12—Driving and Crew Areas
Chapter 13—Body Compartmentation and Equipment Mounting
Chapter 25—Reference Publications

IDENTIFYING THE TYPE OF APPARATUS BASED ON ITS PRIMARY MISSION
The most important phase of defining the requirements that apply to an apparatus is identifying the primary mission of the apparatus. This should be clearly stated in the beginning of your specifications, to guide the manufacturer’s compliance.

The 1999 edition of NFPA 1901 defines the various types of apparatus as follows:

• Pumper—fire apparatus with a permanently mounted fire pump of at least 750-gpm capacity, water tank, and hose body whose primary purpose is to combat structural and associated fires.
• Initial attack—fire apparatus with a permanently mounted fire pump of at least 250-gpm capacity, water tank, and hose body whose primary purpose is to initiate a fire suppression attack on structural, vehicular, or vegetation fires and to support associated fire department operations.
• Mobile water supply—a vehicle designed primarily for transporting to fire emergency scenes water to be applied by other vehicles or pumping equipment.
• Aerial fire apparatus—a vehicle equipped with an aerial ladder, an elevating platform, an aerial ladder platform, or a water tower designed and equipped to support firefighting and rescue operations by positioning personnel, handling materials, providing continuous egress, or discharging water at positions elevated from the ground.
• Quint—fire apparatus with a permanently mounted fire pump, a water tank, a hose storage area, an aerial ladder or an elevating platform with a permanently mounted waterway, and a complement of ground ladders.
• Special service fire apparatus—a multipurpose vehicle that primarily provides support services at emergency scenes.
• Mobile foam apparatus—fire apparatus with a permanently mounted fire pump, a foam proportioning system, and a foam concentrate tank used primarily to control and extinguish flammable and combustible liquid fires in storage tanks and other flammable liquid spills.

The basic requirements of each type of apparatus are significantly different. Following is a brief outline of each type:

PUMPER (Chapter 3)
Pump: 750 gpm minimum
Aerial: If specified
Water Tank: 300 gallons minimum
Equipment Storage: 40 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose:2 preconnects (400 feet of 1½-, 1¾-, or 2-inch);
30 cu. ft. (800 feet, 2½-inch or larger) hose storage
Ground Ladders: 1 extension, 1 roof, 1 attic (any size)

INITIAL ATTACK (Chapter 4)
Pump:250 gpm minimum
Aerial:If specified, 50 feet minimum
Water Tank:200 gallons minimum
Equipment Storage:22 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose:2 preconnects (400 feet 1½-, 1¾-, or 2-inch);
10 cu. ft. (300 feet 2½-inch or larger) hose storage
Ground Ladders: 12 feet or longer extension ladder

MOBILE WATER SUPPLY (Chapter 5)
Pump: If specified
Aerial: N/A
Water Tank: 1,000 gallons minimum w/ direct fill and dump
Equipment Storage: 20 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose: (IF PUMP PROVIDED) 2 preconnects (400 feet 1½-, 1¾-, or 2-inch);
6 cu. ft. (200 feet 2½-inch or larger) hose storage
Ground Ladders: N/A

AERIAL APPARATUS (Chapter 6)
Pump:If specified
Aerial:50 feet minimum
Water Tank:If specified (any size)
Equipment Storage: 40 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose: Not required. If equipped w/ pump and tank, two areas for 1½-inch or larger preconnects
Ground Ladders:(115 feet minimum) 2 extension, 2 roof, 1 attic

QUINT (Chapter 7)
Pump: 1,000 gpm minimum
Aerial: 50 feet minimum w/ waterway
Water Tank: 300 gallons minimum
Equipment Storage: 40 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose: 2 preconnects (400 feet 1½-, 1¾-, or 2-inch)
30 cu. ft. (800 feet 2½-inch or larger) hose storage
Ground Ladders: (85 feet minimum) 1 extension, 1 roof, 1 attic

SPECIAL SERVICE APPARATUS (Chapter 8)
Pump:If specified
Aerial:N/A
Water Tank:N/A
Equipment Storage:120 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose:N/A
Ground Ladders:If specified

MOBILE FOAM APPARATUS (Chapter 9)
Pump:750 gpm minimum
Aerial:If specified, 50 feet minimum
Water Tank:Not required. 500-gallon foam concentrate tank required
Equipment Storage:40 cu. ft.
Hose Storage and Hose:2 preconnects (400 feet 1½-, 1¾-, or 2-inch);
30 cu. ft. (800 feet 2½-inch or larger) hose storage
Ground Ladders:Not required
Foam System:Required

From the brief outline of basic requirements for each type of apparatus, you can see that there are subtle differences in each type. The general fire service definition of a “quint” is a piece of fire apparatus that has five operational components: fire pump, water tank, hose body, aerial device, and ground ladders. Based on this rationale, a pumper with a water tower and ground ladders meets the general definition, as does an aerial apparatus with pump and tank, yet neither of these examples meets the definition shown in NFPA 1901. The differences are as follows:

• The aerial device on a quint is required to have a permanently installed waterway, whereas an aerial apparatus can have a portable ladder pipe.
• A quint is required to have a minimum 1,000-gpm fire pump (sufficient to feed the waterway); the minimum for a pumper is 750 gpm.
• A quint is required to carry 85 feet of ground ladders—at least one straight, one extension, and one attic ladder. An aerial apparatus is required to carry 115 feet of ground ladders—two straight, two extension, and one attic ladder. The pumper requirements are one straight ladder, one extension ladder, and one folding ladder, any length.
• Both a quint and a pumper are required to have a water tank with a minimum capacity of 300 gallons. An aerial apparatus can have any size water tank.
• Both a quint and a pumper are required to have 30 cu. ft. of space for hose storage. The requirements for an aerial apparatus indicate that it must meet the requirements in Chapter 13 for hose storage areas only if it is equipped to carry fire hose. Another example of a combination unit is commonly known as a “pumper/tanker,” yet the requirements of a pumper and a tanker (mobile water supply apparatus) differ widely.
• A pumper is required to have a 750-gpm minimum fire pump, whereas a mobile water supply apparatus is not required to have a pump.
• The water tank on a pumper is to contain a minimum of 300 gallons, but a mobile water supply apparatus is required to carry 1,000. The other difference is that the mobile water supply apparatus must have a 1,000-gpm direct filling capability and the ability to transfer water to an external use to the right, left, and rear of the apparatus at an average rate of 1,000 gpm. A pumper is required to have 40 cu. ft. of equipment storage; a mobile water supply needs only 20 cu. ft.
• The requirement for hose storage is similar. A pumper is required to have 30 cu. ft. of hose storage space; a mobile water supply apparatus, only six.
• A pumper is required to carry three ground ladders; a mobile water supply unit is not.

Applying these requirements, you can see that you could have a pumper with a 2,000-gallon water tank that does not qualify as mobile water supply apparatus if it doesn’t have the required dump and fill, or you could specify a mobile water supply unit with a large fire pump that does not qualify as a pumper without the required storage space for hose and equipment or pumper ground ladders.

CONSIDERATIONS
There are two very important points to consider when specifying fire apparatus:

• The requirements in the NFPA standards are minimum requirements. If you need a larger water tank, additional ladders, or a bigger hoseload, you must say so in your specifications and coordinate it with the manufacturer.
• The committee must give careful consideration to the primary mission of the apparatus being specified. As the examples presented here illustrate, the “generic” fire service terminology for certain pieces of fire apparatus is not necessarily the same as the NFPA definition by type.

The only way a specifier or truck committee can completely understand the requirements by type is to obtain the standard and read it. You can obtain the current edition of NFPA 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus, from the National Fire Protection Association, 1 Batterymarch Park, PO Box 9101, Quincy, MA 02269-9101; (1-800) 344-3555.

WILLIAM C. PETERS is a 26-year veteran of the Jersey City (NJ) Fire Department and has served the past 14 years as apparatus supervisor, with responsibility for purchasing and maintaining the apparatus fleet. He is a voting member of the NFPA 1901 Apparatus Committee, representing apparatus users. Peters is the author of Fire Apparatus Purchasing Handbook (Fire Engineering Books, 1994); two chapters on apparatus in The Fire Chief’s Handbook, Fifth Edition (Fire Engineering Books, 1995); the instructional video Factory Inspections of New Fire Apparatus (Fire Engineering, 1998); and numerous apparatus-related articles. He is an advisory board member of Fire Engineering and the FDIC. He lectures extensively on apparatus purchasing and safety issues.