The Bottom Line: Professional Vehicle Maintenance
MAINTENANCE
You can have the best training program in the state, the most dedicated firefighters in the district, the most effective firefighting techniques, and the most up-to-date equipment; but it’s all worthless unless your apparatus is able to transport your crew and operate efficiently at the emergency scene. That is why vehicle maintenance is such an important part of any fire department, large or small; and why chief officers who are responsible for overseeing apparatus maintenance must first coordinate, plan, implement, and adequately fund vehicle maintenance programs based on a thorough review of their department’s annual run report. Second, they must ensure that the maintenance shops are keeping the fleet in good operating order, keeping downtime to a minimum, and making sure that all mandated safety provisions are in compliance with established policies of the department and the state. And, along with these functions, chief officers must keep in mind their city’s and/or department’s economic situation and consider the need for cost effective maintenance and low cost pricing for vehicle parts.
Actually, fixing a vehicle can be a relatively inexpensive task—if the lines of communications are kept open between mechanics and apparatus operators. A lot can get lost in the transition from a work order writeup to the actual repair. It is necessary for the maintenance supervisor to develop working relationships between the mechanics and the fire chief, shift battalion chiefs, and company commanders. This is not one of those “us against them” situations. It is critical to define who fixes what and how much first echelon maintenance is expected at the engine company level. All responsibilities for daily, weekly, monthly, and semi-annual preventive maintenance should be put in writing. Lines of authority should be as short as possible to eliminate friction and confusion as to how we want something done.
MANAGING THE VEHICLE MAINTENANCE SYSTEM
What is the fire maintenance supervisor’s job specifically? It is to:
- Maintain the fire vehicle fleet in outstanding operational readiness,
- Schedule maintenance cycles,
- And provide maintenance at the lowest cost possible.
Unfortunately, many maintenance programs are based on the “break system” or “fix and repair daily” concept instead of incorporating preventive and cyclic maintenance schedules.
Time management
Perhaps the maintenance supervisor’s number one priority is time management, his own and all of his workers’ time. It is essential in time management to have files on each vehicle. These files should contain historical information on the vehicle, such as when it was purchased, when and what repairs were made and the costs involved, the number of runs the vehicle made, etc. The file should also contain a listing of specific parts and their numbers for the vehicle and where replacement parts can be obtained. In this way, you’ll be able to determine in terms of time and money the cost of running and maintaining a 1,500-gpm pumper.
An excellent document, “Fire Equipment Budgeting” from the International City Management Association (ICMA, 1120 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20065), discusses the average cost, maintenance per mile, etc.
Shop maintenance
Let’s look at the arrangement of a maintenance shop and what some of the manager’s duties are.
Ideally, the maintenance manager should be trained in vehicle mechanics. Today’s economy calls for a fire mechanic who understands gasoline as well as diesel, knows fire pumps and hydraulics, understands minor repairs of gas driven saws, smoke blowers (ejectors), generators, auto extrication tools, hydraulic and complicated electrical systems. There must be a right mix, a sort of “love affair” with what they are doing. Pride in accomplishment, “mess with my truck, I’ll mess with you,” is a desired feature.
The all-purpose mechanic is definitely needed in lieu of a generalist who only specializes in brakes or tune-ups. Cross utilization and cross training are important for mechanics.
Of course, the essential equipment for mechanical and preventive maintenance should be provided such as: heavy-duty jacks (10 to 20-ton), wheeled-type hydraulic lift not less than 15-ton capacity, torque wrenches in at least two sizes, top notch welding equipment, tune-up equipment, pneumatic driven air tools, heavyduty industrial sockets, tire changmg equipment, steam cleaners, etc.
Parts inventory is qnother consideration, with the amount of stock based on the frequency of use of individual parts, cost ratios, and storage availability. Items such as filters, belts, hoses, lights, oil, and fluid can be stocked weekly or monthly, and outside vendors will be helpful in establishing adequate inventory levels. The cost savings can be tremendous in relationship to the “buy one at a time” concept. One critical advantage to having bench stock on hand is being able to reduce downtime. It is necessary to turn around an emergency vehicle promptly. Each night it sits in a shop, the protection afforded the citizens of a community is reduced.
Neatness definitely counts in maintenance areas and shops. Unfortunately, it’s “Katie, bar the door” if the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) ever enters some of these protected dens.
Often, maintenance facilities have a lower priority when it comes to allocating budget dollars than does a new fire station or training center. However, when you consider the value at risk of your fleet, you may have second thoughts. If it isn’t a new and efficient facility with high bay ceilings and well-lighted working areas, plans should be instituted by capital budgeting in the future. Also, if the area lacks such things as ventilation systems, oil and lube overhead racks, and uncluttered working and walking areas, shop injuries will occur and extra effort in time management, training, and efficiency will suffer.
A new or remodeled facility can have a short payback period, sometimes reducing maintenance costs by as much as 10% per annum. Injuries are reduced and vehicles are moved in and out faster. The facility’s major objective in design should be to improve safety margins. There should be an office and filing record room, a parts storage area, as well as a clothing and shower cleanup room. We all realize that one of the most embarrassing things that can happen to an emergency vehicle is a fire. High-pressure hot and cold washers must be available to clean engines, drive trains, and under chassis properly.
Personnel planning
Shift manning for a 365-day operation must be considered to maintain the fleet properly, which includes an on-call mechanic and an on-call heavy-duty tow truck (it’s important to pre-negotiate a contract on towing charges). Manning should be consistent with the fleet size and complexity. Remember that seasonal problems will increase manning needs, for example, in California manning demands are highest in the summer brush fire season, whereas in Fairfield, CT, manning needs may increase proportionally in the winter months.
It may be cheaper to place a civilian mechanic on duty when the vehicle fleet exceeds 20 pieces of equipment. This procedure would also improve the continuity of operations and lower repair costs.
EMPLOYEE TRAINING
Just as with firefighting tactics and procedures, fire vehicle maintenance too should have an ongoing training program. And it’s a good idea to pair up a new mechanic with a seasoned mechanic. Especially beneficial are classes in fire pump maintenance that are routinely offered by pump manufacturers. Likewise, the major manufacturers of engines and chassis have excellent schools. The State of California has two fire mechanics divisions that meet monthly to discuss vehicle maintenance and new trends, innovations, and the laws governing the vehicle code. The same organization also holds an annual meeting to deliver Levels I, II, and III advanced mechanic training. Fire mechanics are now certified in some states.
The mechanical supervisor should attend monthly staff meetings, and should meet with company commanders at least quarterly to discuss trend analysis, recurring mechanical problems, and to receive feedback and evaluations on apparatus performance.
PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE PROGRAMS
Fire vehicles are the most expensive asset that a repair facility will have to maintain. They require all-purpose, professional mechanics to maintain the fleet at optimum efficiency. As preventive maintenance costs rise, the component cost of repairs falls. Each department should develop a daily, weekly, and monthly combined checklist that certifies that the preventive maintenance work has been done. This form should be kept in the vehicle’s file.
How much is enough preventive maintenance? Some departments schedule their maintenance according to mileage, others on a calendar basis.
A daily inspection of a fire vehicle should take no longer than 30 minutes, and the inspection process should be well defined on the checklist.
Preventive maintenance schedules should be developed with the operations chief and the maintenance supervisor to insure adequate response zone coverage and balance in assignment. If you have only two trucks, you don’t place both out of service on the same day.
A mini-preventive maintenance monthly inspection takes about 90 minutes to complete. It may incorporate an oil change, filter, and lube at a local station. Also, the under chassis should be inspected for loose bolts and hardware.
Semi-annually, the vehicle should be given a thorough evaluation by a mechanic who will check over areas that weekly and monthly inspections do not routinely cover. These areas may include technical inspection, power train, air brakes, and transmission components.
Periodic maintenance may have to be increased due to the seasonal nature of fire duty. All maintenance should be documented and retained in the vehicle file.
Other suggestions for a smoother running fleet
While all the above may be done by your department, here’s a few other ideas to think about that may help keep your apparatus on the streets and out of the shops:
Vehicle specification file. Have on the shelf specifications ready to go and tailored to your city’s needs, i.e., one type of water filter, one type of silicon water hose, etc. This is especially important if you intend to standardize the fleet.
Vehicle trade procedures. When a main line apparatus is out of service, what apparatus from the reserve stock will be used? Is the reserve apparatus comparable to the out-of-service truck in pumping capability, road handling, or is it some relic taken out of the future “Hall of Flame” museum?
Failure analysis. All too often, we do not build a file on trends in apparatus failure and downtime. A simple 3 X 5 card file will start to show these recurring trends when filed alphabetically.
Oil “spectro” analysis. This oil analysis process has been in use by the military for a long time and has a definite payback. We have also found that the use of magnetic plugs will attract metal fragments. It’s a cheap way to early detection of a future problem. Most major oil companies have branches specializing in oil sample kits.
Tires. Costs continue to rise in large tires for fire department apparatus. Its important to have spare tires mounted on matching rims and inflated and backed up for each size in the fleet. Perhaps you can join in on a multi-agency purchase and save money.
Safety. Are fire vehicles complying with city, state, and federal safety regulations? Are they being tested before they come out of the shop? Are air warning buzzers operable? Are air lock brakes working, chocks installed? Is the emergency warning light system in conformance with vehicle law?
Vehicle equipment inventory. This is essential if you ever intend to standardize location of equipment. The fire chief or company officer can have a complete list of items and where they are stored on all vehicles for ready reference. If you intend to place additional apparatus in service, this is the equipment you need to order. Compartments are uniformly numbered and all items go into inventory.
The fire service’s delivery system must be maintained at a level of excellence. There is no excuse for failure of a fire vehicle to respond to or perform at an emergency because of poor maintenance.
