JUSTIFICATION FOR VCAF LOAN FOR A NEW PUMPER FOR THE
ANNE ARUNDEL VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
INTRODUCTION
The officers and members of the Anne Arundel Volunteer Fire Company (AACVFC), Anne Arundel County Fire Department (AACoFD) Station 51, respectfully request a VCAF loan in the amount of $315,283.00 for the purchase of a new 2014 Pierce Arrow-XT 1500 GPM pumper (total cost $467,024.00) to replace our Engine 512. Engine 512 is a 1990 Seagrave, 1250 GPM pumper with a 500-gallon water tank. This loan, which is 69.56% of the total project cost, will be repaid annually over a 10 year period.
OVERVIEW OF ANNE ARUNDEL VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY
The AACVFC is a traditional, community-centered volunteer fire company. We are one of the most active and busiest volunteer fire stations in our county. The mission of AACVFC, established in 1910, is to provide high quality engine, rescue and ambulance services to the citizens of Anne Arundel County. AACVFC has 150 members, with 90 being responding members. Our members average over 800 training hours each month; hence, making AACVFC a robust and highly qualified volunteer workforce. In 2013, we responded to 4500 incidents with predominantly volunteer crews.
JUSTIFICATION FOR NEW PUMPER
Engine 512 is 24 years old with more than 160,000 miles recorded. The engine is the oldest engine still in service in Anne Arundel County and is very near its maximum reliable age. Additionally, the Anne Arundel County Fire Department will not insure, maintain or certify any engine over 25 years old. Because of this the AACVFC must immediately replace Engine 512. In addition to Engine 512, the AACVFC operates Engine 511, a 2006 Pierce 1500 GPM rescue pumper. Together the engines average 2000 responses annually (Truck 51 and Ambulance 519 handle an additional 2,500 calls – total company response of 4,500). Having a second engine is critical to maintaining our strong membership by ensuring that we have sufficient equipment for regular duty crews, which sometimes average 12-15 members per night. Our second engine also ensures an immediate reserve in case of mechanical malfunctions, permits transfers to fill other stations, and allows one engine to be out of service for training.
PLANNING AND PROCUREMENT
The new 2014 Pierce Arrow-XT 1500 GPM pumper will have a 500-gallon water tank, 1200’ of 5” supply line, 1000’ of 3” supply line, and a variety of attack lines. It will seat six personnel, adequate compartments for firefighting and EMS equipment, 6-SCBA units, new “entry” tools and a 10 KW diesel generator and a 200’ electric cord reel. In summary, this will be a very basic, “no frills” pumper.
The AACVFC Engine Committee prepared a company specification (Tab F) based on reviewing the specifications of comparable existing apparatus. The Committee inspected numerous similar pumpers from a variety of manufacturers and decided that Pierce, Seagrave and Rosenbauer produced pumpers that best satisfy our requirements and therefore formally requested a proposal from each company.
The committee evaluated the proposals from the above vendors based for price, performance, warranties, maintenance, and reliability. The manufacturers were then requested to submit revised, final proposals in response to the committee’s review comments. Key excerpts of the proposals are included at Tab G, H and I and a comparison of important vendor parameters in Tab B.
The AACVFC Board of Directors accepted the committee’s recommendation to purchase a Pierce Arrow-XT pumper. This apparatus provides the best value when considering price, reputation, service availability, power train performance, single source responsibility, predictability of delivery date, and warranty provisions. AACVFC intends to award the contract to Pierce in February 2014.
Members of the Engine Committee will carefully review the engineering drawings and inspect the fabrication of the apparatus at key milestones to ensure conformance with the specifications. After delivery in approximately September 2014, the engine will be prepared for service and driver familiarization conducted. The engine will then be placed in service in approximately November 2014, just before Anne Arundel County’s 25-year in-service limit for pumpers.
FINANCIAL CAPABILITY
The AACVFC conducts various fundraisers throughout the year, which produces sufficient funds to cover annual apparatus payments and operational expenses. Our only current debt is an existing VCAF loan for Ambulance 519 ($30,000 annually), which will be paid off in 2015. Our loan request is based on the following factors:
Contact Cost for Pumper / $453,283.00 / Percent of TotalCompany Cash Reserve / $38,000.00 / 8.38%
Local Government Funds / $100,000.00 / 22.06%
VCAF Loan / $315,283.00 / 69.56%
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