$20m worth of new fire engines but, already, three pulled from service

Wednesday, 24 August 2016

New Zealand's whiz-bang new fire engines are plagued with problems as basic as the ability to be turned on or to pump water.

The 47 new MAN engines, with a total price tag of more than $20 million, started entering service in early 2015 but two have already been blacklisted and another yanked from service.

Issues included the pump not always engaging, poor acceleration, doors sagging, door handles and rivets coming loose, breaking pump valves, and a failure to properly draw water.

Of the 47, ordered from MAN but supplied by Penske Commercial Vehicles in Auckland and fitted out by Fraser Fire and Rescue in Petone, 19 have been put into service. But three – one in Auckland, one in Christchurch, and one in Wellington – have been withdrawn from service till further notice.

Fraser Fire and Rescue general manager Martin Simpson said he was contractually forbidden by the Fire Service to comment on the matter.

The Fire Service's acting deputy national commander, Kerry Gregory, said one, in Auckland, was blacklisted by the Professional Firefighters Union after it would not start on the way to a fire in Grey Lynn.

A Christchurch one was blacklisted in agreement between the Fire Service and the union as it was getting serviced, while one in Wellington had also been pulled from service while issues were fixed.

'It's disappointing, its frustrating. We invest a lot of money in these appliances. They are top-of-the-line appliances and we expect them to be right.'

While the exact price of the engines was commercially sensitive, the machines cost about $500,000 each, he said.

Eight had been completed their fitout but were not entering service till problems were fixed, a Fire Service spokesman said.

The affected fire trucks were equipped for either of two purposes – to pump water or to carry the jaws of life – but, as relief appliances were brought in, there was no effect on the service's ability to do its job, Gregory said.

The Fire Service had seconded staff and the union to its Wellington base for three months to stress test the engines and fix the problems.

Some of the issues were due to the MAN units while others were blamed on Penske Commercial Vehicles and Fraser Fire and Rescue. All repairs were covered by the suppliers' warranty.

A Fire Service spokesman said 215 faults had been reported with the machines but many were duplications or maintenance issues.

The union and Fire Service had agreed on 32 issues.

'Issues include things that affect the performance, functionality or reliability of the appliance, such as acceleration or door handles coming loose. Improvements cover things that will improve the user experience, such as siren volume or cab speaker equalisation.

'This list is currently being worked through with suppliers. However, 16 issues have already been addressed, including the replacement of all pump throttles and door handles across the entire fleet.

'All defects notified to NZFS are investigated and rectified as quickly as possible.'

Union secretary Derek Best said there was 'no dispute between ourselves and the Fire Service [that] there are significant problems that need to be fixed'.

While the Fire Service could have done more trialling and testing earlier on, the union was now in agreement with it, he said.

The Auckland instance was the only time one of the new trucks was unable to do its job, but the lack of functioning fire trucks meant firefighters were 'getting closer' to similar instances.

Firefighters were losing faith in the new machines, but a similar thing happened in previous purchases of new engines.

'You have to have trust in the gear you have got.'