Water pump manufacturers are developing pump modules, offered in a variety of configurations that allow vehicle manufacturers greater installation flexibility while saving money for buyers.
Pump modules also provide greater customization opportunities for fire departments, according to pump manufacturers.
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| In addition to displaying a rear-mounted pump module and a diesel-driven CAF system at FDIC, W.S. Darley & Co. exhibited this PuriFire portable water purification system, which can purify 12,000 gallons a day and was used in Haiti in the wake of the January earthquake. |
This was the first year that Waterous of South Saint Paul, Minn., has exhibited pump modules at the annual Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in Indianapolis, according to Waterous Marketing Manager Mark Severin.
“Pump modules allow the apparatus manufacturer the opportunity to drop the entire unit into the vehicle because the module is already plumbed,” he said. “Using a pump module saves both time and money.”
Severin said pump modules are available on five out of the 12 pump models Waterous makes, including top, side and tanker mountings.
The Waterous unit on display at FDIC had a 1,250-gpm CS pump with a pressure pump boss, foam gauge, water gauge, two 2-1/2-inch left side discharges, two 2-1/2-inch right side discharges, two forward speed lays, a tank fill system and an auxiliary 2-1/2-inch suction.
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| Waterous introduced a pump module with a 1,250-gpm CS pump at FDIC in April. The company maintains that using pump modules saves time and money for apparatus makers. |
Waterous pump modules use a 6061-T6 extruded aluminum pump house; stainless steel panels and hinges; brass-cased intake and discharge gauges; swing handle suction actuation; cadmium-plated control rods; chrome plugs on intakes; chrome caps on discharges and the steamer connection; NOSHOK gauges with stainless steel cases; and stainless steel plumbing.
Severin said pump modules are customizable to suit individual original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
Waterous also showed its Bio concept pumps, available in up to 1,250-gpm models, which Severin called “green” because the pumps are designed so they use no lubricant.
The company’s Eclipse compressed air foam (CAF) system also was on display at FDIC, a unit that Severin called the company’s largest selling CAF model.
The Eclipse is a pre-plumbed, pre-mounted, pre-calibrated CAF system that’s available on the Waterous CS, CSU and CMU midship-mounted fire pumps. It uses an Advantus foam system and incorporates a rotary-screw air compressor encapsulated in an oil sump to save compartment space. The Eclipse is powered off the main pump by a pneumatic clutch and can be engaged or disengaged with the pump running.
Severin said Waterous has more than 450 Eclipse units in the field, used by firefighters from small volunteer districts to large urban paid departments.
Hale Products Inc. of Conshohocken, Pa., introduced SafeBuy at FDIC in April. The company called it a complete suppression agent delivery system.
“We designed SafeBuy from the ground up to support firefighter safety,” said Dave Guynn, Hale’s director of OEM sales.
Safety Challenge
The SafeBuy system, developed with Task Force Tips of Valparaiso, Ind., includes a Hale Qmax pump; a pre-engineered manifold system that allows the addition of foam systems; a TPG Plus pressure governor with the SIP (supply inadequate protection) feature; Hale’s K gearbox with an anti hot-shift feature to prevent pump shift failures; a thermal relief valve; corrosion-resistant intake valves; Task Force Tips handheld nozzles; and a Task Force Tips portable monitor.
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| Hale Products introduced the SafeBuy suppression agent system at FDIC, developed in partnership with Task Force Tips. |
Guynn pointed out that the SafeBuy system was developed in response to a 16-point safety challenge issued to fire industry manufacturers nationwide in September 2009 by Pennsylvania Fire Commissioner Edward Mann. He said his call for greater safety stemmed from a National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) program aimed at increasing safety awareness among firefighters.
Mann has overseen nearly 150 of NFFF’s Courage to Be Safe education sessions since the program’s inception in 2005. More than 9,800 attendees completed the sessions.
“The way to reduce firefighter injury or death is by continuous improvement of training and equipment design,” Mann said. “It’s important for all fire industry manufacturers to develop safer fire suppression systems.”
Stewart McMillan, president of Task Force Tips, said the SafeBuy system exemplified a “perfect partnership between us and Hale, and one that made best use of the design process.”
W.S. Darley & Co. of Itasca, Ill., debuted a new unit at FDIC 2010 — the PSRH 1500 — a rear-mount 1,500-gpm pump with a second stage for high-pressure use. The unit carries four 2-1/2-inch discharges and one 5- or 6-inch suction.
Chief Operating Officer Peter Darley said the unit pumps 1,000 gpm at 600 psi or 1,500 gpm at 250 psi. The high-pressure side puts out 200 gpm at 500 psi.
W.S. Darley also exhibited an Odin Mongoose diesel-driven CAF system that Darley said is “self contained and fully independent of the chassis engine.”
The unit is powered by a 26-hp Briggs & Stratton 3-cylinder, 4-cycle, water-cooled diesel and develops 125 psi CAF pressure. It delivers 70 gpm and 35 cfm at 125 psi and 125 gpm and 45 cfm at 100 psi.
With the trend toward multi-purpose response vehicles, Darley noted that freeing up vehicle space is critical while still maintaining firefighting capability. Accordingly, W.S. Darley exhibited its HMBC truck-mounted PTO-driven 500-gpm pump and belt-driven 220-cfm CAF system. The HMBC is able to flow water and compressed air foam simultaneously.
Another W. S. Darley offering at FDIC was its PuriFire 3510P portable water purification system, which can purify 12,000 gallons of water a day. The unit weighs 300 pounds and can be combined with a pump or generator in order to get water flowing.
Peter Darley said the company shipped a number of PuriFire units to Haiti in response to the January earthquake.
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