By: Sue Kramer
LAMBERTVILLE — The Board of Fire Commissioners unanimously accepted a bid by Campbell Supply Co. Inc. of Edison for the manufacture of a new pumper at a special meeting May 25.
Campbell Supply, a dealership for American LaFrance fire equipment, submitted the lone bid of $323,254 for a 2,000 gallons-per-minute Class A pumper at the board’s May 9 meeting. The bid was lower than the $344,700 expenditure voters approved Feb. 19.
The commissioners held their acceptance of the bid over until the special meeting to allow enough time to look into the several options Campbell offered. Among them was a travel option that would cover the cost of two commissioners and three firefighters making two trips to the American LaFrance plant in Shawano, Wis., to inspect the truck during the manufacturing process. Campbell included a separate bid of $10,200 for the inspection trips.
The fire commissioners voted not to accept the travel bid, with Chairman Ron Tillett Sr. saying if the inspection group makes reservations three weeks in advance, they can make the trips at a much lower cost. Mr. Tillett got the assurance of Campbell District Manager John O’Keefe that the board would be notified at least three weeks before the chassis would be ready for the initial inspection and the completion of the truck for the final inspection.
American LaFrance will pick up the cost of the meals for the inspection team, and Campbell agreed to supply the transportation between the airport in Green Bay and the manufacturing plant.
As a government agency, the commissioners also can get a 25 percent discount on room rates at the Best Western in Shawano.
Questions were raised by the commissioners about the purchase of Lambertville’s 20-year-old American LaFrance 1,500-gpm pumper by Northeast Equipment. The offer by Northeast specified that all lights and sirens be included with the truck. Mr. Tillett said the siren and bell were going to be taken off the old truck and installed on the new one. This would leave only an electronic siren on the old truck.
Mr. O’Keefe said he would contact Northeast to see if the removal of the siren and bell is acceptable. The board held its decision of whether to accept Northeast’s $21,000 offer until its June meeting, pending Northeast’s approval for the transfer of the siren and bell.
The final issue considered was the payment schedule. Board treasurer David Owen prepared a spreadsheet based on the current interest rates that outlined the five payment options. Mr. Owen took the base cost of the pumper, $323,254, and factored in the discounted cost for prepayment under four of the options and the interest income that would be derived from the balance due to come up with an adjusted actual cost under each option.
One option, payment in full in advance, while saving the board $10,247 up front, was actually not as cost-effective as it appeared to be. The board chose the option of paying for the truck when it is delivered, in about nine months.
Mr. Owen found by taking this option and keeping the money in a “prime performance account,” the board would realize a savings of $14,244.47 at current interest rates. With the trade-in value of the old truck, the adjusted cost for the new pumper, which is going to be housed at the Union Fire Co. on North Main Street, would be $288,009.53.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Chief Robert Hayes of the Union Fire Co. expressed his pleasure with the acceptance of the bid.
“I would like to thank the commissioners for the opportunity to work with them,” he said.
Mr. Tillett also was pleased.
“I think it’s great for the community to keep our equipment up-to-date,” he said. “I’m pleased the voters approved the expenditure. Without their support, we couldn’t supply the best fire equipment. It’s a major step for the fire department.”
