By Matthew Sockol
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD – The Freehold Fire Department will receive a new rescue pumper truck following the Borough Council’s passage of a resolution awarding a $769,559 contract to Spartan Motors USA Inc.
Freehold Borough officials said the new vehicle will replace a 26-year-old pumper and a 30-year-old rescue truck.
Council President Jaye Sims and council members Sharon Shutzer, Michael DiBenedetto, George Schnurr and Ron Griffiths voted in favor of the resolution. Councilman Kevin Kane was absent from the recent meeting at which the purchase was authorized.
Bids for the rescue pumper contract were submitted by Campbell Supply Company, a dealer representative for Spartan Motors, and Defender Emergency Products, a dealer representative for Rosenbauer.
Although Defender Emergency Products submitted a lower bid in the amount of $719,863, apparatus consultant Jeffrey Gaskin said the dealer’s proposed pumper differed significantly from its published specifications and he concluded that the bid was not responsive to the requirements and specifications of the rescue pumper.
According to Gaskin, there were 21 substitutions and clarifications listed in Rosenbauer’s proposal, six of which were deemed to be major issues. The proposed rear brakes, minimum air storage for braking, minimum air storage for the entire air brake system and the hose bed piping were smaller than their specified sizes, the booster hose reel was specified to be stainless steel, but proposed to be painted steel, and the rear compartment configuration did not meet its specifications.
There were also 36 substitutions and clarifications not listed in Rosenbauer’s proposal, 16 of which could be made specification compliant, but at a significant cost.
“Rosenbauer, the lowest cost bidder, has submitted a bid proposal that has some significant deficiencies between what has been proposed and what was specified,” Gaskin said in his report. “Many of the items are major in nature and have the potential to negatively affect the operation and/or maintenance of the apparatus.
“The reduction in compartment space is critical to the proposed vehicle’s ability to even carry the tools and equipment the fire department needs to (carry) on a daily basis. When the major exceptions are combined with the other specification deficiencies, the bid submitted by Rosenbauer’s dealer is non-compliant to the specification requirements,” he wrote.
The consultant said Spartan Motors was compliant with the technical aspects, intent and scope of the specifications in its proposal. Because Spartan Motors was determined to be the lowest responsible bidder for the rescue pumper, it was awarded the contract.
Funds for the purchase of the rescue pumper were appropriated in Freehold’s 2015 general capital budget. According to the resolution, there are sufficient funds in general capital accounts to cover the cost of the purchase.