A Closer Look at Pierce's High Flow Industrial Engine

Pierce Manufacturing’s newest fire truck, the Pierce High Flow Industrial Apparatus, is capable of flowing 5,500 gallons per minute when drafting, and up to 10,000 gallons per minute when drawing from a pressurized water source. The vehicle was formally introduced to the public in July at Fire Rescue International in Charlotte, N.C.

Shortly before that, the vehicle was demonstrated at the annual Texas Industrial Fire School at Brayton Fire Training Field in College Station, Texas.

In emergency scenarios, when an industrial pumper is called into action, maximum water and foam flow are the top priorities, said Matt McLeish, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing of the Fire & Emergency segment.

"That's exactly what we've accomplished with the new Pierce High Flow Industrial Apparatus – its numbers are off the charts, and set the new performance benchmark," he said. "Equally important, however, is the firefighting system's endurance, reliability, and ease of operation. The new high-flow industrial apparatus delivers the dependability firefighters expect from Pierce."

The Pierce High Flow industrial Apparatus features the first application of a Darley 2ZSM water pump that delivers up to 10,000 gallons per minute flow rate from a pressurized water source, and additional reach to keep firefighters further away from harm, said John Schultz, director of pumper and custom chassis products.

"We worked very closely with the Darley team to engineer and integrate the system's components, which include a pair of Darley ZSM pumps that are coupled together on a common transmission to deliver uncommon performance," he said. "To say the least, it's a pretty impressive firefighting system."

Pierce, an Oshkosh Corporation company, has been awarded five years of exclusivity on the Darley 2ZSM for industrial fire apparatus applications.

To complement the water pumping capabilities of the new Pierce High Flow Industrial Apparatus, Pierce expanded its renowned line of Husky foam systems. The new Husky 450 foam system delivers up to 450 gallons of foam concentrate per minute.

"When flowing this much water, the foam system and other critical components need to keep pace, and that's what we've been able to accomplish with this apparatus," Schultz said. Simplicity of operation is another focus of Pierce's product development team. One case in point is Pierce's exclusive valve controllers that provide true valve position indication and an unprecedented level of control with the touch of a button. Moreover, the new patent-pending flow meters are an industry first, and provide accurate flow data across a broad range of flow rates.

The Pierce High Flow Industrial Apparatus is available on either the Pierce Velocity or Pierce Arrow XT custom chassis, each featuring a 600 hp engine.