Safety as standard.

The 34 employees and their fleet will be reinforced next year by a professional from our own production: the Econic 2635 will enter service as the new industrial fire engine. In a series of articles we will accompany the vehicle’s journey – from precise planning to the official handover to the fire brigade.

Sebastian Schröder, deputy station manager, and Marc Knoll, deputy head of the works fire brigade, are currently in the planning phase for the bodies on the new Econic: in their roles as those responsible for vehicle procurement and the design of operational resources they consider possible future deployments as well as suitability for daily challenges.

The everyday work of the works fire brigade consists of maintaining and servicing the equipment and numerous vehicles, staffing the control center, carrying out daily service tasks and, of course, responding to incidents such as the cleanup of leaking oil or providing assistance. At all times it is essential for the firefighters to know the entire area of operations inside out and to repeatedly drill routines — because at a plant of this size surprises are inevitable, and only good training and the crew’s vigilance keep them from becoming serious problems. "The colleagues have to be fit," Sebastian Schröder sums up aptly.

The versatile all-rounder Econic is also currently being prepared for its home deployment: it rolled off the production line in Wörth in the summer of 2021 and is currently at the special-purpose vehicle company Paul in Passau to have the chassis adapted. Next it will be transferred to the company EMPL in Austria, where the assembly will then continue. Ahead of time it was essential to optimally arrange and make the most of the available body space in order to be prepared for all deployment scenarios. The professionals of the plant fire brigade were already looking to the future, because “as the plant develops further, the hazard response plan must also be adapted to new conditions,” explains Marc Knoll.

Here the Econic fits the concept perfectly: with its excellent all-round visibility it is ideal as a modern industrial fire-fighting vehicle. On the one hand, the driver keeps an overview amid the high traffic on the plant site; on the other, firefighting operations from the cab benefit from a wide all-round view. The new fire-fighting vehicle will be equipped with a water monitor that is installed on the bumper and can be operated from the cab via joystick while driving.

Another argument for the Econic in hazardous operations is its agility: its short wheelbase and steered trailing axle guarantee exceptional maneuverability that conventional truck chassis cannot deliver. In addition, the response team fits into the spacious cab, eliminating the need for a crew cab in the rear section of the vehicle. This results in additional equipment storage space and allows the vehicle frame to be made shorter — again a plus in terms of maneuverability.

The quick access for firefighters via just two steps comes as standard on the Econic, and the large logistically usable area has been fully utilized through clever planning. It includes a liftgate and special extinguishing agents such as CO₂, metal fire powder or ABC extinguishing powder – which can be particularly important at the Wörth plant, since there are paint shops located on the upper floor. If an incident were to occur, the fire brigade could respond flexibly thanks to the system on the roll containers and could also deploy the CO₂ extinguishing system on the upper floor.

The new vehicle concept was planned not only with regard to conventional operational uses but was also aligned with the alternative drive technologies that will be implemented at the plant in the coming years. The design of the Econic, with its modular technology, makes it possible to implement future equipment concepts without having to procure a new vehicle.

Completion of the Econic is scheduled for summer 2022; in June next year the Econic 2635 will be presented at Interschutz, the international leading trade fair for firefighting. Afterwards it will enter service in its home of Wörth — with the well-thought-out equipment on board for a safe and flexible future.