U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Jim Banks are investigating rising prices and delays in fire apparatus delivery exacerbated by private equity involvement in the industry. They received complaints from numerous fire departments about defective equipment and extended wait times due to corporate consolidations, specifically regarding Rev Group, which has undergone significant consolidation and manufacturing plant closures. These issues are compounded by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fire department officials are voicing their concerns that these business practices may compromise community safety as costs soar and service quality diminishes.
Over the past two decades, the private equity firm American Industrial Partners has acquired a number of specialty vehicle companies, including fire truck manufacturers, and has combined them into a single company called Rev Group. Company executives told analysts that they would substantially raise profit margins and that other companies were doing the same.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Jim Banks reported on Tuesday that they had heard from dozens of fire departments about delayed deliveries, defective parts and escalating prices.
Rev Group has said it has a backlog of $4 billion in orders. Industry leaders have said that the delays and rising prices stemmed from disruptions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, but some fire officials have blamed the problems at least partly on the industry's consolidation.
The estimated price of a new pumper vehicle rose about 10 percent in 2024 from the previous year, she said, while the wait time for a new tiller apparatus is now more than four months.
Collection
[
|
...
]