During the last two weeks, we've had the opportunity to meet with a number of CEOs and presidents of apparatus and component manufacturers. That segment of the industry is certainly in flux. It's been quite a while since there was such a variety of strength, innovation and change -- and so much new potential. The winners ultimately will be those that invest in firefighter safety -- and put their customers first.

Seagrave's CEO Jim Hebe told me that his concerns for the fire service involve serious tightening of budgets as money is channeled into other needs at the federal, state and local level. Money that's funded fire apparatus in the past will be spent elsewhere. "I think the constraint on financial resources will become more acute than it has ever been in the past and that will not change in the near term. If you look at all the things that we deal with now as a country -- whether it's homeland security, wars or prescription drugs for seniors, sustaining Medicare, education -- these things are going to be a drain on resources in the near term and will have a cascade effect on our customer."

Hebe remembers when the same kind of budget squeeze hit the trucking industry about 30 years ago with deregulation. People in that business were forced to look into drastically reducing their operating costs. Today's trucking companies now operate at 30% to 40% lower operating costs than they did 20 years ago, Hebe said.

That kind of discipline will have to be implemented in the fire service to keep its fleets operating under skinnier and skinnier budgets. Hebe said: "If I were a senior fire officer today, and I were in a major city, I'd ask, 'What's going to be my biggest challenge?' I think for a fire officer today, the biggest challenge is going to be where am I going to get the money to do what I did in the past? Or where am I going to get the money to provide the services in the future that I'm not providing today?"

(The full interview with Hebe will appear in an upcoming In Service special report.)

And while their budgets shrink, fire service chief officers will have to provide emergency services with aging fleets. According to a U.S. Fire Administration study, more than 54% of fire trucks on the road in this nation are more than 15 years old. (The Fire/Emergency Television Network will address these issues in a program that begins in May. Part 1 of a series on NFPA 1901's Annex D will focus on improving the safety of these older fire trucks. The program also addresses the possibility of refurbishing.)

The bottom line is the fire service can't afford obesity in their fleets anymore. Purchasing the safest vehicles possible, maintaining the apparatus, and being aware of operating costs on each vehicle will be crucial.

With that in mind, it's heartening to see that emergency vehicle technicians organizations are going strong. Record attendance is being reported at state and regional EVT meetings across the country. On the heels of the very successful California Mechanics weeklong training academy, the ever-growing Southwest Technicians meeting was held in Fort Worth last month, and while I was passing through Florida last week, I happened to check in on the Florida Association of Emergency Vehicle Technicians Training Academy in Ocala, Fla.

In Florida, as I talked to technicians, the comment that I heard often was that the majority felt that their fire chiefs were supportive of their attendance and participation in the programs.

Bravo to you fire chiefs who support EVT training and bravo to the technicians for their dedication. We need it. Many fire departments will have to effectively maintain what they have and enforce standard safety rules and regulations. You can't get blood out of a nickel. And you can't buy a $400,000 fire truck on charm.

The need for training, certification and networking of our emergency vehicle technicians has never been more acute. It appears some serious belt tightening is ahead.

Janet Wilmoth, Editor