A major new development in Fire and Rescue 4x4 pick-ups six years ago led to a massive expansion for a Lancashire company that now supplies highly sophisticated emergency and utility vehicles across the country.

And there’s a 6x6 project in the pipelineWords: Hils Everitt Photography: Hils Everitt, PUS

ALL SYSTEMS GO

Back in 2009, we met the guys from A1-4x4 who had developed a superb new Fire and Rescue Toyota Hilux

project (July 09 issue). The company had been equipping utility company pick-ups with truck tops and sliding drawer systems for a couple of years, but a request from a client for a ‘baby fire engine’ that met the requirement for higher water carrying capacity set the ball rolling for the prototype that we saw in action. The solution came in the form of the high pressure Fire Fogging System, which provided 38 times more coverage than a single jet of water.

This concept proved such a success that it has since been used by many fire departments around the country. Now, five years on, things have changed dramatically at the company. A1-4x4 has morphed into Pickup Systems Ltd (PUS) and the Burnley-based company has expanded hugely and recently moved into swanky, new, enormous premises at the Empire Business Park just outside Burnley, in Lancashire. It still provides fire departments with ‘baby’ fire engines, which meet the needs of smaller incidents and the inevitable budget cuts that are the bane of all modern lives. These come under the fire and rescue section which incorporates BRV (Brigade Response Vehicle) and RIV (Rapid Intervention Vehicle) vehicles that are able to fight most fires in any location; they are tailored for Military, Specialist Rescue, Fire Investigation, Water Rescue, Wildlife Units, Brigade Support Maintenance and Dog Units.

Then you have the Utility vehicles which are bespoke designs for the

client and include features such as polypropylene bodies fitted with adjustable shelving and drawer systems, secure storage compartments, winches, roof rack storage interior lighting and work stations. Modular shelving systems are highly popular on modern utility pick-ups with tipper bodies, aerial platforms, hydraulic lifts and cranes joining the list of popular conversions. “We offer a One-stop vehicle fit at our new site in Burnley and have close relationships with Toyota, Isuzu and Mercedes so we can supply base vehicles to clients,” says managing director John McGauley. Sourcing the base vehicles means that John and his team can offer design, bespoke fits and plastic bodies through to training and servicing. Part of the new premises houses the Isuzu Specialist Vehicle division building approved specialist vehicles for fire service and utility

customers covered with an Isuzu warranty.

Supplying fire services in the UK and around the world plays a significant part in the business. The range starts with the smallest with the JCB Utility Rescuemax that carries 200 litres of water, to the Mercedes Sprinter and Toyota Hilux 6x6 conversion with up to 1200 litres capacity with PTO-operated pumps. The Hilux 6x6 is a recent modification, which is being viewed with considerable interest by many UK companies. Here at 4x4 Magazine we are very familiar with the Hilux 6x6 modification, as pioneered by our friends Arctic Trucks in Iceland. John hints that there may be some official partnership brewing with the Reykjavik-based company, which supplies 6x6 trucks mainly for polar exporation. “We see the development of the Hilux 6x6 as very significant to the UK market,” comments John. “As well as fire

Top: Defenders still very much in action for PUS and with emergency services

Above right: Technician working on a water pump

Left: Heavyweight prototype 6x6 fire engine making light weight of Lancashire mud

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services, it has military and specialist plant applications and can be rated up to 5.5 tonnes.”

That’s impressive and during our visit a 6x6 Hilux project was being fitted out; we later went for a spin in it to a local farm owned by a mate of John’s for an off-road test drive. More of that later.

Rescue service applications are a big part of PUS’s business, which are based on pick-up and van base vehicles. They often include full snorkel kits and equipped to handle casualty care, technical ropework, water rescue, search management and including bespoke builds that feature hydraulic lifting systems, racing/storage and auxilliary electrical systems. These have included Defender builds, although much of the company’s work is based

litres of water a minute with just one man on the jet and another on his shoulder for support; the whole process is just quicker and more efficient and, importantly, cheaper,” explains John.

The water cannon fixed to the front of the truck is operated by a joy stick, but John and his team are working on a new operation: “We are developing a touch screen system for the cannon so that the firefighter can shoot water without having to get out of the vehicle.” Sounds perfect. Adapting vehicles for many applications require building plastic bodies or fitting truck tops and up-rating the suspension; in this instance PUS uses VB air suspension, often used by Dakar competitors and now a popular mod used for light commercial vehicles. The VB-semi air option is recommended for the Hilux and Isuzu D-Max.

Tyre choice is quite an important factor for PUS clients. “The Hilux comes standard with Bridgestone tyres but the West Midlands Fire Brigade vehicles swap them for Pirelli, as tests have shown that braking distances are better; then you have the Northern Power grid Hiluxes which are fitted with Hankook as they are cheaper and better for the bigger road mileages that the trucks do,” explains John. The utility company needs tyres that spend 95 per cent of their time on the road. Tyres have to cope also with the upgrades. “Power companies require a 3.5 tonne upgrade which we get approval for from the manufacturers.” John spends a lot of time with the technical managers at Toyota and Isuzu. “We don’t use Ford Rangers because we can’t upgrade and therefore if we did convert one the warranty would be invalidated.” There is a problem with the VW Amarok, too, but that is due to its smaller engine capacity, adds John.

Moving into its bigger premises during 2014 has meant that PUS now has a dedicated, built to spec warehouse and workshop, which includes a spray booth and the sophisticated Morbidelli high tech cutting machine. As you walk around there are various vehicles in different stages of production; bespoke truck top builds waiting for export to the Middle East and Africa and skilled chaps fitting pump, lighting and drawer systems. It’s a bright, modern and huge space just waiting for those big 6x6 Hilux orders: “We want to open up a production line, building trucks with 3m long loadbeds and they will have Euro 6 3.0-litre engines, mated to an auto ‘box,” announces John who is really excited about the development. He sees much interest in the Australian and Middle Eastern markets for the 6x6. He cites Iran as a good area, as fire trucks are not included in the current trade embargo, coming under a humanitarian jurisdiction. Initial costs will be heavy

upon 4x4 pick-up trucks: “The Defenders had just become too expensive and unreliable for many utility companies plus fire and rescue services,” admits John rather sadly, “and with it being in its final year of production, its unavailability adds to the fact that companies have been gradually looking elsewhere for highly capable and adaptable 4x4 trucks.”

With the Defender pricing itself out of the market and with budget cuts hitting all services hard these days, John finds his clients are needing highly sophisticated vehicles that don’t cost the earth but can perform in highly

dangerous or rapid response situations. “The old fashioned big red fire engine costs around a quarter of a million pounds and carries five personnel. Large fires require the traditional engine, but we are finding that many services are using our pick-up conversions as the second vehicle on the scene in these incidents which only require a three-man crew.” A big customer is the West Midland Fire Brigade, which now runs 22 PUS Hiluxes. “A house on the Cadbury’s estate caught fire and instead of one big fire engine they sent several Toyotas which surrounded the house and each could pump out 500

Emergency service conversion tops ready for export to Africa; loadbed removed and replaced with PUS shelving and compartment for water pump;Toyota Hilux very popular with fire and rescue services; Isuzu D-Max seeing more orders and due for a 35in model in association with AT; operating the impressive Italian cutting machine

Above: The future: three-axled engines in association with Arctic Trucks...

Right: A growing area of business is working directly with utility companies

Below: The company also builds bespoke canine compartments for the incredible Fire Service dogs

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– chassis and axles need to be bought in batches of 10, but John sees it as a thriving business. “The 6x6 gives you so much more capacity. With 4x4 vehicles with cranes or access platforms and all the storage mods and room for equipment there is not much payload left on a standard truck.” Also, with the Land Rover Defender going out of fashion with the British military, then 6x6 Hiluxes could fill a much-needed gap and will comply with the required CCA Category 3 spec.

The current 6x6 Hilux prototype was previously under the command of the Norwegian MoD, and when John offered a spin to his mate’s farm for a quick off-roading display it would have been too rude, and totally idiotic, to decline that offer. On the roads, the massive truck on 35in tyres with suspension lift drew a lot of attention in

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its Battenberg livery, as you would expect. On the farm John piloted it through some particularly boggy and sodden sticky, glutinous mud, which provided a perfect test of the three axles’ ability to get through anything. We could have played around all day, but John had work to do so we left the farm, covered in black mud and headed back. Taking the wheel on the road was interesting in this huge left-hand drive machine. It felt, surprisingly, pretty light and it was easy to forget there were several tonnes of truck behind you. The view was commanding and it did feel we owned the road.

John and his team are determined to bring the 6x6 into production here in the UK, so keep an eye out on the road as you could start to see some impressive fire and utility trucks with three axles and massive tyres helping to save lives

and provide us with our vital services.While this project continues to

develop, there is an Isuzu D-Max 35in conversion on the design table in association with Arctic Trucks, and PUS is also looking at sophisticated camera systems and monitors with graphs displaying all sorts of essential data for the fire services, particularly: “...bringing standards to a higher level; it’s a learning curve for us.” PUS has come a long way from its beginnings in 2007 as A1-4x4 and in 2009 when the Fire Fogging system on the Hilux first appeared. 4x4

Top: PUS has a special relationship with Isuzu, which will be developed into a 6x6

Above: MD John McCauley has overseen an incredible expansion in the now global company since 2007

Left: Fully-kitted out fire GVFM service pick-up; several replace one costly 'red goddess'

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