Puslinch will save 10% by paying for new pumper truck up front

PUSLINCH – The Puslinch fire department is getting a new pumper truck.

Council approved the purchase at its Feb. 28 meeting.

The current pump 31 truck is approaching the end of its 20-year life cycle and council set aside $905,000 in 2023 to purchase a new truck in 2025.

Interim fire chief Brad Churchill told council the cost has gone up – again – and was seeking a $200,000 top-up.

But if the township can pay for the truck up front, there would be a 10 per cent discount.

“This is a new kind of procurement,” explained Sarah Hubble, client relations manager with Canoe Procurement Group of Canada, a not-for-profit municipally-focused cooperative purchasing group helping the township with the purchase.

Churchill said because the fire department serves both a rural community and a portion of Highway 401, the truck will have LED lighting for the safety of firefighters working on the highway and a tank with greater water capacity than trucks in urban communities.

“This is particularly important for the township due to not having pressurized fire hydrants,” Churchill wrote in his report. “The needs of the township include having a pump truck with a minimum of 4,000 litres on board to adequately protect Puslinch Fire and Rescue firefighters, township residents, and its visitors.”

Churchill said he was confident the total $1.15 million cost will be the ceiling. If the cost comes in higher than that (prices are constantly fluctuating), Churchill said officials will remove features to come in on budget.

Council agreed to make the full payment of $1.15 million in 2024 with the truck expected to arrive in 2025.

Churchill said he expects the current pump truck could be sold for about $20,000.