Smeal Holding, LLC, manufacturer of fire apparatus including aerials and part of REV Group Inc., celebrated a manufacturing milestone: its 1,000th 105-foot aerial apparatus has been completed at its facility in Snyder, Nebraska.
The 105-foot rear-mount aerial was built for the City of Wilmer (TX) Fire Department and is the first Smeal fire apparatus that the department has ordered. The aerial has a unique cutout with illuminated ladder signs.
In 1964, Smeal Holding, LLC, built its first aerial apparatus, a 52-foot ladder on an IH 1600 chassis with an extended cab for the Snyder Rural Fire District to support fighting grain elevator and chimney fires. This vehicle is currently on display at the Nebraska Firefighters Museum & Education Center in Kearny, Nebraska.
“The entire Smeal team is proud to have accomplished this incredible achievement,” said Kevin Strudthoff, general manager for Smeal. “Smeal has a long heritage of designing and building robust and quality custom fire apparatus, and we are delighted that our 1,000th 105-foot aerial to roll off the line is for a brand-new customer; a sign of Smeal’s enduring legacy!”
Metro Fire Apparatus Specialists, Inc., based in Houston, Texas, is the Smeal dealer working with the Wilmer Fire Department.
Over the past 60 years, Smeal has built aerials for the rural and metro markets as well as large city and urban fire departments, including FDNY and the U.S. Army, and has even built aerials for countries outside of the U.S. including Chile. Smeal’s wide range of aerial product lines runs from the 75-foot rear-mount ladder to the 125-foot rear-mount ladder, as well as its 100-foot rear-mount and 100-foot mid-mount platforms. The brand is also known for its premium apparatus, including the side mount and top mount custom pumpers and the wildland urban interface engines.
For more information on Smeal, visit https://spartaner.com/brands/smeal/.
