TVAC

TVAC (The Vehicle Application Centre) was a British company based in Leyland, Lancashire that performed chassis conversions and assembled bodies for commercial vehicles, refuse trucks and fire engines.

A Mercedes-Benz Econic CARP (Combined Aerial Rescue Pump) bodied by TVAC in use with South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue.

History

In 1996 TVAC approached Plastisol, based in the Netherlands. At this time Plastisol produced bodies for airport crash fire engines. TVAC wanted Plastisol to produce bodies for smaller fire engines, and TVAC would assemble similar bodies under licence for the United Kingdom market.[1]

The first fire engine bodied by TVAC was a DAF 55 appliance for the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, the brigade that covered the area where TVAC's factory was located. This body had a number of technological innovations: the bodies were made with injected resin, and were an integral unit containing the main body and water tank, making the appliance lighter, and also leaving more room for storing equipment.[2][3][1]

Subsequent orders from, by 2006, 27 fire authorities across the United Kingdom included a major contract with the London Fire Brigade to supply frontline fire appliances,[4] building four Unimogs with interchangeable bodies for firefighting or rescue and recovery for the Surrey Fire and Rescue Service,[5] supplying a removeable welfare pod transported by a converted Renault Master for the Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service,[6] and supplying a series of Iveco Daily-based midi fire engines to the Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service.[7]

TVAC were also responsible for modifying the chassis of light and heavy goods vehicles, as well as assembling refuse trucks.[8][9][10][11] The company also assembled a bulletproof Vaxuhall Movano-based mobile bank for the Bank of Scotland for use on the remote Shetland Islands.[12]

In 2007, TVAC and ambulance builder UV Modular were both acquired by asset and wealth management firm AssetCo, intending to consolidate AssetCo's position as the UK's largest supplier of fire appliances and ambulances.[13] However, TVAC would enter administration in December 2008 and were wound up early the next year; their intellectual property rights and some staff were subsequently acquired by former parent Plastisol.[14] The directors of AssetCo at the time of TVAC's purchase were subsequently charged with 27 allegations of financial misconduct by the Financial Reporting Council in 2018.[15]

TVAC had collapsed having been unable to complete a contract for four combined aerial response pump (CARP) appliances on Mercedes-Benz Econic chassis for the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service to specification.[16] A second CARP for Humberside Fire and Rescue Service was cancelled when it was discovered that Humberside's CARP was too heavy for legal use on UK roads when fully loaded with firefighting equipment.[17] Throughout their service, these remained in need of further modifications for mechanical and weight defects, while members of the Fire Brigades Union in South Yorkshire would later refuse to operate their CARP appliances due to safety concerns.[18][19]

References
  1. Baker, Eddie (21 August 2018). Fire Engines. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 44. ISBN 978-1-7844-2300-1.
  2. "Appliance of science in new engine". Lancashire Telegraph. Blackburn. 26 April 1997. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  3. "Front-line kit to the fore". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 1 October 1998. p. 20. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  4. "Fire-engine boom leaves maker looking for bigger works". Professional Engineering. Vol. 19, no. 10. London. 31 May 2006. p. 7. ProQuest 218368447.
  5. Burrows, Matt (July 2008). "Blazing a nature trail". Fire. Vol. 101, no. 1306. Teddington: Pavilion. p. 52. Retrieved 16 October 2022 – via General OneFile.
  6. "Operational life made easier for Derbyshire firefighters". Fire. Vol. 101, no. 1306. Teddington: Pavilion. July 2008. p. 55. Retrieved 10 January 2023 – via General OneFile.
  7. "Midi fire appliances rolled out as second appliances". Fire. Vol. 100, no. 1304. Teddington: Pavilion. May 2008. p. 39. Retrieved 16 October 2022 – via General OneFile.
  8. "Low-cost air for vans". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 22 May 1997. p. 18. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  9. "Fleet orders roll in". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 9 May 1999. p. 16. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  10. "TVAC expands into a [?] to handle a range of roles". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 20 September 2001. p. 14. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  11. "Three-legged race". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 7 January 1999. p. 30. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  12. "Lightweight bullet-proof mobile bank for Shetlands". Motor Transport. Stratford-upon-Avon. 2 February 2006. p. 11. ProQuest 228853805.
  13. "Acquisition captures largest share of fire appliance market". Fire. Vol. 100, no. 1301. Teddington: Pavilion. February 2008. p. 49. Retrieved 16 October 2022 – via General OneFile.
  14. "Plastisol in the UK". Commercial Motor. Temple Press. 6 January 2011. p. 20. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  15. Hencke, David (24 August 2018). "Why these liars, cheats and fraudsters should be prosecuted for ripping off taxpayers and cheating London's firefighters". Westminster Confidential. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  16. "Credit Crunch Hits Fire Service". South Yorkshire Fire Authority. 25 February 2009. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  17. "Fire engines too heavy for roads". BBC News. 21 January 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  18. "Firefighters in South Yorkshire refuse to use equipment". BBC News. 7 November 2011. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  19. Farooq, Naumaan (6 May 2011). "New CARP fire engines finally arrive... four years late". Rotherham Advertiser. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
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