The work will chiefly involve fire prevention – carrying equipment and personnel to assess fire risks in business premises and public buildings and as part of fire safety demonstrations.
According to SFRS fleet manager, Scott Roberts, the vehicles are ideally suited to the task: ‘It’s a small van but the load space within is excellent and more than adequate for the job, but our chief concerns are whole-life costs and ease of maintenance. When you have a region to cover as large as Scotland, an extensive dealer network is vital and of course, Ford has a dealer in nearly every large town.’
The service has also selected the Transit Custom for deployment in the Highlands, where double cab-in-van models perform an essential function as a back-up to fire-fighting appliances, carrying breathing equipment and other tools.
Water rescue missions are part of the SFRS’ work and the 4×4 Ford Ranger is its choice for towing the service’s rescue craft. The Ford Focus meanwhile is used as an effective fast-response vehicle.
‘For the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, the extensive Ford range of cars and commercial vehicles ticks all the boxes, with a model ideal for every function within the service. Ford provides an unrivalled customisation service for “blue-light” applications, and of course its service network across the UK is second to none. We are delighted to see our products helping protect the public,’ added Terry Adams, Ford direct sales manager.