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Power Onward is the podcast that unveils how power technology shapes your everyday life.
From the tech powering your daily life to the innovations driving industries forward, we talk about it all.
Brought to you by Cummins, each episode explores what’s fueling the future and why it matters for your mission, business, and community.
Welcome to Power Onward,
the podcast that pulls back the
current on the technologies, people,
and partnerships shaping
the future of power.
When firefighters respond to
a call, every second matters.
And the trucks that carry them
can't hesitate, stall, or fail.
Across North America, a large portion
of those trucks rely on Cummins engines,
brakes, and drive trains to get crews
where they need to go. As you can imagine,
fire and rescue can be extremely
demanding of its equipment.
And for nearly a century,
Cummins has been engineering dependable
solutions designed to protect property
and life.
Today,
we're exploring the powertrain
technologies firefighters
trust when the stakes
are absolute. Hi, I'm Kim, global
brand manager here at Cummins.
Hi, I'm Chris.
I look after the engine business for
fire and emergency and recreational
vehicles.
All right. So Chris, I hear that
Cummins and fire service goes way back.
Tell me more about Cummins,
their role in maybe diesel
engines and fire apparatus,
and what else you can
tell me about that legacy.
Yeah, so almost a hundred years,
right? Beginning with the 1937 Stutz,
the first diesel powered fire
truck. It still lives in Columbus,
Indiana in station two.
What was unique to that was 150
horsepower, 500 pound feet of torque,
which by today's standards would
not measure up, but then it did.
It was a step up.
It was a step up in not
just the equipment, but also
the overall reliability,
right?
Exactly.
So that engine was actually
in service from 1939 to 1974,
about 35 years.
That same engine?
Yes. Testament to dependability
and making active runs.
Absolutely.
So we're hearing reliability revolution
through a Cummins diesel engine inside
of that 1937 studs with more
torque, better durability,
and longer run times.
Yes.
That's triple wins. We love to hear that.
But I think that even
for me and for others,
when we see a fire apparatus or a
firetruck, we simply see a vehicle.
But there's a lot more that goes into
that because recently I heard them
referred to as mobile power plants.
Does that have to do with that duty
cycle once the engines hit the scene?
So it can be central
to the whole operation.
So they don't just go to pump
water. They have a lot of tasks.
About 70% of their runs are
EMS, emergency medical service.
So sort of like an ambulance. Most
of them are trained as paramedics.
So not only that, but sometimes
they need to get up high, right?
So they have aerials,
so platforms or ladders,
so they can get to tall places,
whether it's fighting fires or getting
to people that need their help.
They also block traffic, right?
So many of us have experienced that on
the interstate where you want something
large in front of your rescue workers
to prevent danger to those that are
serving others.
So they have a lot of jobs.
They do.
The firefighters in the building doing
their thing, but the truck itself,
the apparatus itself, is running
multiple tasks simultaneously.
Absolutely. In addition, they
also with radio communications,
comfort station. So this truck
serves a lot of purpose. In fact,
about 70% of the time,
they are just idling.
70%.
About 70% of the time, about 25% of
the time driving and about 5% pumping.
So that's sort of a standard
duty cycle for the truck.
I know. I like that.
I just visualize a pie chart as you were
breaking that down. All right, Chris,
let's get into the components
of a fire apparatus.
Why is each component so
essential for emergency responses?
So Cummins has worked with the
fire service for many years.
We've sold about 50,000 of
these over the last 25 years.
So we work very closely to upgrade and
understand the needs of the fire service.
So as an example,
these engines are uniquely
created for the fire service.
So not only are they restricted ratings,
meaning we maximize the horsepower and
torque over a standard over the road
truck engine. They do not D-rate
for emissions related faults.
There is no SCR inducement all in the
name of getting the truck to the scene.
But as important as getting
to the scene quickly,
stopping the truck is also important.
So we have compression brakes that
are anywhere from 350 horsepower up to
600 horsepower to slow
the vehicle quickly.
Right, because I'm sure
that's a lot of equipment.
The vehicle itself is quite heavy and
you need to stop on a dime, so to speak.
Right. And that's on top of
the Meritor drive train, right?
Which also has very strong braking.
Are there any new innovations
within the powertrain?
There sure are. So we'll be releasing
the Meritor QuickDisc systema.
So not only does it provide
superior braking power,
but the main thing is it makes
maintenance so much easier.
You no longer have to pull the wheel
end off in order to change the rotor.
This will save time.
It will improve repair quality
within the maintenance organization.
So it's a pretty cool innovation.
That's a massive win for our customers
and for our teams on the ground doing
those repairs. So we have this massive
80,000 pound mobile power plant.
It's got to perform perfectly
in extreme conditions,
meet strict standards when it comes to
emissions, and then be easy to maintain.
How is Cummins innovating to
deliver this to customers?
So maybe the biggest news is
for 2027, the NOX emissions,
oxides of nitrogen drop another 80%.
So over the last 25 years,
they were reduced by about 80%.
Now we're doing that in three or four
years. So people ask how we do that.
It's a lot of technology.
So probably the biggest thing is we
have heaters at the inlets to both
of the after treatment components,
the diesel particulate filter,
the SCR catalyst,
and that requires a 48 volt alternator
on the engine to drive those.
So that's the majority
of our NOx reduction.
There are also clean sheet design.
So both the X10 and X15 are new
from the ground up, optimized based
on our experience with the X12,
which was largely successful. So
the engine has gotten a lot cleaner.
In addition, we've done a lot
of things for reliability.
So now you'll find that
both of those engines,
the X10 and X15 have a dual overhead cam.
They also have a rear gear
train. So this just makes the engine
structure stronger to reduce leaks,
keep vehicles in service. Another thing
would be the quick disk braking system,
so disk brake for the rear axle.
The big innovation there is the fact that
you can pull the rotor without having
to disturb the wheel end.
So not only does that give
us a faster service event,
but it also improves the repair quality.
Brilliant. A win-win overall
for all teams involved.
What I'm hearing is that the fire
service doesn't just buy equipment.
They rely on partners.
So how is Cummins showing up for the
fire service beyond the engine and
components?
Yeah, it's truly a team effort. So we
start by working with a chassis builder,
either it's custom or commercial.
So we work with them to ensure that the
installation quality requirements are
met.
It then goes to a bodybuilder where
they're putting on all the compartments on
the back and putting that together.
We also work with them to help them with
programming and those types of things.
Once it gets into ...
We also count on a dealer network
that looks after these vehicles
and our distribution systems.
So Cummins has about 3,500
locations that can sell parts for
automotive engines.
And we have over 2,000 locations that
can do warranty service on these.
And this is in North America or-.
This is in North America.
Wow. 2000 in North America.
And that's the majority of our
business. When we get overseas,
the types of apparatus vary.
That totally makes sense.
The other thing I would add is we're
looking at new solutions that also keep
equipment and service less trips
to the shop. So for example,
Cummins Acumen is a
telematics system. Basically,
that means it's communicating
information from the engine back to us
so that we can provide repair guidance.
We can also do things over time
to do over the air calibrations.
We can do remote diagnostics.
So these are all huge things to keep
the vehicle in the station and not in a
repair shop.
Exactly.
It's nice that we'll have a pulse on
things so we're not always being reactive
when the customers come to us.
It's like we've got to pull so we can be
proactive and just make sure that they
don't have to be in there as
often, as frequently or as long.
Exactly.
Do you have any firefighter testimonials
based on what you've just said?
It's always fun to go to trade shows.
So whether it's FDIC or the
Lancaster County Fireman's
Association Fire Expo,
hear a lot of stories.
So a lot of firefighters are
amazed at the performance.
So some say that there
shouldn't be a throttle pedal.
It should just be an on/off switch
to accelerate as quickly as they can,
but we hear a lot of positive comments,
especially around the performance.
It's a testament to all the hard work
that goes into each of these products,
right?
Exactly.
When you look at the next
generation of fire apparatus,
what excites you the most about
where the technology is headed?
It's really pretty exciting.
I think we will continue to
see some benefits from AI,
not only from a design perspective so
that we can optimize designs like we have
with the X10 and X15,
but also on how we monitor the
performance of those engines.
Where have we had issues?
We use our warranty data and we can
fold all of that into the new designs to
make an even better engine.
That is a recurring theme.
AI just amplifying all of our efforts and
being able to get things to the market
faster, essentially.
If someone remembers one
thing about Cummins and fire
service after listening to
this episode, what
would you want it to be?
We want to build great products,
but we also want to support.
So it's really important to us why we've
worked to develop so many dealers and
our Cummins branches to be able
to support the fire service.
So support is everything.
Chris, thank you so much
for your time today.
It's really cool to see what keeps those
trucks so dependable because for us,
dependability isn't just important.
It's essential and especially
for the fire service. All right,
so what's the big idea for this episode?
When we talk about fire and rescue,
we often think about the
sirens and the Chrome,
but the real story is about
readiness and reliability.
We've seen that today for Cummins. A
firetruck isn't simply just a vehicle.
It's a rescue apparatus that firefighters
rely on during the worst day of
people's lives. In an industry
where every second matters,
Cummins isn't just an engine builder.
We're providing confidence and reliability
so real heroes can get where they're
needed safely and fast.
When lives are on the line,
dependability isn't just a
technical spec. It's a promise.
Thank you for listening to Power Onward.
Your support means the world to us.
If you enjoyed this episode, please
don't forget to subscribe, rate,
and review on your
favorite podcast platform.
If you want to dig deeper
on what we covered today,
check out the show notes for
additional links or go to
Cummins.com/podcast. Until
next time, Power Onward.
We're from Cummins,
the company that's been innovating
toward the future for more than a hundred
years. We're no strangers to
rapid change, global shifts,
and economic uncertainty.
We want to be your constant during
the energy transition. Whenever,
wherever, forever. Power Onward.