SUPPORTS ITEM NO. 3 CS&B AGENDA APRIL 10, 1997 POLICY REPORT PUBLIC SAFETY Date: March 27, 1997 Dept. File No. deploy_1.wpd C . C . F i l e N o . 1006-1/1306-8 TO: Vancouver City Council FROM: General Manager, Fire and Rescue Services SUBJECT: Better City Government - Implementation of Fire and Rescue Services Apparatus and Staff Redeployment RECOMMENDATIONS A. THAT Council provide the final approval of the fire apparatus and staff redeployment recommended by the consultant and staff (Option 6 of the TriData Report) contained in Appendix A. B. THAT Council approve the apparatus replacement schedule contained in Appendix C of this report (which supports the recommended redeployment and a 15 year average first-line service life standard) and the supporting funding from the Equipment Plant Account. C. THAT Council authorize a delay in the disposal of two engine trucks (in addition to the two currently retained) to be used as multiple alarm reserve hose wagons on an ongoing basis. D. THAT Council authorize a delay in the disposal of one engine truck and one ladder truck for use as training vehicles at Fire and Rescue s Chess Street Training Facility on an ongoing basis. E. THAT Council authorize the General Manager of Fire and Rescue Services to request that the Province of B.C. fund an additional firefighter position at U.B.C. (under our present service contract). This will maintain a standard that is consistent with the level of fire protection service which will be provided to the rest of the City. F. THAT Council authorize the addition of one Battalion Chief position (per shift) contingent on sufficient annual savings being realized as a result of this redeployment. GENERAL MANAGER S COMMENTS The recommendations contained in this report represent a very significant initiative for Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services. The redeployment of our apparatus and staff will increase the Services capabilities to function effectively as an all-hazard response force , ultimately at significant cost savings. As a major Better City Government Initiative, this has fulfilled our goal to provide value-added services in a cost-effective manner within existing resources. While the recommendation to increase the number of Battalion Chiefs by one per shift(Recommendation F) is supported by the TriData Report, at this time we advise that this should only be done once sufficient funding is found. This will be the subject of a future Council Report. At that time, the justification will be developed further. COUNCIL POLICY On April 14, 1994, Council approved a package of Fire and Rescue Services budget reductions to fulfill the requirements of the 1994-96 Budget Management Program. However, the Fire Chief was directed to report back in one year on whether to implement a proposed reduction of one piece of fire apparatus (replace a ladder and pumper truck at #21 Fire Hall with a combination piece of equipment), or to achieve the same or greater savings through a comprehensive redeployment of firefighters and equipment. On July 5, 1995, Council approved the award of a consulting contract to TriData Corporation for a comprehensive review of fire hall locations, the deployment of emergency apparatus and staff, and the City s insurance rating for commercial fire protection. Fire and Rescue Services also identified this initiative under the Better City Government Program. On April 25, 1996, Council endorsed, in principle, a Fire and Rescue Services apparatus and staff redeployment proposal known as Option 6" as outlined in the TriData Study. Council also directed the General Manager of Fire and Rescue Services to report back with a detailed implementation plan for the proposed redeployment of fire apparatus and staff. SUMMARY This report proposes an implementation plan and apparatus replacement schedule for achieving the apparatus and staff redeployment recommended as Option 6 in the TriData report and endorsed in principle by Council on April 25, 1996. The recommended redeployment will provide a great deal of flexibility in terms of operating dual function fire companies. The 19 quint companies and 10 engine companies will provide a total of 29 companies that can function as engines. The 10 engine companies include 6 that would function as rescue/engine companies. Full time Life Safety Units (LSUs) would be assigned to 6 fire halls, including corner (of the City)fire halls where LSU personnel could be used to increase the staffing of the quints to 6 person crews. Two additional Life Safety Units would be staffed by personnel who would be regularly assigned to the Tower and another quint. This will allow these companies to respond to medical incidents without their large fire suppression vehicles, thus providing more effective service. Engine and ladder trucks in the current fleet have been maintained beyond their economic lives (pending the completion of the deployment study) and this has resulted in excessive apparatus downtime and repair costs. This report recommends a somewhat accelerated apparatus replacement schedule, due in part to a departmental decision to postpone apparatus replacements over the past several years. In addition, staff cost savings possible under the redeployment are generally not achievable until the redeployment is substantially complete. There is also a possibility of achieving some purchasing economies of scale by ordering multiple units at the same time. This report also makes several recommendations aimed at improving response capability objectives (RCOs) at minimal cost. RCOs are basically defined as Fire and Rescue Services ability to deliver an appropriate combination of firefighting resources (staff, apparatus and equipment) within specific response times. It is recommended that several pieces of apparatus be held back from disposal to use as reserves and training vehicles. Generally, the most serviceable of the vehicles which are no longer appropriate for use as first-line emergency apparatus will be retained in these roles. Cost savings will be achieved through reductions in the overall numbers of officer positions (Captains and Lieutenants) and reductions in apparatus replacement costs over the next 15 years. The addition of a Battalion Chief position per shift (for a total of 4)is also recommended when sufficient annual savings to fund these positions are realized through this redeployment. The annual savings in staff costs (officer differential) are $335,000 per year by 1999 when the redeployment is fully implemented based on the proposed apparatus replacement schedule. It is recommended that these savings be allocated to the plant account in 1999 to assist in funding equipment replacement. In the future there is the potential for an additional saving of $333,500. This is a full time firefighters position. It is the departments intention to pursue the Provincial Government for this funding based on the agreement to maintain the same level of service for the University Endowment lands as is delivered to the City of Vancouver. Savings from this position are recommended to fill positions approved earlier by Council subject to identification of a funding source. PURPOSE This report recommends final approval of a staffing and equipment redeployment strategy for the Fire Department which was approved in principle by Council on April 25, 1996. Council approval is also requested for a series of recommendations that will improve operating procedures in the department at no additional cost. BACKGROUND A major review of the deployment of Vancouver Fire and Rescue Service s (V.F.R.S.) fire halls, apparatus, and staff was completed by a fire service management consulting organization, TriData Corporation. This company was retained by the City to determine the most effective deployment of fire department emergency personnel and equipment. The Steering Committee included a representative from the City Manager's Office, the Chairman of the Citizen's Advisory Committee, two Firefighter's Union representatives, and representatives from Fire and Rescue Administration. A copy of the final report by TriData is on file in the City Clerk s Office. The consultants recommended a major shift in the types of apparatus currently deployed to support the wide range of protection services provided by Vancouver Fire and Rescue. The proposed redeployment, known as Option 6" in the TriData Report was accepted in principle by Council on April 25, 1996. The redeployment plan will provide a flexible, efficient and effective system to satisfy present and future fire protection, first/co-responder emergency medical, disaster, hazardous materials, and rescue response needs. At present, a minimum of 4 personnel are required to initiate an interior fire attack. Under the new deployment, personnel that are currently less than optimally utilized on aerial ladder trucks staffed with 3 people will be used to provide 4-person crews on all primary fire suppression vehicles and 2-person Life Support Units for many medical responses. The proposed redeployment is based on the Tridata report option 6" and is a significant transformation of the apparatus fleet. Ultimately, the fleet will contain a higher component of flexible multi-purpose quints and rescue engines , with secondary emphasis on single purpose apparatus such as engines and aerial ladders. - Quints (with 4 person crews) are apparatus which can fulfill the role of either an aerial ladder truck or pumper truck depending on specific resource requirements. A quint has five basic capabilities; it can pump water, it carries water, it can lay hose, it has ground ladders and it has an aerial ladder. - Rescue Engines can provide the functionality of engines, but also carry additional specialized rescue equipment. The recommendations also included Life Support Units (light duty rescue units), which will primarily respond to emergency first-responder medical incidents and provide support at fire incidents. The two current Rescue and Safety companies will be disbanded and the staff redeployed. These changes will result in a more effective, efficient, and flexible multi-hazard fire protection force to serve Vancouver s growing population. A second component of this Better City Government Initiative was a review of the Commercial Fire Insurance Rating of the City of Vancouver. The results of this portion of the review were reported to Council on February 18, 1997. The consultant concluded that, if completed today, a Fire Underwriters Survey would likely result in a downgrade of Vancouver s current Class 1 rating (the highest rating achievable) to a Class 2 rating for commercial fire insurance. The recommended apparatus and staff redeployment, combined with several other recommendations may help retain the Class 1 rating. The change in clarification can mean up to a two percent saving on insurance premiums, for commercial non sprinkled occupancies. DISCUSSION Officer Deployment The proposed redeployment will result in a quint being placed into every fire hall but one. Since the quint then becomes the primary first-line fire apparatus, to maintain operational consistency, the senior officer in the fire hall should be assigned to it. Therefore, the Captains, as the senior fire hall officers will be assigned to the quints, while engines will be assigned to Lieutenants. LSUs will be staffed with two firefighters. These changes will not result in an overall staff reduction but will reduce the officer complement to 19 Captains per shift(from 22), and 10 Lieutenants per shift(from 14). When fully implemented in 1999, annual savings in officer staff costs would be approximately $335,000. As noted later in this report, it is proposed these savings be allocated to equipment replacement. In addition, at present, engines are staffed with 4 personnel while ladders carry 3 personnel. Under the TriData redeployment, all engines and quints will carry 4 personnel. If Council approves the implementation outlined in this report, it is the departments intention to enter into negotiations with the Province to have the staffing level at University Endowment Lands increased by one full-time firefighter position. It was agreed by the City and the Province that the same level of service would be provided to the University as is provided to the City. This will free up the equivalent of one full time firefighter position per shift within the department and result in annual savings of $333,500. It is proposed that these savings be reallocated within the department to fill the positions in recruitment, standard operating procedures and public education previously approved by Council subject to funding being identified. The annual cost of these positions are $242,000. The remaining funds are requested to cover needed clerical support, costs that were not identified in the original report to Council. Equipment Replacement Schedule Changes In 1969, the Engineering Department carried out an in-depth technical evaluation of the replacement policy for fire apparatus. That study recommended a replacement policy based on a fifteen year life for all fire apparatus. Since that time, the department has generally maintained a 15 year replacement schedule with the exception of the last three years when replacements were delayed pending the TriData study. In evaluating apparatus replacement options to achieve the redeployment option, a fifteen year replacement schedule has been maintained. However, it is recognized that the changes in response logistics (i.e. using smaller, less expensive vehicles to respond to many medical emergency incidents) may impact favorably on the economic life of large fire apparatus. On the other hand, other factors such as call volume, training levels, fill-ins needed to maintain coverage and availability of parts have changed in the past two decades negatively impacting the most economical service life of this equipment. Therefore, a review of the replacement schedule will be carried out later this year and reported back to Council. Based on a 15 year equipment replacement schedule, there are savings in staff costs available by achieving the new equipment deployment on an accelerated basis. To achieve these savings the implementation team recommends the purchase of the majority of the quints and LSUs during the next two years rather than over four years under the present replacement program. As fire apparatus is being integrated into the Plant Account, this replacement timing issue must be considered as part of the overall operation of that fund. This funding issue is discussed in the Financial Implications section of this report. Also, in operational terms, a quick implementation will facilitate a more efficient training of personnel. There may also be cost advantages to issuing equipment orders for multiple identical units. OTHER OPERATING CHANGES Improved Secondary Response Model As a response to the 1994-1996 Budget Management Program, the department agreed to use an industry standard secondary response model to reduce its training costs. Under this model, up to five first-line apparatus (2 engines, 2 ladders and 1 rescue vehicle) can be simultaneously unavailable for immediate response to emergency incidents due to the heavy requirements for maintenance and upgrade training, first-responder certification and other requirements. While in secondary response, the crews and equipment may be outside of their normal response districts, and are not dispatched to incidents unless there are two simultaneous fires in the City. Under some training situations, apparatus is physically dedicated to a particular drill and may not be quickly placed back into service for emergency response. The secondary response model also results in a significant amount of apparatus movement to training sites, and the corresponding movement of apparatus to back fill at vacant fire halls. In order to increase the department s ability to respond, the Implementation Team recommends that a ladder (or quint) and engine truck be held back from disposal after the first-line service life. This equipment will be primarily used at the Chess Street Fire Training facility in support of training activities. Rather than taking the equipment out-of-service, crews will use the on-site apparatus. This will improve our overall response capability objectives (RCOs). The costs will be in maintenance and a marginally lower resale value for the apparatus. Changes in Standard Response Levels To further improve current RCOs, under the new deployment, more staff will be routinely delivered to a fire scene than currently since an additional engine will be added to the current response levels. However, the rare occurrence of several simultaneous major emergency events can reduce firefighting resource levels to unacceptable levels. The Implementation Team therefore also recommends holding two additional engines back from disposal to be used as multiple alarm reserve engines, again with a view to improving our RCOs at minimal costs. The department currently has two engines , referred to as hose wagons, which are used in this role. This would allow four engines to be staffed in the event of major incidents which threaten to overwhelm the normal level of resources. Staffing would be achieved by either calling in off-duty firefighters or staffed with LSU crews, depending on the situation. As in the case of the engine and ladder held back for training, the costs incurred by these engines will be maintenance and marginally lower resale value. A review of the response levels to automatic fire alarms was also carried out. For reported and confirmed structure fires the response level has not been changed. However, for automatic alarms relayed from alarm monitoring companies, the response level has been reduced. For buildings under 4 stories in height the Department now sends only one apparatus. For buildings from 4 to 8 stories 2 apparatus are sent, and for over 8 stories 3 apparatus plus a Battalion Chief are dispatched. The reductions in response levels to these types of alarms is based on experience with these alarms. The net effect is to allow us to maintain our RCOs as well as a net reduction in noise levels and risks to citizens and firefighters during unnecessary emergency responses. The number of false alarms has been growing at a steady level over the past number of years and is a source of concern. Apparatus and crews are now responding to over 8,000 false alarm/no fire incidents per year. A future report to Council will outline a recommended false alarm reduction strategy. Requirement for Additional Battalion Chief Prior to January 15, 1995, the Vancouver Fire Department was divided into four Districts. These four Districts were managed by senior officers. An Operational Assistant Chief was responsible for supervising one District and three Battalion Chiefs were responsible for the supervision in each of the three remaining Districts. On January 16, 1995 the Operational Assistant Chiefs converted to day shifts thus in effect eliminating the District the Assistant Chief was responsible for supervising. The responsibility of supervision for that eliminated District was transferred to the three remaining Battalion Chiefs. On October 16, 1996 the Vancouver Fire Department began providing contract fire protection services to the University Endowment Lands. The University Fire Department prior to the amalgamation had one Operational Assistant Chief on each shift responsible for the daily control and operations of the emergency services within that geographic area. Today Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services uses three Battalion Chiefs to effectively control an area that five senior officer were responsible for two and one-half years ago. This command system is not working efficiently. The increasing complexity of the responsibilities of the Battalion Chief within each District, the increased size of the geographic area of responsibility for the Battalion Chief, and the managerial expectations of the Battalion Chief of today suggests that a fourth district under a fourth Battalion Chief should be considered. The current deficiency in the number of senior fire ground commanders was recognized in the TriData Study. The TriData Implementation Planning team has recommended that an additional Battalion Chief position per shift be created and funded once the identified cost savings from redeployment have been demonstrated. Prior to implementation, a further report to Council will be presented providing further justification and funding sources. U.B.C. To preserve the same standard of apparatus staffing at U.B.C. as in the rest of the City, an additional firefighter position at an annual cost of approximately $325,000 (based on 10th year firefighter rates) is required. This goes beyond the level required under the present service contract with the Province (7 firefighters on duty per shift). It is recommended that the City approach the Province to fund this additional position, particularly considering the current and the potential projected growth in the area and the risk levels. Storage of Reserve Apparatus Actual storage space for reserve fire apparatus in current fire halls is becoming very limited. In addition, compared to other types of storage, using fire halls as storage is not particularly economical. A review of potential alternative apparatus storage facilities and the associated costs will be carried out and reported back to Council at a later date. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS The overall noise impact and diesel exhaust emissions will be reduced due to the use of smaller equipment for most medical incidents. Also, the dedicated use of training apparatus, rather than moving vehicles back and forth to the training site, will help reduce noise and pollution levels. SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS The full implementation of the recommended redeployment plan, including the use of multi-purpose vehicles, more practical vehicles for medical responses, and increased number of rescue vehicles and technical rescue support units, will provide a much more effective multi-hazard emergency response force. This can be done without compromising the ability to safely and effectively fight fires. Vancouver Fire and Rescue s increased capability to respond effectively to the wide variety of potential risks present in Vancouver today, including major disasters such as earthquakes, will reduce the severity of the impacts on Vancouver s residents. PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS Three Captain positions and four Lieutenants positions per shift will revert to firefighter positions. This can be accomplished very quickly through normal attrition so no current officer will be reduced in rank. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: FUNDING FROM THE PLANT ACCOUNT When considering the 1996 Operating Budget, Council approved a plan to move all fire apparatus to the Plant Account. This has the advantage of smoothing the peaks and valleys associated with the replacement costs of fire equipment in the annual Operating Budget. The plan provides for new equipment to be purchased by the Plant Account as it is replaced and for rental rate funding to be added to the Fire Department budget as the equipment comes on stream to provide for its eventual replacement. The transfer of fire equipment to the Plant Account is unusual in that it is the first time that a major component of the City fleet has been moved into the Plant Account without accompanying funding. In short, the expectation is that the Plant Account will finance the replacement of the fire equipment rather than accept the equipment paid for and then accumulate funds for its eventual replacement as is the case for most other equipment. This has significant consequences for the cash-flow in the Plant Account which was not been set up to operate in this fashion. As a result, staff have reviewed the cash-flow projections for the Plant Account to determine its ability to maintain its primary objective--to provide funding for equipment replacements in a normal manner--and to accommodate the replacement of fire equipment. Based on the replacement schedule proposed by the Fire Department, the Plant Account will assume responsibility for the initial purchase of approximately $14.6 million of fire equipment for which there is currently no replacement provision. Taken alone, this expenditure over the next 15 years will leave the Plant Account in a deficit position because the annual replacement schedule never provides sufficient funding to make up for the unfunded early purchases. However, considered as part of the overall cash-flow of the Plant Account, the fire equipment replacement schedule is more easily accommodated because, at present, accumulated replacement funds from all equipment in the Plant Account exceeds the projected annual replacement costs. Based on current projections, the Plant Account will have a positive cash balance until about the year 2010 at which time, the replacement of fire equipment being purchased in 1996/97 leaves the Plant Account in a temporary cash-flow deficit position. This is cause for concern since a cash infusion to the fund would be required to maintain the overall equipment replacement schedule. The way to deal with this situation would be to provide additional funding to the Plant Account now to guard against the future cash-flow shortfall. The proposal to re-equip and redeploy the Fire Department provides an opportunity to allocate that funding, beginning in 1999. By adopting the replacement schedule identified in this report, the Fire Department will produce operating savings estimated at $335,000 annually as a result of eliminating officer positions. It is recommended that those savings be allocated to the Plant Account beginning in 1999. This additional capital infusion over the next decade does not completely eliminate the projected cash-flow problems in the Plant Account. As the first round of equipment purchased for the Fire Department comes up for replacement, additional funding may have to be provided. However, before those potential problems arise, the Fire Department and Fleet Management will have had the opportunity to review and adjust the replacement schedule and the rental rates for the new equipment. This situation will also be reviewed as part of a more comprehensive review of the Plant Account being undertaken by Fleet Management and Financial Services. However, it should be noted now that additional funding, from the Operating or Capital Budgets may be required in future years. It should be noted that the impact of not undertaking this replacement is that costs to the operating budget will be much higher over the next 15 years. The savings result from the conversion of the fleet to fewer and less expensive apparatus and from the officer cost savings that arise from the change. With these cautions, the Director of Finance and the Fleet Manager recommend that Council approve the replacement schedule proposed by the Fire Department and that the savings identified as part of the redeployment be allocated to the Plant Account to reduce the overall cash-flow shortfall identified in the Plant Account. IMPLEMENTATION AND COMMUNICATIONS PLAN The six quints which have already been tendered as a result of the postponed replacements over the past several years, and funded through existing funding in the Plant Account, will be delivered late this year. Additional equipment will be delivered and put into service beginning in 1998. Staff cost savings due to the reduction in the number of officer positions will occur as the new equipment is put into service. A report to Council on the most economical service life for fire apparatus will be forthcoming during the second half of 1997. Another report to Council is planned for late 1997 and will deal with options to reduce the number of false alarms responded to by Fire and Rescue Services. CONCLUSIONS This redeployment of emergency fire apparatus and staff will result in a cost-effective solution for meeting the City of Vancouver's emergency response needs. Significant annual cost savings can be achieved without sacrificing our ability to meet the primary risks facing the citizens. * * * * * APPENDIX A RECOMMENDED DEPLOYMENT (OPTION 6 - TRIDATA REPORT) 19 Quints, 6 Rescue Engines, 4 Engines, 8 Life Support Units FIRE 1st Personnel 2nd Personnel 3rd Personnel TOTAL HALL (Quint) Personnel 1 Q1 4 4 2 Q2 4 LS2 2 6 3 Q3 4 E3 4 LS3 2 10 4 E4 4 Tw4 -* LS4 2 7 5 Q5 4 LS5 2 6 6 Q6 4 E6 4 8 7 Q7 4 R/E7 4 8 8 Q8 4 LS8 2 6 9 Q9 4 R/E9 4 8 10 E10 4 Q10 4* LS10 21 8* 12 Q12 4 R/E12 4 8 13 Q13 4 4 14 Q14 4 LS14 2 6 15 Q15 4 R/E15 4 8 17 Q17 4 R/E17 4 8 18 Q18 4 4 19 Q19 4 4 20 Q20 4 4 21 Q21 4 R/E21 4 8 22 Q22 4 LS22 2 6 TOTAL 20 80 1O 38 8 141 131 1. One staff member cross-manned from quint * Funding for one position sought from the Province. Current Replacement Program - apparatus replacement program based on oldest spare Year Engine Age Ladder Age Rescue Age Annual Cost 1997 A9138 22 A9152 20 A9212 16 $1,200,000 1998 A9169 20 A9187 19 A9203 9 $1,200,000 1999 A9171 20 A9162 20 $1,130,000 2000 A9114 20 A9179 21 $1,130,000 2001 A9141 21 $ 500,000 2002 A9193 21 $ 500,000 2003 A9198 21 $ 500,000 2004 A9188 22 $1,000,000 A9199 22 2005 A9177 18 $1,000,000 A9149 18 2006 A9166 17 $ 500,000 2007 A9126 18 A9178 24 $1,130,000 2008 A9109 18 $1,500,000 A9155 21 A9197 21 2009 A9104 18 A9146 29 $2,260,000 A9108 18 A9122 18 2010 B9158 16 A9175 27 $2,260,000 B9184 16 B9159 16 2011 B9160 17 A9120 20 $1,760,000 B9167 17 Total # Engines 21 Total # Ladders 11 Total Rescue and Safety 2 Replacement costs: Engines at $500,000 X 21 = $ 10,500,000 Ladders at $630,000 X 11 = $ 6,930,000 Rescues at $70,000 X 2 = $ 140,000 Total $ 17,570,000 Annualized cost over 15 years in constant dollars:$ 1,171,300 Proposed Replacement Program - apparatus replacement program based on oldest spare. Year Engine Age Quint Age L.S.U. s Annual Cost 1997 A9138* 23 A9152 20 4 $3,040,000 A9169* 19 A9187 18 1998 A9171* 19 A9162 19 4 $3,040,000 A9114* 18 A9179 19 2004 4 (chassis) $ 280,000 2005 A9149 18 4 (chassis $1,280,000 A9177 18 2006 A9166 17 A9122 15 $1,130,000 2007 A9126 18 A9120 16 $1,130,000 2009 A9109 20 B9167 15 $2,260,000 A9197 20 B9159 15 2010 B9158 16 $1,500,000 B9184 16 A9108 19 2011 B9160 17 4 $1,020,000 Total Engines 10 Total Quints 12 Total LSUs (12 Box and chassis, 8 chassis) Replacement Costs Engines at $500,000 X 10 = $5,000,000 Quints at $630,000 X 12 = $7,560,000 L.S.U. s at $130,000 X 12 = $1,560,000 L.S.U. s chassis at $70,000 X 8 = $ 560,000 Total Costs $14,680,000 Annualized cost over 15 years in constant dollars: $ 978,700 * The four engines in 1997 and 1998 will be replaced with quints.