Америкалық LaFrance: Өрт машиналары өндірушісінің тарихы мен құлдырауы

Defunct American firetruck manufacturer

American LaFrance (ALF) was an American vehicle manufacturer which focused primarily on the production of fire engines, ladder trucks, and emergency apparatus such as ambulance and rescue vehicles. Originally located in Elmira, New York, the final iteration of the company was located in Summerville, South Carolina. It also operated a plant in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where it sold apparatus under the name LaFrance Foamite, until 1971. On 17 January 2014, American LaFrance announced the cessation of operations. Ward LaFrance, an unrelated competitor fire apparatus manufacturer also based in Elmira Heights, New York, was founded by a LaFrance family member. It went bankrupt in July 1979 and was later reopened by a different party, under the name of Ward '79. There is no association.

In 1995, Freightliner, a subsidiary of Daimler AG, purchased the remnants of the company, yet again resurrecting LaFrance. Freightliner continued to utilize American LaFrance's original nameplates and designations including the Eagle custom chassis. Many of their Liberty products were built on Freightliner M2 or Sterling Acterra chassis. ALF operated additional manufacturing facilities in Ephrata, Pennsylvania; Sanford, Florida; and Hamburg, New York. In 2005 it was the fifth largest manufacturer of emergency vehicles in North America.

In December 2005, it was announced that Freightliner had transferred the ownership of American LaFrance to the New York–based investment firm Patriarch Partners, LLC. The headquarters and main plant in Ladson, South Carolina, were not included in the transaction. However, Patriarch Partners was allowed to use the plant until early 2007, when DaimlerChrysler began using the plant for assembly of the Dodge Sprinter. Under new ownership ALF relocated within the Charleston, South Carolina, area in summer 2007 to a brand new facility, including manufacturing and corporate headquarters, with nearly of total space. On 28 January 2008, American LaFrance filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, blaming problems with implementation of a new IBM enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. On 25 July 2008, the company emerged from bankruptcy with a revised business plan to transfer the firetruck body building portion of the business to the remaining Hamburg, New York (formerly RDMurray Inc.), and Ephrata, Pennsylvania (formerly Ladder Towers Inc.), facilities. The Summerville, South Carolina, plant continued to manufacture fire truck cab and chassis, but focused on vocational vehicles and the Condor vehicle line. In 2009, the company closed Hamburg and Ephrata, attempting to consolidate operations to Summerville. On 17 January 2014, the company announced it would cease operation. Remaining assets of the company, which included parts and partially completed trucks, were auctioned to pay creditors. As of that October it was highly unlikely American LaFrance would be opening its doors ever again.

The North Charleston Fire Museum and Educational Center, located in North Charleston, South Carolina, claims to house "the largest collection of professionally restored American LaFrance fire apparatus in the country". The museum has an active collection of 20 ALF vehicles, each in operating condition.