HURON COUNTY COUNCIL APPROVES PURCHASE OF NEW AMBULANCES

HURON COUNTY – Director of Emergency Services, Jeff Horseman, presented a report to county council on March 20 requesting approval to buy two new ambulances using sole-source purchasing.

Demers Ambulances and Crestline Coach are the only two currently certified vendors in Ontario, and they are both owned by the same parent company, Clearspring Capital Partners.

“Clearspring has informed Huron County that Crestline Coach will not be producing the type of ambulance that Huron County Emergency Services currently purchases, that model of vehicle will only be produced by Demers,” Horseman’s report said. 

Clearspring does not respond to competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) in Ontario; Horseman explained, “as each of their production facilities produces one specific vehicle and will not compete against each other. The slightly larger vehicle, which is more commonly used in rural Ontario (used in Huron County), is produced by their Demers factory, and the slightly smaller vehicle, which is more commonly used in more urban settings, is produced by their Crestline factory.”

Horseman said that emergency services continue to seek ways to incorporate and follow the county’s climate change initiative to progress towards a green environment. Electric ambulances are currently in the prototype phase of production but will require time to test and certify before being ready to produce electric ambulances for sale in the Ontario market.

Because an electric ambulance is not an option right now, these ambulances have included options to help reduce emissions and improve the in-vehicle safety of air quality for staff and patients.

“The Eco-Smart Idle Reduction System reduces the amount of vehicle idling required to maintain proper temperature control in adverse weather,” Horseman’s report said. This means when the vehicle patient compartment is warm enough to maintain critical supply requirements, such as medication temperature control, the vehicle will automatically shut the engine off when idling. If the temperature falls outside of the required range, it will start the vehicle and idle until the temperature is back within the required range.”

 The new ambulances will also have a UV air sterilization system and HEPA filter system. 

“With the ongoing respiratory illness concerns and the transmissibility of airborne illness, that system will help reduce the transmission between paramedics and patients to produce a safer environment for everyone,” Horseman said. 

Demers Ambulance provided a total cost of $328,652, including HST, for a 2024 GM 3500 Express Cutaway with an ambulance prep package and conversion. This price includes the Stryker Power Load, Stryker Power Cot system, Pran AVL system, and vehicle striping.

The total for the two ambulances, including HST, will be $657,304.01, which is within the 2024 capital budget’s budgeted amount.

Production and delivery times, although improving, are still estimated at 12 to 18 months from the time of order. The estimated delivery time for these vehicles to purchase is December 2025.

Cory Bilyea, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Wingham Advance Times

2024-03-29T13:05:46Z dg43tfdfdgfd