| Over the
years, KME Fire Apparatus has promoted itself as the
only aerial manufacturer to do Proof Load Testing. We
believe that this testing is critical to insure the
integrity of the aerial device and proves that KME
manufactures the strongest, most dependable ladders of
their type in the industry. But what does all this
mean?
Background
When the AerialCat line was introduced, we decided to
put the design through an extensive development
program. We got off to a good start by assembling a
team of specialist in all the needed fields of
expertise. Particular emphasis was given to areas
that commonly caused failures in competitors’
ladders. But the engineering team also focused on one
other important problem:
No specifications
existed that adequately defined operational load
environments of aerials. Therefore it was impossible
to design and test for “real world” use.
Overcoming this lack of
specifics had to be accomplished before we could be
sure that the AerialCat line would be the strongest
and safest in the industry. The engineering team got
to work on this right off the bat. First they
established operating criteria from which load
conditions could be selected. Static and dynamic load
conditions were then calculated. A load spectrum of
use for the fire ladder in service was developed for
calculation of life of the structure. Stress experts
and designers who had previously worked on major
aerospace projects, such as the Lunar Excursion Module
and the front-line F-14 fighter aircraft calculated
the internal structural loads and the strength of all
parts of the AerialCat. And finally, a method of
providing high structural reliability for the useful
life of the vehicle was developed using a special
in-service proof load test technique.
This team of
engineering specialists spent nearly a year analyzing,
modifying, and extensively reinforcing a design that
had already met the industry standard of analysis and
strain gage testing. After completion of the design
and construction of a production model, the KME
AerialCat was put through a rigorous test program to
ensure that it could meet all the load conditions used
in design. |
