Singapore is the first country in Southeast Asia to operate the world’s first fully electric Pump Ladder.
Singapore is the first country in Southeast Asia to operate the EPL, which is the world’s first fully electric Pump Ladder. (Photo: HTX)
Minister for Home Affairs and for Law Mr K Shanmugam and Minister for Communications and Information and Second Minister for Home Affairs Mrs Josephine Teo launched Singapore’s first Electric Pump Ladder (EPL) at the Milipol Asia-Pacific – TechX Summit 2024 exhibition at the Marina Bay Sands convention centre. This is a major milestone for the Home Team as the electrification of its fleet is a major part of the Singapore government’s GreenGov.SG initiative to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045.
Minister for Home Affairs and for Law Mr K. Shanmugam (middle); Minister for Communications and Information and Second Minister for Home Affairs Mrs Josephine Teo (second from left); SCDF Commissioner COMR Eric Yap (second from right); Chairman HTX, Permanent Secretary (Home Affairs Development) and Permanent Secretary (Social and Family Development) Mr Aubeck Kam (right); and Chief Executive, HTX and Deputy Secretary (Development), MHA Mr Chan Tsan (left) launched the EPL at the Milipol Asia-Pacific – TechX Summit 2024 exhibition. (Photo: HTX)
The EPL is designed to facilitate the speedy deployment of firefighters to fire incidents. Its dual electric motors can generate up to 50,000 Nm of torque, allowing the EPL to achieve rapid acceleration even in heavy traffic. Its low centre of gravity
and balanced axle load distribution gives the EPL greater stability than vehicles of similar size when turning corners, reducing the risk of accidents.
The EPL is designed for enhanced manoeuverability. As it is shorter in length compared to other Pump Ladders, the EPL has greater agility in navigating tight spaces such as crowded car parks or congested roads. In addition, its all-wheel steering allows
the EPL to have a much smaller turning radius compared to traditional Pump Ladders, allowing it to manoeuver the narrow streets and tight alleyways of congested urban neighborhoods more easily. When needed, the EPL can even be driven in “crab
steering” mode, which allows it to be driven diagonally.
These features allow the EPL to quickly reach fire incidents in congested traffic. Given how rapidly fires can spread, the time savings of a few minutes or even seconds can mean the difference between life and death!
The EPL has capabilities such as enhanced manoeuverability and a height-adjustable chassis. (Video: HTX)
The EPL is also designed to facilitate the faster and safer ingress and egress of firefighters from the vehicle. Its chassis is height-adjustable, allowing the firefighters – with their heavy and bulky equipment – to board or step off the
vehicle near ground-level safely and quickly. With its robust connectivity, the EPL enhances operational efficiency, improve response times, and ensures the safety of firefighters and the community. As the EPL is fully digitised, firefighters can
oversee its functions from a tablet if necessary, enhancing operational efficiency.
In addition, the EPL is designed for pump and roll operations in both the forward and rear directions, enabling firefighters to use the pump and move the EPL at the same time, gaining further precious time savings for potential life-and-death firefighting
operations.
If the fire scene is too dangerous for firefighters to enter, the EPL is equipped with a radio-controlled firefighting robot, the Modular Firefighting Machine (MFM), which can function as a fire extinguishing robot!
What is the range of the EPL? The vehicle can travel a distance of up to 600 km when the high voltage battery of the vehicle is coupled with the Energy Backup Unit. The Energy Backup Unit has the capability to automatically recharge the vehicle's onboard
battery and generate electricity for equipment and auxiliary devices, making the EPL suitable for long deployments.