Fort Garry Fire Trucks (FGFT) is a fire apparatus manufacturer located in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
History
Fort Garry Industries (FGI) was established in 1919 as a tire repair shop. Over the years, the company grew and diversified to become a large manufacturer of truck trailers and truck equipment. The first Fort Garry fire truck was built sometime in the 1950s, followed by a few others over the next two decades, all delivered to small fire departments in Manitoba.
In 1979, FGI decided to add fire apparatus to their product line, and gradually increased production over the years. Most trucks were built on commercial chassis for rural Manitoba fire departments, with two KME-chassised custom pumpers delivered to Winnipeg in 1986. Over the years, FGI has built several trucks for the city. In the mid-eighties, the company started to sell trucks in Saskatchewan and Ontario, and gradually across Canada.
Fort Garry has also entered into agreements with American manufacturers. Between 1992 and 1997, FGI was the exclusive Canadian distributor for Pierce Manufacturing, taking over after Superior's sale to E-One. A number of Fort Garry trucks with Pierce chassis were delivered to Canadian fire departments. FGI also delivered a few trucks with American LaFrance chassis in the late 1990s.
In the late 2000s, Fort Garry Industries sold the fire truck manufacturing arm to an executive from the company. Renamed Fort Garry Fire Trucks (FGFT), apparatus was manufactured within the FGI plant in Winnipeg. In 2013, FGFT moved into a new plant in Winnipeg.
Fort Garry is currently the Canadian distributor for Sutphen. In early 2018, Fort Garry became a builder and distributor for Bronto Skylift.
Production
Fort Garry Fire Trucks is currently Canada's largest apparatus manufacturer. They've built approximately 1500 trucks since inception and have delivered apparatus across Canada to both urban and rural departments. FGFT has also made a foray into the United States, with deliveries in the Dakotas and Montana. Other trucks have been delivered to fire departments in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington.
FGFT builds pumpers, tankers, rescues, brush trucks and mini-pumpers on custom and commercial chassis. A few aerial trucks have been built over the years using aerial assemblies from RK, LTI and NovaQuintech.
Sources
- Dubbert, Bob, Shane MacKichan and Joel L. Gebet. Encyclopedia of Canadian Fire Apparatus. Hudson, WI: Iconografix, 2004.
See also
Departments operating Fort Garry apparatus