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Company History
In 1971, Custom Fiberglass was founded as an adjunct to OEM Hamerly Custom Productions. It officially spun off into its own company in 1976, when Hamerly Custom Productions ceased operations, enabling Len Hamerly (then engineering and sales manager of HCP) to expand more aggressively into the Northeast market while limiting the scope of the product line.
Headquartered in Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania (about 60 miles northeast of Harrisburg), with two manufacturing facilities in Deer Lake and Iowa, it builds approximately 30 tanks per week. All of these tanks are custom built. The two current manufacturing sites total 32,000 square feet and employ 45 people. "Our customers are well-informed fire pros who base their decisions on solid engineering and real life proof, rather than on gimmicks and fads" says Hamerly.
In 1995, CFP introduced a complete line of custom slip-in units. These units are complete turnkey packages: reels, hose, pumps, valves, primers, foam systems, hose trays and operator panels. The slip-in unit design, accessory on pallet-type support, provides more streamlined movement of the accessories and less labor.
Another hallmark for CFP was it's initiation at the 1997 IAFC show, of the first elliptical tanks (2,400 gallons on a single axle) with S&S Fire Apparatus. These tanks provided exceptional weight reduction as well as eliminating some of the maintenance associated with the stainless steel tank. This was followed up in 1998 with the first exhibit of the 3,800 gallon elliptical double-axle tank.
First to use reinforced plastics
Custom Fiberglass (CFP) was the first to create reinforced plastics
for fire truck doors, panels and wheel liners, providing a stronger, safer shell
for firefighters. CFP designed the first plastic tank for the fire industry.
Not only did that design innovation make it possible for tank systems to be
integrated more easily into a whole new spectrum of trucks and vehicles, they
were much lighter and non-corrosive, requiring no maintenance.
First styled exterior wet side tank (1980s)
This improvement enabled a smaller and lighter fiber-reinforced polyester tank
to be painted readily in any number of colors (red, gray, white, etc.) and an
even lower center of gravity. The advancements made by Custom Fiberglass
on the wet side tank allowed it to look like a conventional firetruck, tanker or
pumper body in a variety of shapes, such as tee, round bottom, bin or
rectangular.
First company in fire apparatus industry to
offer an unlimited warranty
This unlimited warranty is defined as "for the full life of the tank"
and does not use depreciated value or any other prorated costing tool to diminish
the warranty.
First with $200-per-day out-of-service warranty
Once Custom Fiberglass is notified by the customer that a product is out of
commission, the company backs up its commitment with this warranty.
First transferable warranty
Once a tank is sold to another party, the warranty often becomes null and
void. This transfer option further protects the owner whether original or
not.
