Blessed to protect those who protect
A fire truck takes a corner on a slick road and rolls. An ambulance racing to the scene is struck by another car. Unfortunately, accidents happen to the very people who rush to save us when we’re in one. At CAPE, we work to make our first responders’ vehicles safer, and we’re proud that we have the equipment and the expertise to put vehicles of their size to the test.
Whether you’re testing the crashworthiness of a vehicle or studying occupant protection in a rollover, CAPE has it covered. CAPE has extensive experience crash testing large commercial trucks, fire apparatus, and other emergency vehicles. Our findings have led to significant advancements in safety for the industry and the men and women who utilize those vehicles to save lives.
studying occupant protection
Several fire apparatus cabs have been tested using our 90-degree rollover impact machine to better understand how injuries can occur to firefighters in a rollover. In fact, our findings led to IMMI’s development of RollTek, the first side-roll protection system for fire trucks.
CAPE’s rollover machine has been validated through the rolling of a full vehicle, providing real-world crash sensor data. The machine captures occupant restraint and product performance in a rollover and is built to accommodate large vehicle cabs. It can also be adjusted to various roll conditions.
CAPE has also conducted sled tests with an entire ambulance onboard to study paramedic and patient safety. Our sled testing capabilities can serve as an intermediate step before full-vehicle testing, allowing customers to evaluate occupant protection and vehicle systems without crashing the entire vehicle. Sled testing can be an efficient, repeatable, and less resource-intensive tool for performing the evaluations you need.
