We are nearing the end of our Featured Ambulance Dealer series; we just have a few more dealerships to highlight. Today, we bring you First Priority Emergency Vehicles. First Priority is our ambulance dealer for New Jersey. They are also a Braun Authorized Service Center and Remount facility.

First Priority Emergency Vehicles started as a division of a fire equipment company in 1988. 10 years later, they diversified as a separate emergency vehicle company. Today, they offer new and used ambulances, fire apparatus, remounts, service repairs, and conversions for first responder vehicles. A mix of 36 full-time and part-time employees work hard at the dealership to ensure all of their customer's needs are met from sales to service. Customer Service is especially important to them. They operate a mobile service unit 24/7 for onsite repairs. They also command 4 service vehicles and run 2 fixed service bases.

An interesting fact about First Priority is that they were recognized as 2010 Exporter of the Year in the automotive category by the US government. The dealership facilitates a lot of emergency vehicle exports, focused mainly on Africa and the Middle East due to high demand there.  Their international experience and high volume of export sales makes them a true leader in the industry.

First Priority Emergency Vehicles became a Braun dealer in 2005 when our previous distributor for the area went out of business. In New Jersey, Braun is recognized as a legacy brand. It's very well established in the territory and when the other distributor closed shop, the demand for our units remained high. Therefore, First Priority picked up the territory. These days, their seasoned staff of sales professionals includes Ken Clark for North Jersey, Ted Rawley for Central Jersey and Mike Smith and Freddy Hundt for South Jersey. The Chief XL is the most popular model in their region due to the spaciousness of the storage and the high payload; the unit also comes with a ton of great features.

Aside from sales, remounts are a large piece of First Priority's business and a primary factor for bringing in new customers. Owner Bob Freeman believes that Braun is the most remounted ambulance in the industry due to the longevity of the box. In the current economy, departments are getting squeezed on funds and it's important to consider if a new ambulance can be successfully remounted down the road. At First Priority, they recently remounted a 1991 Braun; it served the customer very well over the years. Another "famous" remount at the dealership was a Long Island Community Hospital truck that was crushed in the World Trade Center. The Braun box was remounted in their body shop and then resold!

Over the years, First Priority Emergency Vehicles has established a great relationship with Braun. They appreciate the structure of the vehicle and body strength that is present on every ambulance. One of their favorite memories of working with us was the order for St. Claire Hospital. The largest ambulance order in New Jersey, the hospital ordered 12 units in 2008. They were all Express models with a mix of ALS & BLS transport capabilities.

First Priority Emergency Vehicles has two locations: 2444 Ridgway Blvd, Bldg 500, Manchester, NJ 08759 and 166 Gold Mine Road, Flanders, NJ 00836. You can reach the Manchester location at 880-247-7725 or Flanders at 800-526-5106.

We especially want to thank owner of First Priority Emergency Vehicles, Bob Freeman, for taking the time to discuss his dealership with us for this blog. In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, Bob made it a priority to provide us details about his company while members of his staff got called out to help with the rescue and cleanup efforts. Now that's dedication! Thank you for everything you and your staff do for the EMS industry!