By Jason S. Darley
Some of the first Darley ZS 3000 pumps delivered to our customers are celebrating a milestone after completing a solid 10 years of in-service time. During its tenure, the Darley ZS product line has taken the industrial market by storm and raised the bar in performance in the industrial firefighting arena.
Performance requirements established by NFPA for industrial pumps require the pump to flow its rated capacity at 100 pounds per square inch (psi), whereas pumps rated at flows 2,000 gallons per minute (gpm) and lower are required to meet the capacity at 150 psi. In addition to these performance points, in the lower ratings the pumps must meet 70% of rated capacity at 200 psi and 50% at 250 psi, in addition to an overload test of full capacity at 165 psi.
The Darley ZS was designed to exceed the traditional industrial rating scale, achieving at its various capacities the NFPA-required performances of the lower rated pumps, providing additional reach on the fireground, and significantly exceeding the capabilities of other pumps in the marketplace.
As with most Darley pump products, the modular design nature of our product offerings allows us to build out our model portfolio to accommodate several drive configurations. While first released as a midship (ZSM 3000), ZS offerings shortly thereafter included engine-driven (ZSE), PTO-driven (PSP), a direct drive (ZSD), and a clutched front mount (ZSF-IC).
In a first of its kind offering, the Darley engineering team took this product to another level in designing a 2ZSM featuring two ZS pumps driven off of a single drive shaft from our MegaTrans™ transmission, which was developed with the advent of the ZS. This pump is capable of flows exceeding 6,000 gpm, while fitting between the frame rails of a fire apparatus in a traditional midship location.
The ZS has become the standard in many of our OEM partners industrial product offerings as well as in fire boat offerings throughout the industry. In fire boat offerings, the ZS product is commonly rated at 3,500 gpm with many boats featuring two or more pumps for significant fire flow capacities.
After a decade of punching the clock to combat fires around the globe, the ZS has proven itself to meet the expectations of our customers and the fires they face with a track record of reliability and unparalleled performance and capabilities.
For more information on the ZS product line, to be connected with a member our regional team, to schedule a tour or for any other opportunities for Darley to serve, feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] or on my cell phone at (715) 456-9390.
Jason S. Darley is North American sales manager for W.S. Darley & Company.
