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Commission approves purchase of 14 Hamilton ventilators using fund balance after manufacturer supply issues
Summary
Montcalm County authorized Emergency Medical Services to buy 14 Hamilton ventilators using fund balance after the supplier of the department's current ventilators was bought and parts/support ended, creating an urgent replacement need for new ambulances and existing fleet.
Montcalm County commissioners on March 24 approved Emergency Medical Services’ request to purchase 14 Hamilton ventilators and to use fund balance as needed to complete the procurement, after EMS staff said the department’s current ventilator supplier was bought out and support ended.
Emergency Services Director Eric Smith told the board that the manufacturer of the county’s existing ventilators was acquired by a competitor who shut down support, leaving the county unable to obtain parts or service and unable to source additional units of that model for three new ambulances being delivered. Smith said short-term workarounds — moving ventilators between ambulances — were in use, but that the situation was unsustainable.
Smith recommended purchasing a single make and model for the entire fleet to reduce staff training complexity and to obtain discounts on consumables if the county purchased 10 or more units. He said the company the department favored was Hamilton (based in Reno, Nevada) and that a purchase would likely take four to six weeks for delivery plus time for on-site training.
Smith said purchasing all new ventilators at once would be an unplanned expenditure and requested board authorization to use fund balance if necessary. Commissioner Peterson moved to allow EMS to purchase 14 Hamilton ventilators using fund balance as necessary; the motion was supported and the board voted in favor.
Smith said trade-in or resale value for the old ventilators would be negligible, and that the state is attempting to redistribute older-generation units to training programs. He said buying a single modern model would reduce per-use consumable costs and improve operational readiness once the units and training arrived.
The board’s approval enables EMS to proceed with procurement and training; staff said they would report back with delivery timing and any additional budget impacts.
