They're the first on the scene when tragedy strikes.
Help, arriving in the form of a fire truck, sometimes built by Pierce Manufacturing.
Pierce Manufacturing's fire trucks can be found across the nation and around the world.
"When you build something here at Pierce you're building something unique, you're building a life-saving apparatus that's given out into a community," said production supervisor Chad Miller.
Appleton-based Pierce Manufacturing began in 1913 and was acquired by Oshkosh Corporation in 1996,
"We are the predominant manufacturer of firefighting apparatus," shared Vice President if HR, Kim Reese.
Pierce employs 2200 workers who put between 1300 and 1600 hours into each truck they make.