Las Vegas in Fire Sale Mystery

LAS VEGAS -- NetWorld+Interop -- A new meaning of the term "fire sale" has been invented here at the NetWorld+Interop tradeshow, courtesy of Net Optics Inc., a manufacturer of monitoring equipment used in security and network management applications.

Net Optics' booth boasts a shiny red Chicago fire truck and staff dressed in fire brigade uniforms -- which has got people wondering (a) why Net Optics is doing it, and (b) whether they could afford to buy a fire truck, too.

The answer to the first question is that the fire truck relates to security, Net Optics' main business, and "people like the official look" of the uniforms, according to Bob Shaw, president and CEO of the Sunnyvale, Calif., company. Shaw missed the opportunity of saying the security market was on fire or that N+I was ablaze with talk about his product.

Net Optics says it bought the 1981 LaFrance fire truck on eBay. It declines to say how much it cost, but says it was surprisingly inexpensive and cost effective as a booth prop.”

It may be pure coincidence, but a “LaFrance Ward Pumper 700 gal” firetruck is currently up for auction on eBay -- see auction details. The auction was started on May 2 at a starting price of $3,495.00, and it closes today at 6:48 PM Pacific time. No bids had been received at press time.Is this a second LaFrance firetruck for sale on eBay, or could this be Net Optics hoping to offload its pumper? The seller on eBay, a “2yellowrose”, has a number of other items up for auction, including a water bottling plant, which would be a suitable booth prop for Net Optics’ other products -- network taps.

— James Rogers, Site Editor, Next-gen Data Center Forum