Craftsmen Industries Builds a Compact Mobile Police Station for St. Louis Metropolitan Police
A full-size command trailer is not always the right tool for a police department. Sometimes the job is to bring officers and services into neighborhoods and onto streets where a large vehicle will not fit. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department needed exactly that, and Craftsmen Industries worked with the department to build a compact mobile police station on a Sprinter van.
Craftsmen Industries builds mobile police stations for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Craftsmen Industries built the St. Louis mobile police station on a Sprinter van. The St. Louis police van includes office workstations and communications controls. The mobile police station is designed to fit into smaller spaces.
The Challenge: Mobilize Police Services in a Compact Vehicle
Craftsmen Industries designed the St. Louis police van to be transportable and fit smaller spaces.
The department needed a vehicle that could mobilize its team and services. Craftsmen and the department worked together on a Sprinter van designed to be transported easily and fit into smaller spaces than a trailer would allow.
- Sprinter van suited to smaller spaces
- Interior workspace for the mobile team
- Department-specific exterior identification
A Dedicated Workspace Behind the Cab
Craftsmen Industries fitted the St. Louis police van with an interior office workstation.
A wall-mounted counter provides the interior work surface, with two monitors above it and mesh-back office chairs alongside. White overhead cabinets place storage above the desk, under-cabinet lighting illuminates the counter and electrical outlets sit near the work area.
Communications and Emergency Controls in the Cab
In the cab, a radio control head, microphones and a separate lighting and siren control panel place the vehicle's communications and emergency controls within the driving area. The office in the back and the controls in the front work together as one mobile station.
Carrying the Station Beyond the Van Doors
Craftsmen Industries added an awning, camera mast and roof equipment to the St. Louis mobile police station.
A side awning extends from the van with lights along its underside, creating a sheltered area outside the vehicle. Above the roof, a camera mast, light bar and dome unit are visible. These features extend the station's working area and presence past the van's footprint.
Recognizable Department Graphics
Craftsmen Industries wrapped the St. Louis police van in department graphics.
The body wrap combines the Gateway Arch, department insignia, blue-and-black graphics and large mobile police station lettering. The design gives a compact vehicle a clear identity so residents know immediately what it is. Large lettering on the sides makes the vehicle readable from a distance, which helps when the station is parked at a community event or a busy corner.
- Gateway Arch and department insignia
- Blue-and-black graphics
- Large mobile police station lettering
Why Vans Work for Mobile Police Stations
Craftsmen Industries builds mobile command and response vehicles on vans, trucks, trailers and coaches.
The St. Louis project shows the value of matching the platform to the mission. A Sprinter van brings office workstations, communications controls and department identity into a vehicle that can be transported easily and parked where larger units cannot. Craftsmen's response-vehicle work also includes a police command van with a retractable surveillance mast and a customized SWAT truck.
About Craftsmen Industries
Craftsmen Industries has been a custom fabricator of mission-ready specialty vehicles since 1982. Its in-house teams design, engineer, fabricate and brand each build under one roof at a 127,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in St. Charles, Missouri, with more than 225 skilled craftspeople on staff. The facility holds AS9100D and ISO 9001:2015 quality management certifications. For the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, Craftsmen Industries delivered a compact mobile police station that brings the department's team and services into the field.