| The IAFC have announced the merger of GPSS with ESCi to form Emergency Services Consulting International |
The new company will bear the name Emergency Services Consulting International and operate as a for-profit subsidiary of the IAFC. Mark Light, current president of GPSS and executive director of the IAFC, will lead the new company as chief executive officer. Jack Snook, founder of ESCi, will continue to serve as president and chief operating officer. Emergency Services Consulting International (ESCI), headquartered in Oregon, will continue to operate existing field locations in Virginia, California and North Carolina. Current associates of both GPSS and ESCi will remain with the new company.
ESCi is a well-established international firm, having served over 600 clients since 1976. ESCi specializes in a broad range of consulting services, including master planning, cooperative efforts, evaluations, management consulting, executive searches, strategic planning and resource-deployment studies. Through the merger with GPSS, ESCi plans to broaden its availability and accessibility to state, regional, and federal emergency service providers.
Since its inception in 2008, GPSS has offered customized solutions by experts in emergency services to address changing conditions and challenges of unique size and complexity at the local, state, national and international levels. GPSS has offered such services as fire and EMS assessments, accreditation visits, emergency management planning for disasters, efficiency studies, fire state design and relocation, incident after-action review, planning and review of building plans for government and the private sector, public-safety staffing studies and national program development.
"The IAFC and ESCi have had a long and productive relationship," said IAFC President Larry J. Grorud, CFO, MIFireE. "The IAFC welcomes this merger to create a robust new company that combines the expertise and reputation of the ESCi and GPSS teams. They share a commitment to honesty, integrity and service and to providing measurable results for their clients."
Speaking on behalf of ESCi, President Jack Snook expressed enthusiasm about expanding this long-standing relationship. "This merger will greatly enhance the collective ability to deliver needed consulting services and assistance to IAFC membership, the fire service and other emergency service providers," he said. "In light of the current global economic crisis, emergency-service providers must find better and more cost-effective ways of serving their communities. ESCi has 33 years of successful experience doing just that."
The Board of Directors for the new ESCI:
- Chair - Jeffrey Johnson, Fire Chief, Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue (Oregon)
- Vice Chair - David Austin, Senior Consultant, ESCI
- Secretary - Andrea Gardner, City Manager, City of Copperas Cove (Texas)
- Member - Jack Snook, President and Chief Operations Officer, ESCI
- Member - Jack Krakeel, County Administrator, Fayette County (Georgia)