Fire Industry News for March 2021

Mathew Baxter is the Founder and CEO of the echelon group with responsibility for the management of echelon Consultancy, Pretium Frameworks and echelon Improvement Partnerships. Mathew has spent most of his working life in the construction sector. The devastating Grenfell Tower fire has prompted what the government has referred to as ‘the biggest change in building safety for a generation’. So what do the Building Safety and the Fire Safety Bills mean in terms of emergent legislatio...

A vast multi-functional business park in South Africa’s Cape Town is the latest prestigious site to be protected by C-TEC’s revolutionary CAST fire alarm system. Owned by Inospace, a rapidly-expanding operator of serviced business parks, the textile exchange is a 2-hectare park located just minutes from Cape Town’s International Airport. Featuring a fully-kitted business hub, warehouse storage areas, high specification meeting rooms and restaurants, the park is home to a wealt...

Viessmann introduced the next-generation of its most popular gas-condensing boiler, the Vitodens 100-W, with industry-leading capabilities for installers. The WiFi-integrated Vitodens 100-W’s new control platform makes commissioning and servicing the boiler easier. It is possible to monitor and make adjustments to customers’ boilers remotely. No third-party controls are required; meaning a Vitodens boiler with ViCare Thermostat provides homeowners with a load-compensating smartp...

Kentec Electronics, a pioneering manufacturer of life-critical control systems, has launched the Ekho wireless fire detection range exclusively to its Kentec Installation Partners (KIP), providing a highly-sophisticated, reliable, convenient, and aesthetically pleasing alternative to wired systems. The launch comes as installers are looking to provide their customers with solutions to prevent the need for costly Waking Watch services, which are being used to mitigate fire safety dangers within...

Nittan are delighted to announce that Videcon Ltd. has now been appointed as a Nittan Elite Distribution Partner. Sadly, Nittan’s Northern Regional Sales Manager, Steve McCarley was unable to present the Nittan Elite wall plaque directly due to the current COVID-19 restrictions. So, Alan Fowlie, Fire Sales Director of Videcon, kindly provided the photographs and reports that he and Jonathan Ginnelly proudly took delivery of their Nittan Elite plaque and are honored to become Nittan Elite...

On Wednesday 3rd March the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, delivered the Spring 2021 budget to the House of Commons. In this, Sunak outlined how the Government would be rebuilding the economy and continuing to financially support its citizens as the country gradually returned to a sense of normal after COVID-19 restrictions. Highly anticipated announcements Despite several leaks to the press, the Chancellor’s announcement was highly anticipated by many industries, businesse...

Dycon Power Solutions Ltd, the Welsh-based developer, and manufacturer of advanced technology power supply products and solutions for the fire, security, building management, and communications’ markets, has recently expanded its fire distribution network to offer the full Dycon range of advanced fire power supplies to the fire systems installation market. In addition to its existing distributors Enterprise Security Distribution and CQR, Dycon has now welcomed KGM Fire & Security Dist...

Mental health wellness is a requirement for firefighters and emergency medical responders. Seeking to address the need is the Helping Emergency Responders Overcome (HERO) Act proposed by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF). In the current 117th Congress, a bipartisan group of 31 legislators led by Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) reintroduced the HERO Act into the House of Representatives. The proposal had previously been passed in the House but not in th...

The risks to firefighters’ health can steadily increase with each year. Though long-term health complications don’t deter department men and women from confronting these hazards, there are ways to reduce the threat of occupational disease. Respiratory problems (like asthma) are among the most common health problems firefighters experience in their tenure. Other, more serious breathing problems, however, may develop decades later. Studies of firefighters employed between 1950 and 20...

In 1965, Greater London Council ordered six Commer Cobs to be used BACVs (Breathing Apparatus Control Vehicles). DYC32C ended up, at least to start with, in Bromley. It remained with the Fire Brigade until 1977 when it was sold out of the service. Of the six ordered, DYC32C is believed to be the only one that survives today. The Commer was, at one point, owned by a builder who cared little for the fire-based heritage and then used it as a van. However, it survived the cement dust and was sold a...

A fault-tolerant network of fire alarm control panels from Advanced has been selected to protect the 3Ts Redevelopment program at the Royal Sussex County Hospital. 36 4-loop MxPro 5 fire panels, 46 repeater panels, and two custom-built AdSpecials panels from UK-manufacturer, Advanced, are to be installed at Brighton’s 3Ts hospital redevelopment as part of phase one of the program. Custom-built panels Phase one involves the construction of a 13-story building with two basement levels, lo...

Vimpex's Hydrosense Water Leak Detection System has been installed in Dublin Airport’s new Visual Control Tower (VCT) to protect the new state of the art facility from water ingress, which could seriously damage electrical, communication and computer networks. Visual Control Tower (VCT) The 87-meters high tower is Ireland’s tallest occupied structure and a commanding new addition to the city’s skyline. It comprises three separate but integrated building elements, the control...

Johnson Controls, the pioneer for smart, healthy and sustainable buildings and architect of OpenBlue connected solutions, is setting a new standard in fire suppression with the launch of ANSUL® NFF 3x3 UL201 Foam Concentrate. This new, patent-pending, Non-Fluorinated Foam (NFF) technology provides fast, effective fire suppression on most Class B hydrocarbon and polar solvent fuel fires. With a longer drain time than most AR-AFFFs, this foam blanket also delivers excellent post-extinguishmen...

The extremely cold winter this year is a reminder of the need for firefighters to be prepared and trained to fight fires in extreme conditions. Extreme environments tend to elevate the hazards of firefighting, which already include trauma, thermal injury, and smoke inhalation. The additional hazards range from minor inconveniences to extreme danger. One element that increases risk during the depths of winter is the increased incidence of fires caused by the additional use of (possibly hazardous...

The risk of fire is thankfully not an immediate threat in most people’s everyday lives. But this has led to a nonchalant attitude where many fail to appreciate the true dangers posed by a fire situation. The pandemic has served to make matters even more complex, and has pushed fire safety on the back burner as facility managers (FMs) turn their attention to COVID-proofing the workplace. Safety at work is now more of a focus than it has ever been, but the race to ensure we can return to wo...

As hospitals battle through the second major wave of the COVID-19 virus, concerns have been raised around the NHS’ on-going maintenance backlog and the impact on safety and infrastructure. In January 2021, figures suggested that the total backlog was the equivalent of the annual running cost of the entire NHS estate, which was around £9.7 billion in 2019/20. fire safety standards compliance Emergency hospital evacuations are inherently more complicated when compared to other publi...

The challenging year of 2020 has identified that international cross-border cooperation related to the prevention of and the response to wildfires is more important than ever. With landscape firefighting missions moving through Europe, there’s no surprise that the pan-European rescEU Commission has recently received a significant investment boost to expand its aerial firefighting capability. Tangent Link Ltd, organizers of the internationally acclaimed series of aerial firefighting events...

Between 4th January and 31st March FLIR firefighters in the EU, UK, Norway, and Switzerland have the chance to enter the “Going above and Beyond” competition to win over 12,000 EUR of FLIR firefighting Thermal Imaging Cameras (TICs) for their department. The winner will receive:  1 x FLIR K55 High-Performance thermal imaging camera 3 x FLIR K2 Compact TICs with MSX® image enhancement feature 1 x FLIR K1 Situational Awareness Camera 1 x FLIR OTM 136 Scion Thermal Monoc...

Following the City of Orlando’s order related to the prohibition of alcohol sales where it is consumed on-premise, the Governor issued an executive order that mirrored the city's prohibition related to a bar, nightclub, and tavern establishments. Additionally, the Governor’s Executive Order, which takes effect at 5 p.m., March 17, 2020, provides specific regulations for restaurants. The City of Orlando, for consistency and to lessen confusion for businesses, will align with the Gove...

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer will join District 5 City Commissioner Regina I. Hill, Fire Chief, Benjamin M. Barksdale Jr., and Black Bee Honey student entrepreneurs to build a beehive at Orlando Fire Station One and announce a new honey product to the Black Bee Honey collection. After the beehive builds, the honey collected from this hive will be used for a new Black Bee Honey product, Flaming Hot Honey, a sweet treat infused with heat from hot peppers. The new product will be available this summer...

Apollo have recently introduced a new conventional Manual Call Point (MCP) into their product portfolio. Following customer feedback, they have created a conventional MCP that utilizes the same operation and resettable mechanism as the popular Apollo Intelligent Manual Call Point. The product, SC2900-001APO, has a new modern and sturdy design, is fitted with an alarm LED and has been designed to operate on a zone of conventional fire detection devices. It is supplied with both 470 Ohm resistors...

FlamePro, a British manufacturing specialist of life-saving garments for firefighters, announces the launch of a first-of-its-kind fire kit, having worked with its suppliers to bring new, innovative technologies to the market. The new valiant structural fire suit represents a significant step forward in firefighter protection, utilizing brand new developments in fabrics, membranes, and components. This includes a new fabric assembly, which incorporates an integrated 3D woven structure and state...

Fire protection solutions manufacturer Advanced has launched two new courses to understand BS 8629 Code of Practice recommendations and the EvacGo system designed to meet these recommendations. ‘A Guide to Meeting BS 8629’ is a continuing professional development course, approved by the FIA and the CPD Certification Service, suitable for fire safety in tall residential buildings. It is delivered online by the Advanced evacuation alert team, Ken Bullock, Advanced’s Business Dev...

Anheuser-Busch and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) are teaming up for the third year to provide critical hydration to volunteer fire departments responding to wildfires through the Emergency Drinking Water for Wildland Firefighters program. The program is an expansion of Anheuser-Busch’s longstanding tradition of providing emergency drinking water and supplies for disaster relief efforts. Anheuser-Busch is continuing its commitment in 2021 by pledging to donate 1.5 million cans...

The Thermite RS3, manufactured by Howe & Howe Technologies, is a wide-chassis, industrial firefighting robot that is remotely operated using a belly-pack controller to provide high-definition video feedback for easy maneuverability, even in difficult conditions. The Los Angeles City Fire Department was the first to buy the bright yellow firefighting vehicle, as announced last fall. Thermite RS3 robot Decon7 Systems has teamed with Howe & Howe Technologies to pioneer the delivery of D7...

The Metropolitan “Metro” Fire Chiefs Association, a section of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) announced their award honorees, and for the first time in its 56-year history, fire chiefs from the largest jurisdictions throughout the world have selected a female officer as Fire Chief of the Year. Mary Cameli, chief of the Mesa Fire and Medical Department in Arizona has earned the Metropolitan Fire Chief of the Year ho...

A major fire safety industry body has endorsed the message from specialist AEI Cables about the importance of using only approved cabling in signal and control equipment following the announcement of a revised version of the Code of Practice. AEI Cables has been highlighting the importance of the systems powered by these cables – including smoke and heat extraction systems – in assisting fire services in the case of firefighting and a safe evacuation in the case of life safety. Fir...

VIKING Life-Saving Equipment A/S has now been operating for a full year in market conditions dictated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the challenging situation, VIKING maintained a high level of activity and achieved satisfactory earnings in 2020. Turnover of nearly 2.6 billion DKK represents a decline of 185 million DKK year over year, yet it is still the second-highest figure ever recorded by the company. Profit before tax of 168.9 million DKK is also lower than the record result in 2019. V...

Globally renowned life-safety systems manufacturer, C-TEC, is heading up a live London Build Online panel discussion. Managing Home fire risks Featuring a host of top industry experts, innovators, and influencers, ‘Raising the grade: the evolution of fire protection in residential dwellings - how new fire detection and alarm system technology can better protect people and property’ webinar will take place on Thursday, 18th March 2021, at 1.30 pm and focus on the following key topic...

Prisoners have played a role in firefighting since 1915 when the first “Conservation Camps” trained incarcerated firefighters with the backing of the Department of Forestry. Especially in the realm of fighting wildfires, incarcerated individuals have in recent years provided low-cost labor amid the dangerous environment of a spreading wildfire.  The numbers of incarcerated persons in the United States expanded threefold during the “War on Crime,” which increased the...