HazMat Protection Accessories news

After 12 successful years as BAFE’s CEO, and latterly as CEO and Director of FireQual, BAFE announces that Stephen Adams has stepped down from the business (with effect from 7th September 2021). Stephen joined BAFE in 2009, and oversaw the move into our current offices within the Fire Service College at Morton-in-Marsh, where he has been central to the development of the business and the respect it has within the UK fire market.  BAFE SP206 Kitchen Fire Protection Systems Stephen h...

Digital transformation has become an imperative for the oil and gas industry, and connected technologies have proven especially valuable for maximizing uptime and revenue. When production is taken offline, getting back up and running quickly, efficiently, and safely is critical to mitigating costs and preventing future unplanned downtime. Whether downtime is the result of a planned turnaround, shutdown, or an unforeseen outage, these short-term operations face many unique challenges. For exampl...

The new President of the German Firefighters Association (DFV), Karl-Heinz Banse, and the Deputy Federal Managing Director, Rudolf Römer, visited the site in the Danube Valley on September 7 and met with the new CEO of Magirus, Thomas Hilse, for their first exchange of ideas. They discussed the significantly increased needs and requirements of fire departments and the resulting new progress in firefighting technologies. Fighting forest fires Thomas Hilse, who took over as CEO at Magirus...

South Yorkshire’s fire service has won a national award for its response to a major wildfire, which crews spent 22 days tackling last year. The fire affected a huge area of rare peat moorland, which is a site of special scientific interest and home to several rare species of animals and plants. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue won the Incident Management Award at CIR Magazine’s Business Continuity Awards 2021 for its work in coordinating the response to the incident, which inv...

Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service (MFRS) is urging businesses that have reopened their doors not to overlook fire safety and ensure it remains a top priority in the workplace. The call comes after many businesses had to implement and enforce new ways of working due to the pandemic. MFRS is reminding businesses about the everyday fire risks in the workplace and both the legal and moral responsibility to ensure premises are safe from fire. Many businesses had to respond quickly to the pandemic...

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service is once again calling for people in Askern, Rossington, Stocksbridge, Dearne, Birley, and Cudworth to join their on-call firefighting teams. Despite two hugely successful recruitment campaigns in the last year, there are still some spaces at each of the above stations that the service would like to fill. On-call firefighters play a vital role in crewing fire stations right across the county. Trained to the same high standards as full-time firefighters,...

South Yorkshire’s fire service is up for a major national award celebrating its work with diverse communities. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service has been shortlisted in the ‘diverse company’ category at this year’s National Diversity Awards. The service has been shortlisted for its work to train and empower staff, promote inclusive recruitment processes and involve diverse communities in its work. The nomination pitches SYFR up against seven other organizati...

Fire and rescue services across the UK worked with partners to respond to the impact of COVID-19. Making a difference provides a series of short case studies to show the range of activities that services did over the last 18 months; it recognizes that the pandemic is not over and services continue to help communities in many different ways.  Phil Garrigan is the NFCC lead for the COVID-19 response. He said: “The pandemic was unlike anything else we have...

While they all hoped 2020 would see the end of lockdowns in Australia, 2021 has brought on new pandemic-driven challenges as the COVID-19 Delta variant continues to affect the majority of states across the nation. New South Wales and Victoria are experiencing some of the harshest lockdowns Australia has seen in an effort to ‘stop the spread’ of the highly contagious Delta variant. Impact on the local businesses These frequent and prolonged lockdowns are having a significant impact...

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has approved the first UK GDPR certification scheme criteria. Recently UKAS accredited Age Check Certification Scheme (ACCS) has developed criteria for two schemes relating to age assurance and children’s online privacy. This is a great example of UKAS working with regulators to bring important improvements in safety and child protection in innovative emerging sectors.

South Yorkshire’s firefighters have responded to less deliberate fires so far this summer than in recent years, according to figures released by the county’s fire service. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue (SYFR) says it has attended 997 deliberate fire incidents across May, June, and July this year–a seven percent reduction compared to the 1,073 attended during the same period last year. Against the average for May, June, and July across the last three years–which...

Cancer is a hidden killer amongst the force. In fact, firefighters have a 68% higher risk of being diagnosed with cancer than the general population! Why? It’s simple, exposure to cancer-causing particles is high. But, this hidden killer can be stopped in its tracks, with careful PPE inspection and maintenance. Here, Reece Buchner, Technical Sales Manager at FlamePro, a British specialist manufacturer of life-saving garments for firefighters, explains how to maintain and inspect the kit....

Two South Yorkshire firefighters are among a 20-strong team bidding to cycle the length of the UK to raise mental health awareness and thousands for charity. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s Mark Peart and Paul Simmonite are joining firefighting colleagues from Suffolk for the 10-day, 1,000-mile ride from Lands End to John O’Groats in September. The team is aiming to raise £50,000 for The Fire Fighters Charity, which supports the mental, physical, and social needs of a...

Holding accreditation provides many benefits to a wide range of organizations. In addition to demonstrating technical competence to the local market, it can also provide confidence to overseas markets through multilateral agreements (MLAs) whereby the reports and certificates issued by bodies accredited by signatories of these accreditation agreements receive global recognition. This benefit is essential to UKAS customers operating on the global market, so it is vital that UKAS retains its EA,...

Gentoo is investing over £32 million over four years in internal refurbishment works across its housing stock for 60,000 residents. In an early notification published on Contracts Finder last month, Gentoo set out details of its intentions. The contract is divided into three lots with lot 3 focused on high-rise buildings and the installation of sprinkler systems and fire alarms. The value of lot 3 alone is £7 million and will be awarded on a framework basis for up to six providers...

UKAS is pleased to report that the UKAS IAF Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MLA) scope has recently been extended in the area of management systems certification, with two food/feed schemes being added at Levels 4 and 5: FSSC 22000 is a Food Safety Management System sector scheme that builds upon ISO 22000. UKAS currently accredits 10 Certification Bodies to provide this service. FAMI-QS is a proprietary management system standard in its own right for the specialty feed ingre...

Following the withdrawal of the UK from the EU, the Government introduced the UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) regime, as part of the domestic legal framework introduced for goods being placed on the GB market. Review of the UKAS publication GEN 5 As the UKCA regime has developed, a review of the UKAS publication GEN 5 has been undertaken, leading to some updates to the latest edition of this document. Changes include updated names and contact details of the Competent Authorities and the expansi...

Organizations have long understood the many potential business benefits of holding certification to an international management system, such as the widely recognized ISO 9001 quality, ISO 14001 environmental, and ISO 45001 occupational health and safety standards. More than being a certificate to hang on the wall, certification is a powerful business tool, providing a degree of certainty in uncertain times. Externally, certification offers the potential to lower barriers to trade by opening doo...

Airbus Defense and Space, the German prime for the tri-national Future Combat Air System Program (FCAS), has contracted Fraunhofer FKIE and DMI Solutions to develop an Explainable AI (XAI) demonstrator. The project is realized jointly with the FCAS Expert Commission on the responsible use of new technologies. Airbus Defense and Space, the German prime for the tri-national Future Combat Air System Program (FCAS), has contracted Fraunhofer FKIE and DMI Solutions to develop an Explainable AI (XAI)...

Firefighters across the Yorkshire and Humber region have revealed new, advanced fire kits following a joint procurement deal. As part of a tri-service agreement, all firefighters in South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, and the Humberside region will begin wearing new fire tunics and trousers. For crews in South Yorkshire and Humberside, the personal protective equipment (PPE) revamp will also feature a pioneering, multi-function rescue jacket to reflect the changing role of the modern firefighter....

From April 1982 to the present day, Automatic has completed in excess of 50 individual projects on the Janssen Pharmaceutical site in Little Island, Cork. All Sprinkler Systems were designed, installed, tested, and commissioned to FM Global standards and subsequently maintained for Janssen. It is a relationship that bears testimony to the commitment of consistent delivery in partnership with Janssen and the respective Design Teams involved. They are very proud that over 80% of the work in the P...

Six young people have successfully graduated from a fire and police development program after youth engagement work got back underway with a bang after long months of lockdown. The group-all aged 16 to 25 years old–took part in a life-enhancing 12-week personal development course known as Prince’s Trust Team Program. Community initiative The South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue and South Yorkshire Police-led initiative offers work experience, qualifications, practical skills, communi...

The fire service has marked the lifting of coronavirus restrictions by attending its first public safety event in months. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue firefighters and safety officers were among those who attended a family fun day at Shirecliffe Heliport-with the event doubling up as a charity fundraiser. A fire engine and chip pan display unit- which educates people about the dangers of pouring water onto hot oil – were also there, alongside vehicles and staff from other emerge...

Darley built pump serial # 1003 in 1940. It is an M500 model that pumped 500 gallons a minute at 120 psi when first built. In April of 2021, it came back to them for repairs. Given that it was more than 80 years old, it was in surprisingly good condition when they got it back. The pump was sent to them by Chief James Maxon of Fountain, CO, Fire Department. New chief in Colorado Springs When they received the pump, they could tell it had been very well cared for but needed several repairs In...

A team at the heart of coordinating fire service volunteers who supported South Yorkshire’s pandemic response has been honored with a special award. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s three-strong ‘volunteers cell’ oversaw the work of 200 fire service staff who volunteered to fulfill multiple requests for support from partner agencies as they strived to keep essential services running during the first stages of the pandemic. Those tasks included making food and pre...

The National Quality Infrastructure (NQI) partners, BSI, National Physical Laboratory (NPL), and UKAS with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy have published the Standards for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, an action plan to unlock the value of standards for innovation. Joint Action Plan This joint Action Plan is intended to enable the NQI’s activities across standards, measurement, and accreditation to support innovation and technological change for the fourth...

Artificial intelligence is set to supercharge the way safety advice is delivered to the public, following the launch of a new service by fire officers in South Yorkshire. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service has launched a brand new system that allows local residents to get a virtual fire safety check from the comfort of their own homes. All people have to do is text a number from their mobile phones, or scan a QR code, and they will be asked a series of questions on things such as smoke a...

Wiltrading STACE will expand the offerings of the ARA Fire, increasing ARA capabilities across Australia.  Effective as of the 1st of May 2021, Mr. Edward Federman, ARA Executive Chair and Managing Director, announced the acquisition of Wiltrading STACE, “I am pleased to announce the acquisition of Wiltrading STACE, a service provider for life safety systems with branches in Perth, Karratha, Darwin, Cairns and Sydney. Wiltrading STACE will become an important part of the ARA Fire and...

JBM Power will expand the offerings of the ARA Electrical division, increasing ARA capabilities across Australia. As at 1 April 2021, the ARA Group acquired JBM Power, designer and manufacturer of switch boards and switch rooms. Mr Edward Federman, ARA Executive Chairman and Managing Director stated: “The acquisition of JBM Power completes our turnkey offering and truly does make ARA Electrical a one stop shop in the market. The switch room business will also provide opportuniti...

UKAS is delighted to announce that Lorraine Turner, UKAS Accreditation Director, has been appointed as a Member of the newly formed Interim Industry Competence Committee (IICC). The formation of the IICC coincides with the recent announcement of the Building Safety Bill in Parliament by Robert Jenrick MP, Secretary of State for Housing. The Bill outlines a program of actions aimed at preventing a recurrence of the problems that contributed to the Grenfell Tower fire. Foremost amongst these meas...