HFUSA - Experts & Thought Leaders

Preparations to re-start the world’s leading trade fair for the fire-fighting, rescue, and emergency services, civil protection, safety, and security are well underway. INTERSCHUTZ will take place from 22-25 June 2022 as a live physical event and, for the first time, will be supplemented by an online component, thus considerably extending its outreach. The core of the event will remain the face-to-face interaction between exhibitors and visitors from every sector, including opportunities to meet in the exhibition halls, on the open-air site, and in the city center of Hannover. The event offers attendees the chance to personally experience a diverse range of products and equipment. unavoidable decision "We are really looking forward to this INTERSCHUTZ reunion with exhibitors, business friends, and visitors in Hannover. The keen anticipation and palpable interest in this long-awaited event across the entire sector are overwhelming. Due to the pandemic, it was necessary to postpone the trade fair twice." "As a result of this difficult but nonetheless unavoidable decision, the anticipation of the event in June is now all the greater. Hannover will once again offer a central platform for countless innovations and innovations for the rescue and fire-fighting services, civil protection, security, and safety," explains Dr. Jochen Köckler, chairman of Deutsche Messe AG. Promotion of networking INTERSCHUTZ is a very special trade show as it generates a wide range of different emotions, images and narratives "INTERSCHUTZ is a very special trade show as it generates a wide range of different emotions, images and narratives. Compassion and commitment play a quite decisive role in this sector and it is heartening to see such across-the-board enthusiasm and commitment to INTERSCHUTZ and to the sharing of know-how and the promotion of networking." "INTERSCHUTZ is the ultimate platform for the international community and we are confident that the next event will build on the success of the previous trade fair in 2015," says Bernd Heinold, project manager of INTERSCHUTZ at Deutsche Messe AG. return of INTERSCHUTZ INTERSCHUTZ 2022 can already boast an encouraging number of bookings. Market leaders have long since booked their company’s trade fair stands, while the event’s long-standing partners, in particular, professional bodies such as the German Fire Protection Association (vfdb), the VDMA Fire Protection Technology Association, the Hannover fire-brigade service, and other representatives from the community of professional fire-fighters, rescue services, technical assistance sector, and civil protection services are enthusiastic about the return of INTERSCHUTZ. Authority Comments The President of the German Fire Protection Technology Association, Dirk Aschenbrenner, declared: "The crises and disasters of the recent period have underlined the importance of both voluntary services and reliable, innovative technical support. INTERSCHUTZ provides the worldwide community of emergency, protection, rescue and security services with a central platform for the further development of organizations, systems, and technical solutions. After seven years, we are finally able to welcome this opportunity for users and industry to get together again and promote the solutions of the future." The managing director of the VDMA, Dr. Bernd Scherer, is also looking forward to INTERSCHUTZ and emphasized the significance of the event for this sector of the industry: "INTERSCHUTZ has always played a role in encouraging innovation in the field of fire-fighting and fire-prevention technology. It has, for example, helped promote smart networked solutions for various operations, as well as reliable real-time communication using 5G networks, digital assistant devices, and electronic drives. Hannover has always been, and still is, the perfect international showcase for exciting user-oriented technological solutions for fire detection and control." benefits of digital technology Emergency apps on mobile devices is a topic that has moved up the agenda The overarching theme of INTERSCHUTZ is the digitization and networking of the various "players" in this sector in Germany and other countries. This topic is becoming more and more important in view of the increasing frequency of major catastrophes and climate change. Numerous exhibitors will therefore be placing the spotlight on the value and potential benefits of digital technology at their stands as well as in forums and symposia. The program presents data exchange technology and networked systems for use in diverse types of operations, including the use of drones in rescue missions. For instance, in areas that are difficult for teams to access, drones can be used to assess conditions more quickly and accurately, as well as to localize and identify dangerous situations. Emergency apps on mobile devices are a topic that has moved up the agenda: these are invaluable when emergency services cannot be reached or communication systems break down, as happened last year when severe flooding in southern and western Germany caused major damage and disruption. Of course, digitization is also crucial in smart routing which uses real-time traffic data to calculate the fastest routes to an incident and has the capacity to manage traffic lights automatically to ensure a green light for emergency services. keynote theme As an important international meeting place INTERSCHUTZ attracts visitors interested in the fire services from across the world The INTERSCHUTZ exhibition portfolio is structured in six different keynote themes. In addition to the large category dedicated to the fire services, the program features rescue and emergency services, civil protection, communication and control center technology, as well as protective equipment. Fire prevention and protection will be featured for the first time as a separate display category in its own right. Suppliers of fire extinguishing equipment and extinguishing agents will exhibit here, alongside exhibitors from the construction sector and the areas of technical fire prevention and building protection. Visitors can expect to find a varied program comprising congresses, workshops, and training sessions, as well as live demonstrations and exciting competitions. The program will boast a total of more than 70 separate events. Nation Days As an important international meeting place, INTERSCHUTZ attracts visitors interested in the fire services from across the world. Continuing the practice of earlier trade fairs, there will be three Nation Days dedicated to a specific nation, this year France, Italy, and the USA. The First Nation Day, on Tuesday 21st June, will feature France, followed by Italy on Wednesday and the USA on Thursday, when American professional rescue teams and volunteers will take center stage.

Fire chiefs from Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States participated in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Urban Fire Forum (UFF) last week at NFPA headquarters in Quincy, Mass. NFPA President and CEO Jim Pauley welcomed the chiefs and provided an overview of the association’s mission, reinforcing the critical role urban fire service leaders play in reaching the Association’s goals and initiatives. Guest List Special guests included Chair of the National Fire Chiefs Council of the United Kingdom, CFO Mark Hardingham; United Kingdom Chief Inspector Crown Premises Fire Safety CFO Peter Holland; Chief Tonya Hoover, administrator of the United States Fire Administration (Acting); International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) CEO and Executive Director Chief Rob Brown; and Chief Stephan Wevers, president of the Netherlands Fire Service and Federation of the European Fire Officer Associations. Chiefs Hoover, Holland, Hardingham, and Wevers participated virtually. Documents presented The group endorsed four important documents as official UFF-Metro Chiefs position papers: Data and the Modernization of the Fire Service COVID Long Haulers – What Chiefs Need to Know Intelligence on Homegrown Violent Extremist – Domestic Terrorism Effect of Crew Size on Fire Fighter Health and Safety Addressing the challenges Position papers endorsed by the UFF Chiefs provide the information and resources to address the challenges “Today’s firefighters respond to a broad range of emergencies and catastrophic events that have become commonplace in the United States and throughout the world. From natural disasters, such as wildfires, hurricanes, and ice storms, to domestic terrorism and beyond, chiefs must have data and up-to-date intelligence at their fingertips to make decisions that result in safe and effective outcomes for both their firefighters and the public they serve." "To adequately manage these situations fire chiefs must work with both their government and non-government partners. The position papers endorsed by the Urban Fire Forum Chiefs provide the information and resources needed to effectively address the everchanging challenges facing today’s fire service,” said NFPA Metro Chiefs Executive Secretary Russ Sanders and Coordinator of the event. COVID Haulers Sanders points to the particular timeliness of the COVID Long Haulers and Effect of Crew Size on Fire Fighter Health and Safety, as well as other important topics discussed, such as the National Firefighter (Cancer) Registry, the Digitization of the Fire Service, Outthink Wildfire, Preparedness for Domestic Terrorism, and the latest research reports from the Fire Protection Research Foundation, FM Global, and UL Fire Safety Research Institute. The presentations and deliverables for all Urban Fire Forum’s since 2013 can be viewed on the NFPA-Urban Fire Forum website. participating chiefs The officers of the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro) Executive Board make up the core group of the UFF. These chiefs are joined by a select group of at-large Metro Chiefs. This year’s participating chiefs were: Chief Rob Brown – CEO and Executive Director, International Association of Fire Chiefs Chief Mary Cameli – Mesa Fire Department, Mesa Ariz. Commissioner Jack Dempsey – Boston Fire Department, Boston, Mass. Chief John Donnelly, Sr., D.C. Fire & EMS Services Department, Washington, D.C. Chief Tiffany Green – Prince George’s Co. Fire & EMS Department, Largo, Md. Chief Mark Hardingham – Chair, National Fire Chiefs Council, Birmingham, England (Virtual) Chief Peter Holland – Chief Inspector Crown Premises Fire Safety, London, England (Virtual) Chief Tonya Hoover – Acting Administrator, United States Fire Administration (Virtual) Chief Kara Kalkbrenner – Phoenix Fire Department, Phoenix, Ariz. Chief John Lane – Metro Immediate Past President, Winnipeg, MB Chief Don Lombardi – Metro President, West Metro Fire Protection District, Lakewood, Colo. Chief Ernest Malone – Metro Treasurer, Indianapolis Fire Department, Indianapolis, Ind. Chief Samuel Pena – Houston Fire Department, Houston, Tex. Chief Robert Rocha – Metro Vice President, Corpus Christi Fire Department, Corpus Christi, Tex. Chief Edward “Loy” Senter – Metro Secretary, Chesterfield Co. Fire and EMS, Chesterfield, Va. Chief Gina Sweat – Memphis Fire Department, Memphis, Tenn. Commissioner Adam Thiel – Philadelphia Fire Department, Philadelphia, Pa. Chief Stephan Wevers – President of the Federation of European Union Fire Chiefs, Netherlands, (Virtual) Event Presentations In addition to the Chiefs listed above, event presentations were made by NFPA staff members and others as follows: Christopher Combs – Special Agent in Charge, FBI, San Antonio Division (Virtual) Casey Grant – DSRAE, LLC Dr. Stephen Kerber, Vice President, Research Director, UL Fire Safety Research Institute Dr. Lori Moore-Merrell – President & CEO, International Public Safety Data Institute Jim Pauley – President & CEO, National Fire Protection Association Sreenivasan Ranganathan, Research Director, Fire Protection Research Foundation Dr. Miriam Siegel – Lead Epidemiologist, National Fire Fighter Registry, NIOSH Dr. Denise Smith – Director, First Responder Health and Safety Lab, Skidmore College Michael Spaziani, Manager, Fire Service Programs, FM Global Michele Steinberg – Director, Wildfire Division, National Fire Protection Association  About UFF The Urban Fire Forum brings together fire chiefs who are responsible for protecting some of the largest urban centers in the world. The program objectives are to provide the chiefs an opportunity to learn from their peers and expert speakers, and for NFPA to stay abreast of current trends and needs in the fire service. As part of the overall mission of the UFF, chief officers share UFF deliverables and related information with fire officers from all over the world. About Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association The Metropolitan Fire Chiefs (Metro) Association brings together fire chiefs from large metropolitan fire departments to share information and focus on major issues affecting policy changes in the U.S. and abroad. Its members belong to the IAFC and NFPA and are the fire chiefs of jurisdictions with minimum staffing of 350 fully paid career firefighters.

Hannover Fairs USA, subsidiary of Deutsche Messe, announced it has made the decision to postpone its U.S. launch of INTERSCHUTZ USA until October 2021. The event was originally scheduled for Oct. 14-17, 2020 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, PA. Organizers worked closely with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB), and the City of Philadelphia through the Philadelphia Fire Department to evaluate the situation and make the final difficult decision. foundation for a successful premiere "Our team gave it everything we had and were committed to running the show in the safest manner possible." said Show Manager Rachel Lesczynski. "I'm grateful for the support we have received from our exhibiting companies, our attending participants, and from the Philadelphia Fire Department and PHLCVB. Everyone put every effort they had into the October 2020 launch of INTERSCHUTZ USA. Now our sights are set on 2021." Martin Folkerts, Global Director INTERSCHUTZ, Deutsche Messe stated, "The market response we've seen shows us that it is the right decision to expand the INTERSCHUTZ network into the USA. We are proud of our U.S. team, which has laid an excellent foundation for a successful premiere in 2021." long-term commitment INTERSCHUTZ is an internationally respected brand, and Philadelphia is an internationally respected city" "We are disappointed that Hannover Fairs USA could not move forward with their launch of INTERSCHUTZ USA," said Deputy Managing Director, Fire Commissioner and OEM Director, Adam Thiel. "INTERSCHUTZ is an internationally respected, world-class brand, and Philadelphia is an internationally respected, world-class city. For the City of Philadelphia to be host to the US launch of a brand like INTERSCHUTZ makes perfect sense." "We are happy to know that INTERSCHUTZ has made a long-term commitment to Philadelphia and we are ready to get started on planning for October 2021." fire-rescue trade show "The past few months of planning are a testament to the committed partnership between all parties," said Gregg Caren, President & CEO of the PHLCVB. "This decision wasn't an easy one, but the right one given current circumstances. We look forward to welcoming INTERSCHUTZ USA to Philadelphia in 2021 and beyond, for what will be many years of extraordinary events." INTERSCHUTZ USA is the U.S. launch of INTERSCHUTZ, Deutsche Messe's global fire-rescue trade show and conference brand. INTERSCHUTZ is held every 5 years in Hannover, Germany and continues to be the one of the most renowned fire-rescue tradeshow and conference. INTERSCHUTZ USA will now be launched Oct. 13-16, 2021, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Hannover Fairs USA has been and will continue to reach out to all committed participants in INTERSCHUTZ USA to share this decision. They have also shared that they will not attempt to hold INTERSCHUTZ USA as a virtual event in 2020