MSA Safety Incorporated announced that its next generation G1 Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) has received U.S. government approval from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and certification from the Safety Equipment Institute (SEI) as compliant to the 2018 Edition of the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 1981 performance standards.
With this approval, the company can begin shipping the new NFPA-compliant SCBA immediately. Earlier this year, the SEI, in collaboration with the NIOSH, established a “Common Announcement Date” at which time all breathing apparatus manufacturers that successfully completed testing would receive SEI certification notification at the same time.
Demand For New Breathing Apparatus Technology
The Common Announcement Date, which was originally anticipated in the second half of August 2019, was postponed to October 9, 2019. Late last week, all breathing apparatus manufactures who had successfully passed required testing, which included MSA, were notified that the Common Announcement Date would be moved to September 30.
“We are extremely pleased that the common announcement date was expedited,” said Jason Traynor, MSA's General Manager for Global Respiratory Protection and Fire Helmets. “The demand for new breathing apparatus technology in the U.S. Fire Service has been very solid, and today we’re excited to know that we can continue to help meet that demand without any further delays related to product approvals and certifications.”
NFPA 1981 Is The Standard On SCBA
As a matter of background, NFPA 1981 is the standard on SCBA for emergency services, establishing respiratory protection and functional requirements. The 2018 revisions in NFPA 1981 include changing the connection requirements for the SCBA regulator, now requiring two distinct actions (i.e., push and pull) to disconnect the regulator from the facepiece. Other changes include a modification to data logging requirements for breathing rate and cylinder pressure.
