Building Fire Safety - News

BAFSA’s advice service has recently seen a number of enquiries regarding installation certificates for residential sprinkler systems. BS 9251: 2021 and its previous 2014 iteration talks about ‘compliance certificates’ as a requirement for new sprinkler systems and includes a note saying these should not be confused with ‘certificates of conformity’. Relevant approving body This is because only contractors who are third-party certificated can issue these as the Co...

A landlord has been found guilty of a series of fire safety failings that left residents with only one option to escape a fire: via a restaurant with a metal shutter that was closed at night. Inspection London Fire Brigade inspectors visited the takeaway restaurant on New North Road in Islington after concerns were raised by one of the tenants and the local council.  There was residential accommodation on the first and second floors of the building with the takeaway on the ground floor....

The Extinguishing Section of Euralarm has published a guidance document on maintenance of extinguishing systems/equipment, controlled by electronic detection systems. Unlike a production tool, a fire protection system is on operational standby and is only activated in the event of a fire. Some faults may appear without being detectable, by a non-specialist operator. This is why it is necessary to carry out regular maintenance visits by specialists, to confirm the level of performance of the ins...

Continuing to invest in the training and development of colleagues, Checkmate Fire Solutions (Checkmate Fire) is delighted to finish 2021 in style – with a veritable bouquet of new qualifications and accreditations! As an ongoing process, the company ensures that their people have the opportunity to further both their careers and their expertise within the business. Through additional training and qualifications, Checkmate Fire aim to have the most motivated and knowledgeable team possibl...

AW Hainsworth is proud to announce that they have been accredited with ISO 45001:2018, which focuses on occupational health and safety in the workplace. ISO is recognized worldwide as a respected standards body, and this standard focuses on improving employee safety, reducing workplace risks and creating better, safer working conditions. This reinforces the company’s commitment to their workforce by ensuring they provide their employees a healthy and safe place of work. ISO 45001:2018 ac...

Vimpex Ltd, Europe’s foremost independent manufacturer of fire alarm ancillaries is pleased to announce the all-new, slick, and modern looking StroBell®, the combined Fire Alarm Bell and Visual Indicating Device. The all-new StroBell® has been upgraded to fall in line with the innovative ClamBell® which was released at the beginning of 2021. Installation Manufactured by Vimpex in the UK, the StroBell® is ideal for installations that require both a traditional bell tone...

Within the field service industry, organizing the business’s schedule can be one of the hardest challenges to tackle. As they juggle several different jobs, employee metrics, and equipment usage, it can be easy to let something important fall through the cracks. With the technology at disposal, now is the time to start working smarter instead of harder. A field service management software with mobile compatibility can help. Here are some of the scheduling and dispatch benefits they can e...

"With the Frequentis product line ASGARD, which is specifically designed for use in fire brigade and industry control center in the German market, we offer a flexible, highly reliable software solution for safety-critical control center. ASGARD strengthens Frequentis' strong position in the German public safety market," says Frequentis CEO - Norbert Haslacher. Frequentis was awarded the contracts for the projects in the context of EU-wide tenders. Frequentis Germany will be responsible for the...

As an organization invested in industry-led qualifications developing the knowledge, skills, and behaviors of individuals working within the fire safety sector, FireQual sees the development of a fire and security apprenticeship in Wales as a key step forward in demonstrating the importance of education and training within fire safety. FireQual Chair, Lewis Ramsay, commented on this latest development, "Since its inception, FireQual has been keen to not only provide a new generation of qualific...

As an organization invested in industry-led qualifications developing the knowledge, skills, and behaviors of individuals working within the fire safety sector, FireQual sees the development of a fire and security apprenticeship in Wales as a key step forward in demonstrating the importance of education and training within fire safety. Authority comment FireQual Chair, Lewis Ramsay, commented on this latest development, “Since its inception, FireQual has been keen to not only provide a n...

AutroGuard is a new range of multi-criteria detectors from leading detector manufacturer Autronica. As part of the introduction of this exciting new range, Detector Testers were asked to support the design of a customized removal tool designed specifically for the AutroGuard range. Functional testing With the Solo and Testifire solutions already approved for functional testing of existing Autronica detector ranges, developing a customized removal tool to meet the needs of this new range conti...

Fire and Rescue Services across the country will once again be assisting with the national vaccination program, following the government’s push to offer everyone aged over 18 a booster jab by the end of the year.   To date, almost half a million vaccinations have been given by fire and rescue service staff – and hundreds of thousands of hours spent on setting up centers and helping to run them.   Fire and rescue service staff have been assisting with the vaccination...

Education is the future and requires top performance. G-TEC, as a globally renowned specialist in the planning of technical building equipment, defines this claim for itself as follows: ‘Innovative building concepts that meet user requirements over the entire service life are indispensable’. G-TEC’s new school center projects Two large school projects currently planned by G-TEC in Weinheim and Heilbronn show how energy efficiency can be consistently implemented for the best p...

FirePro participated in the three-day Fire India Exhibition, held between 2nd and 4th December at the India Expo Center in New Delhi, India. Considered to be the foremost trade show in India’s fire and safety industry, this year’s exhibition was the 15th edition over a 25 year period. The exhibition, which is now MSME approved, attracts fire equipment manufacturers, suppliers, and service providers, who come together to showcase a range of fire engineering products, appliances, and...

Lewis Ramsay, Caretaker Manager/Board Member – BAFE, said, "BAFE fully supports any developments in helping younger people enter the fire and security sector. It is crucial the right skills, knowledge, expertise, and behavior are instilled from day one of working with life safety processes and systems." He adds, "We encourage all BAFE registered organizations based in Wales to complete this survey to establish evidence of employer interest to develop this further." specialist apprentices...

In the latest episode of Assembly Point, Howard Passey, director of operations at the FPA, Dennis Davis, executive officer at the Fire Sector Federation, Adrian Dobson, secretary of the RIBA EAG, and Peter Caplehorn, CEO at the Construction Products Association look back at the key milestones and turning points in fire safety in the UK, as well as looking ahead to the next 75 years.  Episode 10 of the podcast marks the 75th anniversary of the FPA and began with a look back at significant...

The Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) announced the winners of the 2021 Passive Fire Protection Awards, at the Association’s Awards Lunch at the Edwardian Hotel in Manchester on 26 November 2021. Broadcaster, naturalist, and marine biologist Monty Hall presented awards to the winners in six categories, each recognizing excellence within the passive fire protection industry. ASFP Installation of the Year Award  The winner of the ASFP Installation of th...

During the 51st General Assembly of Euralarm, the European association representing the fire safety and security industry, the members have chosen Jon Könz as new President of Euralarm. He succeeds Martin Harvey, who was President for the past three and half years. Before being elected President, Jon Könz was Chair of the Services Section of Euralarm. He is Head of Industry Affairs, at Siemens Smart Infrastructure. Euralarm’s 2021 General Assembly The 2021 General Assembly was...

The risk of fire at sea is serious. In fact, in many cases, a fire at sea is harder to control than a fire onshore with evacuation and access extremely problematic. As a result, fire detection systems form a vital part of a vessel’s safety infrastructure and seek to protect it in a similar way to an on-land building. Lavastica first started selling fire detection systems for ships in 1998, this led to a need for test equipment to maintain the systems and so the relationship between Lavast...

Many hallmarks of the holiday season, including Christmas trees, holiday decorations, cooking, and baking, present potential fire hazards that contribute to an annual increase in U.S. home fires during the winter months.  According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Christmas Day and Christmas Eve are among the leading days of the year for home fires (topped only by Thanksgiving Day). Attention and planning "December is a leading month for home fires, in large part bec...

The UK Government has apologized to the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy, and admitted to a string of failings in the years leading up to the disaster, dubbed one of the ‘major scandals of our time.’ The government’s Barrister told the Grenfell Tower Inquiry it was ‘deeply sorry for its past failures’, in regards to overseeing building safety. Jason Beer QC said shifted some of the onus onto local inspectors, saying they were responsible for the safety...

John Whaling, former President of Protectowire FireSystems, is transitioning into a newly formed position as Vice President of Business Development.  John has served as President for the past five years and will now be focusing on new emerging markets and OEM accounts. Andrew Sullivan will step back into the role of President and CEO and is excited to have a more hands-on role of leadership in his family’s business. Everyone at Protectowire looks forward to continuing to produce hig...

Seek Thermal, a foremost manufacturer of affordable, high-performance thermal imaging sensors and products across the globe, announced the expansion of its Mosaic Core™ family, which now includes 53 total product offerings. This wide range of highly versatile OEM Thermal Cameras is configurable by resolution, the field of view, and frame rate – for virtually any application – to give developers the ability to integrate high-resolution thermal imaging into even more products th...

The Lake Ozark Fire Protection District in Missouri is joining fire departments across the US and Canada by including SAM on its latest truck order. They are part of ‘Generation SAM’ by having an excellent strategic vision with a strong focus on the citizens they serve. By including SAM’s state-of-the-art technology on their newest apparatus, they are leaders in a new and better way to fight fires. About SAM SAM system replaces the pressure governor and takes care of opening...

The operational scenarios in fire prevention and disaster control are becoming increasingly complex. Everyone lives in a world in which not only new technologies are spreading more and more rapidly in society, but also, compared to previous decades, the environment is changing particularly rapidly. This makes it necessary to find answers and tools to these new challenges and situations just as quickly. In recent years, one way of dealing with this has emerged under the omnipresent term...

Thanks to member feedback, the new membership scheme offers FPA members additional benefits such as access to the Business Property and Protection Portal which produces a risk report for any business type in the UK, the Cladding Compliance Toolkit created by RISC Authority, which aims to help users understand the complex legislative fire safety requirements of external building cladding systems, and easier access to resources such as our popular Assembly Point Podcast. Launch of a CPD Record To...

The Minister of Transportation, Dr. Ángela María Orozco Gómez, adopted the Manual for the Design, Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Road Tunnels for Colombia through Resolution 20213040058015 of December 2, 2021. Scope of the manual The manual includes the general and necessary requirements for the management of planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance of tunnels, which covers the general guidelines and guidelines to be implemented by public entit...

Verint Systems (Verint), the customer engagement company, has announced a strategic partnership with Theta Lake, a globally renowned provider of modern collaboration security and compliance solutions. The partnership provides financial and trading organizations, as well as other businesses, with extended capabilities to help avoid the legal, business, and reputational consequences of compliance breaches, misconduct, data loss, and security issues. Verint – Theta Lake partnership The par...

Hytrans Systems BV’s submersible pump is linked to the power-pack, by means of 60 meter long hydraulic hoses, allowing access to any water within 60 meter distance from the power-pack, either horizontal or vertical. Hytrans' submersible pump The submersible pump is not like a standard fire truck or draft pump that has to stand very close to the water. Additionally the pump features the capability to pump salt water, chemically polluted water, mud, dirt and operate from shallow water, wit...

Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) has announced that Haviv Ilan has been named to its Board of Directors. Mr. Ilan is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Texas Instruments Incorporated. “Haviv will be a valuable addition to our board,” said Rich Templeton, Texas Instruments Incorporated’s Chairman, President and CEO, adding “He brings strong business and financial acumen, a strategic mindset and sound judgement.” Haviv Ilan joins TI Boa...