Building Fire Safety - News

The National Fire Protect Association (NFPA) launched its 125th Anniversary Quiz Sweepstakes to test participants’ knowledge of the association, and to celebrate the collective work, energy, and commitment of the countless groups and individuals who have contributed to the association’s achievements over the past 125 years. In honor of NFPA’s birthday (the association was founded in November 1896), the quiz features 10 questions that address NFPA history, milestones, and resou...

UKAS is pleased to announce that Technical Manager, Kevin Belson, has taken the position of Chair of the Technical Committee for the International Accreditation Forum. As well as congratulating Kevin on his appointment, they would like to extend good wishes to JAS-ANZ’s General Manager of Accreditation, Steve Keeling, who precedes Kevin in this role. Along with UKAS’ Accreditation Director, Lorraine Turner, who currently chairs the Inspection Committee of the International Labo...

UK Fire Safety legislation requires that the responsible person must ensure that the premises and protective measures are subject to a suitable system of maintenance. Maintenance is essential for any equipment, but particularly for safety critical uses such as fire safety equipment.  Maintenance system should cover all fire safety equipment The maintenance system should cover all fire safety equipment, systems and facilities The maintenance system should cover all fire safety equipment,...

MSA Safety Incorporated (MSA Safety), the globally renowned company in the development, manufacture and supply of sophisticated safety solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures, is exhibiting at the ADIPEC 2021 event, which is taking place from November 15 to November 18, 2021, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Hosted by the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), ADIPEC is the world’s most influential meeting place where oil, gas, and energy companies and profess...

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS) has launched a new partnership with Anglian Water. The partnership will help the Service reach out to those most vulnerable in the community and support them with fire safety advice, as well as other areas to help keep them safe and continue to enjoy independence. From November 2021, both organizations will share in a secure and responsible way, selected data to ensure both can support the safety and wellbeing of the most vulnerable reside...

While most U.S. emergency communications centers (ECCs) use a CAD system to dispatch 911 calls and facilitate records management, few CAD system components are uniform across vendors. This can create problems transferring emergency calls and associated data, such as caller location information. It can also create problems with the transfer of call information to first responders in the field via public safety broadband networks. These transfer functions are important capabilities for enhancing...

Halloween is just around the corner. Kids and adults alike are busy carving pumpkins, decorating their houses and preparing to wear their scariest outfits, on the spookiest night of the year. But, putting the trick or treating and fun aside, October 31 can also be one of the riskiest times of the year, particularly for burglary, criminal damage and violent crime. Spike in crimes during Halloween In recent years, major newspapers in London, Surrey, West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Devon, Ca...

The Community Safety Team at Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service are urging those with fuel burning appliances, fires, and stoves in the community to install working Carbon Monoxide (CO) detectors, following a lucky escape by a Milford Haven resident, after a Safe & Well Visit by the Fire and Rescue Service. Earlier in October 2021, On-Call Firefighters at the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service, Neil Phillips and Huw Davies, who are currently assisting the Community Safety Te...

Rosenbauer is working vigorously on expanding the electric vehicle fleet for fire departments. After the RT tank firefighting vehicle and a logistics vehicle, the first L32A-XS aerial ladder is now also being electrified.   The top priority of the development engineers is to make the electric aerial ladder just as functional, powerful, and reliable as the proven standard aerial ladder and to ensure the same ease of operation, serviceability, and spare parts availability.   That's w...

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has released findings from its latest “Fire Loss in the U.S.” report, which shows that the total number of U.S. fires overall rose eight percent from 2019 to 2020. While some year-to-year fluctuation is normal, this increase reflects a far from typical year due to the pandemic. “In 2020, more people were working and studying at home, commuting far less, and spending more time socializing outside,” said Lorraine Carli, Vice...

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service announced that the fire service has issued three top safety tricks, in order to help prevent unnecessary Halloween hazards during the festive period. Working with West Yorkshire Police and other partners, the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is campaigning for people to be mindful about keeping themselves and others safe, in the build up to Halloween, Sunday, October 31, 2021. Safety tips to prevent Halloween hazards The West Yorkshire Fire and Res...

The IFSS Coalition has unveiled its new guidance document to address differing or non-existent fire safety requirements in countries across the world. A global coalition of over 80 fire safety leadership organizations on Monday, 11 October, 2023, launched a new Global Plan for a Decade of Action for Fire Safety 2022-2032, to ensure an internationally consistent approach to the safety and management of buildings, infrastructure and more with the aim of saving lives by reducing risk and preventin...

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service is supporting the National Fire Chiefs Council’s (NFCC) Student Fire Safety Week campaign. Running from October 25 to October 31, 2021, the campaign raises awareness on the risk of fire to students starting out on their journey into university life. Sion Slaymaker, the Head of Business Fire Safety for Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said, “For many young adults, this is the time of year when they start a new chapter in their live...

As the world prepares for COP26, the time for action and concrete agreement to reduce carbon emissions and invest in the future. Government and industry have a crucial opportunity to agree on tangible commitments, that benefit future generations across the world. The role as part of the Built Environment and Construction Sector (which accounts for 38% of global carbon emissions) is vital. The Construction Leadership Council’s Construct Zero program is heading the industry’s drive to...

CIC has been welcomed by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) as its newest and twentieth Member, following a positive vote at the UKAS AGM, which took place on 19 October 2021. certification, and inspection UKAS is the government-appointed sole National Accreditation Body, whose role is to provide oversight of testing, certification, and inspection organizations across the full spectrum of economic activity. UKAS is a not-for-profit, non-profit-distributing independent company ope...

The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) has welcomed the Construction Industry Council (CIC) as its newest and twentieth Member, following a positive vote at the UKAS AGM. UKAS is the government-appointed sole National Accreditation Body, whose role is to provide oversight of testing, certification, and inspection organizations across the full spectrum of economic activity. Important link to the sectors UKAS is a not-for-profit, non-profit-distributing independent company operating un...

National Housing Federation research shows that one in ten new affordable homes to rent or buy in England can no longer be built because of the costs of fixing fire safety defects.   The NHF surveyed 106 housing associations, with 61 reporting that they have discovered dangerous materials on their buildings since the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017. This is despite those buildings having been signed off as meeting building requirements at the time they were built. Author's quote The NHF est...

Emergency vehicle manufacturer - Marion Body Works is making HAAS Alert’s Safety Cloud® a standard safety solution on new apparatus, the company announced recently. The collaboration will equip newly manufactured Marion Body Works apparatus with the Safety Cloud Responder-to-Vehicle (R2V™) service, enabling fire crews to automatically deliver digital alerts to nearby drivers up to 30 seconds in advance and reduce the risk of collision by up to 90%. Safety Cloud - industry stand...

Halloween is a peak time of the year for spooky celebrations and activities, but it also presents some truly scary fire safety hazards. As the holiday nears, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is encouraging everyone to take simple precautions that can help ensure the holiday remains festively fun. “It is exciting to be able to trick or treat, wear costumes and celebrate Halloween, particularly after last year, when most events and activities were canceled due to th...

Fire suppression systems are used to extinguish, control, or, in some cases, entirely prevent fires from spreading or occurring. They are an integral part of any fire protection infrastructure.  A fire suppression system is classified as an active fire protection system. This means it’s made up of engineered units that are built to extinguish fires through the application of a substance. These substances could be water, foam, or chemical compounds.  How does a fire suppression...

CIC will be at COP26 on 11 November to present on ‘Carbon Zero: the professional institutions’ climate action plan’. The presentation is in support of the Construction Leadership Council’s Construct Zero session which will take place in the Green Zone as part of the COP26 Cities, Regions, and Built Environment Day. reduce carbon emissions The built environment and construction sector accounts for 38% of global carbon emissions and it has been estimated that collectivel...

In the latest episode of Assembly Point, FPA Director of Operations - Howard Passey talks to Lewis Ramsey, Caretaker Manager at BAFE to examine the key issues and areas to consider when looking at fire risk management in buildings that are occupied by vulnerable persons. Howard and Lewis also explore the criticality of active and passive fire systems being suitable for the purpose, installed correctly, and that their subsequent maintenance and testing is undertaken by an accredited third party....

The Brigade currently has just 24 fire safety advisers and nearly 200 Inspecting Officers, but with the pressure to inspect high-rise buildings, it must increase its workforce. The Brigade will use part of the £9.4 million it received from the Home Office to improve its fire protection activities. It has already used some of this funding to create a Building Risk Review team to review the 8,000 high-rise residential blocks in London. This work is due to be completed by December this year....

One alarming aspect of the opioid crisis is the frequency first responders encounter synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. Fentanyl and related compounds present a safety hazard for first responders — including emergency medical and law enforcement personnel at all levels — if they are not adequately prepared with proper protective equipment and reliable detection. In response, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) funded and provided s...

The event organizers for A+A Congress 2021 (A+A Dusseldorf 2021) have announced that this year’s trade fair, scheduled to take place in Dusseldorf, Germany (from October 26-29, 2021), will take place in-person. A+A Congress 2021 In typical circumstances, MSA Safety Incorporated is a regular attendee and exhibitor at the event, as A + A has proven to be one of the world’s foremost safety events. After careful consideration, however, MSA Safety Incorporated has decided not to exhibit...

FirePro, alongside channel partner Delta Pyramax, participated in this year’s China Fire 2021. The exhibition was held between 12 – 15 October at the New China International Exhibition Center in Beijing. About china Fire China Fire, launched in 1986, is a biennial exhibition now in its 18th edition. It is one of the world’s top 3 exhibitions for fire protection and promotes the entire spectrum of fire safety and engineering products. This year’s theme was ‘Smar...

In front of hun­dreds of indus­try lead­ers, the win­ners of the Con­struc­tion News Spe­cial­ists Awards were revealed at The Brew­ery, in Lon­don, United Kingdom, in Octo­ber 2021. Site secu­ri­ty spe­cial­ist, VPS Site Security Ltd. (VPS) tri­umphed dur­ing a rig­or­ous judg­ing process in front of an expert pan­el of judges, to win ‘Equip­ment Spe­cial­ist of the Ye...

A foremost Japanese life safety manufacturer, Hochiki, has launched its most powerful and sophisticated fire control and indication system yet, L@titude, in Denmark. Following Part 13 certification which then paved the way for DBI approval, this market-leading system uses an interface that is available in multiple languages, simple to use and understand. Powerful and Advanced Fire Control and Indication System Following its successful DBI certification via Hochiki Europe based in the UK, t...

UKAS is the National Accreditation Body for the United Kingdom. UKAS is appointed by the government, to assess and accredit organizations that provide services, including certification, testing, inspection, and calibration. From the beginning of the pandemic, UKAS has been working with the government to provide advice on quality assurance and accreditation of laboratories performing COVID-19 testing including laboratories that have been supporting the national testing provision (NHS Test and Tr...

Kentec Electronics, a foremost manufacturer of life-critical control systems, has released its Sigma ZXT single-area extinguishing control panel for general purchase following full BETA field testing in the UK, Europe, and South Africa demonstrating optimum installer and end-user satisfaction levels. New functionality, improved display, and multiple configuration options for a targeted response to a fire incident further Sigma XT’s market-leading reputation for user-friendly reliability...