Jason Traynor, general manager, Global Fire Service and integration leader for MSA Bristol took some time out to discuss the importance of the Middle East market for the business.
Traynor also talked about the company’s strategic partnership with Fotokite, and the company’s forecasts for 2022.
Luminite has appointed Laura Grainger as Director of Sales and Marketing. Laura has earned a promotion from within the company after she joined nine years ago and has played a key role in building relationships with distributors and end users, contributing to the wider growth of the business.
Graham Creek MD said “Laura is a vital member of the team and has proven to be a strategic Sales and Marketing Manager. Our future plans for growth with the addition and development of our wireless security range will entail a larger team which Laura will head and oversee.”
Commenting on the new appointment, Laura said “This opportunity comes at an exciting time for Luminite. Our increasingly diverse product range is opening up new and challenging avenues for the Company and I look forward to driving our sales and marketing plans forward.
Luminite manufactures PIR detection, wireless switching, IP connectivity and wireless alert systems. The North London based company has been around for more than 37 years operating in both the security and home automation markets.
Following more than 25 wildfires last weekend alone, the National Fire Chiefs Council is urging the public to take additional precautions. And there is now a large-scale wildfire in Devon and Somerset which has ten fire appliances in attendance, with alerts out for similar fires in both South Wales and Lancashire.
In additon, a six hectare wildfire in East Sussex has also been reported earlier this week. To date in 2022, there have already been more than 70 significant wildfires across England and Wales – showing how serious the issue is this early into the year.
Over the last weekend, firefighters tackled wildfires which broke out in Cornwall, Wales, Cumbria and areas of the Pennines, with incidents in Derbyshire, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and Lancashire. With the additional incidents reported today, firefighters across the UK will be battling these over the coming days.
According to NFCC, the dry weather conditions the UK is currently experiencing – combined with strong winds and dead vegetation which has built up over the winter can lead to spate conditions for such fires – and makes fighting and controlling wildfires incredibly difficult.
Wildfires often result in sustained and prolonged operations by UK fire & rescue services and other partner agencies.
Often, firefighters from across the country will be deployed to deal with just one in a different part of the country, depending on its severity. This includes specialist equipment, tools and vehicles, as well as national tactical advisers to give expert help and assistance on how to tackle them.
As the weather improves and temperatures rise, NFCC is calling on the public to ensure they are not putting our green spaces and natural habitat at risk. While encouraging people to enjoy the countryside, simple measures can help prevent wildfires.
Fire chiefs and fire services across the UK are urging the public to enjoy the countryside responsibly; asking them not to have barbeques or campfires and to ensure cigarettes are fully extinguished before disposing of them.
Paul Hedley, NFCC’s wildfire lead points out: “We have seen over 20 wildfires in just one weekend; these can take hold incredibly quickly, destroying land and habitats, while impacting on local communities. They also create one of the most challenging incidents for firefighters as they not only battle with the fire itself, but also the weather conditions.
“We want the public to enjoy our wonderful green spaces, but the use of portable barbecues and campfires can be catastrophic for our countryside. Even a poorly discarded cigarette or a glass bottle can spark a wildfire, leading to a major incident.”
FireAngel will be exhibiting on Stand 3A/E50 at this year’s Fire & Safety Event, showcasing its social housing IoT solution, FireAngel Connected, to a network of fire safety managers, health and safety officers, risk assessors and consultants.
Continuing to fulfil its mission to protect and save lives with innovative, cutting-edge home safety technology, FireAngel Connected is the most technologically advanced fire safety solution for social housing in the fire safety market.
FireAngel Connected offers a cloud and IoT-based solution to help social housing landlords monitor fire risk, gas safety, water leaks and electrical appliances throughout their properties from a single remote platform.
Data monitored in real-time can alert social landlords to the status of heat, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in a property if triggered or in need of maintenance, in turn, eliminating wasteful visits, staff time and administration fees.
With the unique automated AI capabilities of FireAngel Predict built in – the only solution of its kind in the market – an instant, real-time fire risk level unique to each property is provided, enabling active intervention before a fire starts.
As housing associations navigate the Fire Safety Act 2021, rising maintenance costs and the government’s White Paper on social housing, there has never been a greater need for solutions that can unlock cost savings, accelerate operational efficiencies and, ultimately, protect tenant safety.
Nick Rutter, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer, FireAngel said: “IoT and AI advancements are driving technological innovation in housing associations and strengthening the golden thread of information for buildings.” FireAngel will be located at stand 3A/E50.
TBA Firefly is set to display a wide array of products at the 2022 FIREX show in London’s Excel Centre. The company is looking to building on its success of 2021 in terms of winning new business and the scale of the contracts the company was involved in delivering.
Among its products the company will display its recent launches such as Penowrap and the FR120 Access Panel, as well as its versatile Athena fire barrier, suited for timber lofts.
The new 600 x 600mm, IFC certified panel has been developed to facilitate regular maintenance access to roof spaces and other fire compartments, created using the Firefly barriers and offers two hours fire resistance.
Penowrap, meanwhile, is a lightweight and flexible wrap which complements other TBA Firefly flexible fire barrier systems: intended to protect steel or timber structural members up to 300mm beyond the main barrier, giving additional protection.
Simon James, marketing manager, Firefly’s said: “Firex gives us an ideal opportunity to showcase our product range to key players in the industry, including existing clients and those companies not yet familiar with the products we offer. We serve a specialist part of the passive fire protection market, offering some unique solutions, all supported by the relevant accreditations and full technical back-up.”
The Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), a global professional society for fire protection and fire safety engineering, announces the opening of registration for its 2022 Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) Fire Protection Exam Review Course. A study guide with separate answer manual complements the course and is also available.
Taught by 12 expert instructors with backgrounds across all areas of fire protection engineering, the SFPE PE Exam Review Course leverages the deep knowledge from SFPE’s member community to prepare candidates for the PE Fire Protection Exam.
All courses are live, online, and offered twice weekly beginning May 31 and running through the week of October 10, 2022, with recorded sessions also available on-demand afterward. Additional review sessions, online discussion, practice problems, and office hours with the instructors are included – providing the comprehensive preparation needed to head into the exam with confidence.
Each year, engineers who enroll in the 20-week SFPE PE Exam Review Course are more prepared for the PE exam than those who don’t – SFPE course attendees have a 15% higher pass rate on the exam, too.
“The SFPE PE Exam Review Course focuses on the fundamentals of each topic area of fire protection engineering while preparing attendees to think critically, adapt to the exam, and be successful Professional Engineers,” stated Stephen Dale, Chair, SFPE PE Exam Review Subcommittee.
In addition, SFPE has prepared a 507-page study guide that features sample exercises, problems, and concepts that are equivalent in length and difficulty to what may be encountered on the actual Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) Fire Protection Exam. The study guide includes technical content, references, and corresponding answers – and is an invaluable complement to the SFPE PE Exam Review Course. The course and study guide can be used independently but are most successful when used together.
UK Doorsets Ltd are one of the first Secured by Design (SBD) member company to attain certification for security, fire & smoke control on their doorsets.
Secured by Design (SBD), the national police crime prevention initiative, has been a staunch campaigner for improved security in buildings for over 30 years. As a consequence of the tragic events of the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017, SBD announced that as part of its membership it was requiring doors that are either described as fire doors, or where fire performance is declared or implied, to have third-party certification for both security and fire performance.
SBD have subsequently revisited the possible life-threatening characteristics of fire rated doorsets, as asphyxiation caused by smoke inhalation is the most common cause of deaths in flats when a fire occurs. Therefore, with effect from 1st June 2022, SBD will require all member companies with doorsets listed on their SBD schedule that are fire rated and that are required by UK Building Regulations (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) to have smoke control properties for the intended installation – e.g. flat entrance doorsets to be certificated for the following attributes – Security, Fire and Smoke Control.
SBD are adamant that any doorset that carries SBD accreditation should be fit for purpose in all declared characteristics, but especially those that are life critical such as fire, security and smoke control.
Ruari Robertson, Secured by Design, said: “I am delighted that UK Doorsets Ltd are one of the first of our valued member companies to attain this certification and is a testament to the strong working relationship that exists between SBD and all its member companies, who will undoubtedly follow suit in achieving these attributes.”
Simon Chapman, UK Doorsets commented: “We are proud to be one of the first businesses to achieve this enhanced triple certification for our SBD doorsets. As a business we have always tried to be at the forefront of safety compliance, ensuring all our doors and doorsets achieve the best performance for their designated environments.
“We understand fully the danger and importance of smoke control in the event of a fire, so had already undergone third-party testing to guarantee our doors would perform if this occurred. This certification endorses that and will hopefully raise the bar with other manufacturers in the industry when producing these potentially lifesaving products.”
IFSJ went for a walkaround the show floor at the Dubai World Trade Centre this January at Intersec 2022.
We caught up several industry leaders and exhibitors to know more about their experience at the show, new launches, and forecasts for 2022.
IFSEC and FIREX International are set to host, for the first time, in-person training sessions for installers, integrators, and engineers.
These focused training sessions will ensure professionals remain on top of the latest best practices in security and fire, and secure CPD points to keep up with the growing push for competency requirements.
The ‘skills gap’ is one of the most pressing challenges in the UK’s fire and security technical installation sector at present. While not a new issue, it is one that has continued over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic – in a survey undertaken by IFSEC in 2021, 93% of installers answered CPD or professional qualifications would aid them in their work.
Furthermore, following Dame Judith Hackitt’s report into the failings at Grenfell Tower in 2017, installer competency in fire, emergency and security systems has been put under the spotlight, with a renewed push from government and the wider industry to ensure appropriate standards of quality are met. The ECS (Electrotechnical Certification Scheme) requirements for cards in the fire and security sector in England are changing as a result, with updated requirements to achieve both the Systems Technician (also known as the Gold Card) Level 3 cards and the Level 2 Operative Card, where work can be carried out and signed off unsupervised.
In line with the push for improved competency standards and updated CPD requirements that come with the ECS changes, and to support those looking to develop their expertise, IFSEC and FIREX International will be hosting a programme of CPD-accredited in-person training sessions dedicated to the installer and integrator fire and security community.
Book your place on the available courses here
Gerry Dunphy, event director of IFSEC and FIREX International, said: “Skills and competency are now at the forefront of the security and fire safety professions, so we’re delighted to be able to introduce focused and relevant training sessions into the shows. IFSEC & FIREX Training is an important addition as visiting customers can not only view and experience the latest technology and speak to market leading vendors, they can now partake in high calibre CPD training sessions to ensure they’re keeping up with current trends, standards and innovations. It means the shows truly become fully rounded experiences for installers and engineers”.
Trevor Jenks, training manager at the SSAIB, is working with IFSEC and FIREX to ensure the training sessions are relevant and provide genuine value to attendees. Trevor adds: “I’m thrilled to be working with the IFSEC and FIREX team on this initiative. The skillset required in the industry is constantly evolving, and attending high quality training from knowledgeable trainers is more important than ever.”
What will IFSEC & FIREX Training offer?
The prospectus of available courses on offer at the event will cover a variety of key topics that were selected by installers as areas of interest in a survey undertaken by IFSEC & FIREX in 2021.
Courses will be delivered in two distinct manners, both of which were highlighted as important methods of training for fire and security installers in the same survey:
Topics being covered include:
View the full agenda with further details on each session, here.
A small fee will be charged per session to encourage attendance, though heavily subsidised from the original costs as part of IFSEC and FIREX’s ongoing support in helping to address the skills gap. To ensure sessions remain focused, there are a limited number of spaces available on each. Welcome refreshments, as well as lunch vouchers for all delegates will also be included in the price.
Each course will start in the morning or around midday and last anywhere between 4-6 hours, to ensure delegates receive an appropriate level of training, while also allowing for plenty of time to speak to suppliers and catch up with likeminded professionals on the show floor. Courses will be hosted away from the show floor in the gallery suites at London’s ExCeL on the same days as IFSEC and FIREX, taking place between 17-19 May.
Crucially, all delegates will receive proof of attendance for CPD (Continuing Professional Development) records – a key requirement of the updated ECS cards renewal scheme.
The initiative has received wide-ranging backing from across the sector, with support coming from the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), Fire Industry Association (FIA), Security Systems Alarms Inspection Board (SSAIB), National Security Inspectorate (NSI), Skills for Security and the Association for Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP).
The UK Home Office has invited members of professional bodies working in the Fire Risk Assessor sector to complete the survey. The governement department has also encouraged those involved in fire risk external wall assessments (EWA) to get involved with the survey.
The survey will ask questions about both the company you work for and you in your individual professional capacity. The survey’s findings will be used to inform the government’s policy development work. The Home Office may also share anonymous aggregated results with professional bodies who are supporting them in conducting this survey and leading the sector-led work mentioned above.
There is considerable work underway to strengthen the building and fire safety regulatory systems, not least through the changes being brought about by the Fire Safety Act (FSA) and the Building Safety Bill (BSB).
These changes will have a significant impact on the Fire Risk Assessor sector and with that in mind the Home Office are keen to gain a better understanding of capacity and capability within the sector. They are also keen to support sector-led work on professionalisation within the Fire Risk Assessor sector and your answers to these questions will very much help to support work in this regard.
The Home Office are particularly keen to better understand the impact that two specific forthcoming changes may have on the sector. These are the requirement in the FSA to include external wall assessments in fire risk assessments and the proposed requirement in the BSB for responsible persons to ensure that anyone they appoint to complete a fire risk assessment must be competent.
The survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete, depending on how much you want to give, and will remain open until close of play Friday 8th April 2022.
The survey is being conducted by the Home Office in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK GDPR. Participation in this survey is completely voluntary, your answers will be kept confidential and no individual or organisation will be identified in any reporting.