Posts in category: Projects

GARDINER have announced the acquisition of Continental Fire & Security, Inc. (CFS), an Independence, OH based provider of fire and life-safety and security systems.

Founded in 1987, CFS specialises in clean-agent fire suppression, fire alarm and mass notification systems, access control, and video surveillance as well as nurse call and intercom communication systems. GARDINER leadership cites a mutual commitment to clients and a great cultural fit between the two companies as keys to the deal. Current owners Jim Kousagan and Ray Webb will be staying on to continue leading the CFS business.

“As GARDINER has grown, we’ve always looked for opportunities to expand and innovate to help our clients solve facility challenges,” said Todd Barnhart, President and Chief Executive Officer of GARDINER. “Bringing CFS on board supports our long-term mission and immediately boosts our capabilities and the value we can provide to clients. We intend to help CFS build upon what they’ve already accomplished as we welcome them to the GARDINER family.”

From CFS’s perspective, the opportunity to join forces with an organisation like GARDINER was something that made too much sense to pass up.

“When we think about the future of CFS, this really was a unique opportunity,” said Kousagan, President of CFS. “GARDINER’s reputation and position in the market is something that can help us take CFS to a new level. At the same time, we’re bringing something different to their organisation that offers great opportunity for everyone involved. Most importantly, we’ve found a great home for our people and our clients.”

The CFS team averages more than 20 years of industry experience per associate and their average tenure is over 16 years. That experience and stability is part of what GARDINER sees as a great fit in looking to expand its building technology and service offerings.

“Anyone who knows our history understands that we are committed to independent, local business and that we believe in the importance of culture and people,” added Rob MacKinlay, GARDINER’s EVP & CFO. “The opportunity to team up with another strong local company is exciting for us. There’s real value for the people in both organisations as well as our clients. We see it as a great fit all around.”

With the deal, CFS has become a wholly owned business unit of GARDINER, but will continue to operate as “Continental Fire & Security, a GARDINER Company” for the foreseeable future.

Motorola Solutions has acquired 911 Datamaster, Inc., a Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) data solutions provider. 

911 Datamaster’s suite of NG9-1-1 location solutions helps ensure that emergency calls are accurately located and routed based on the caller’s location, enabling a faster response from first responders. Location services are essential given an estimated 240 million calls are made to 9-1-1 in the U.S. each year, and in most areas, 80% or more are from wireless devices with no fixed location. 

“NG9-1-1 location solutions are vital to the 9-1-1 workflow, ensuring calls are routed correctly and call-takers have the best information to respond to the citizens they serve every day,” said Mahesh Saptharishi, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Motorola Solutions. “With 911 Datamaster’s technology, we continue to enhance our integrated command center software suite that is trusted by agencies across North America to manage their operations with greater efficiency, accuracy and safety.” 

This acquisition reinforces Motorola Solutions’ commitment to being a leader in command center solutions and further supports 9-1-1 call centers’ unique organisational workflows as they transition to NG9-1-1 technologies.

“We are excited to join Motorola Solutions at this critical time in the industry,” said Scott Krehbiel, CEO, 911 Datamaster. “Together, we can deliver advanced NG9-1-1 capabilities to modernise call centers with technological advancements that better protect and support their communities.” 
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and vipHomeLink announced today an exclusive collaboration whereby NFPA will serve as the official fire and electrical safety information and knowledge provider for vipHomeLink’s digital home management platform.

A global, self-funded nonprofit organisation established in 1896, NFPA is the foremost expert on fire and electrical safety. The organisation is devoted to eliminating death, injury, and property and economic loss due to fire, electrical and related hazards. NFPA provides information and knowledge through more than 300 consensus codes and standards, research, training and education programs, outreach and advocacy, and through global partnerships.

vipHomeLink is a U.S. technology company that provides a customised digital home engagement and claims prevention platform to the insurance industry and other corporate partners designed to boost homeowner engagement and improve loss ratios over time. vipHomeLink’s technology-driven solutions engage, enable and empower homeowners to make their homes safer, more valuable and more enjoyable.

Through the relationship, NFPA will provide vipHomeLink with expert information relating to fire safety, wildfire protection, home fire prevention, electrical codes and safety, and other related hazards affecting homeowners. vipHomeLink will curate and design original content around NFPA’s trusted, subject matter experts and provide actionable, tailored insights directly to homeowner members. This content will be delivered through vipHomeLink’s digital home application platform, and across multiple public channels, including its website, blog, podcasts, and social media channels.

Jim Pauley, NFPA president and CEO stated, “NFPA’s work with vipHomeLink gives us the opportunity to share important fire safety information directly with thousands of homeowners and their families through vipHomeLink’s innovative digital home management platform and their robust content capability.”

“Given our mission at vipHomeLink to improve home safety and ‘prevent the preventable’, we truly appreciate the alignment between our organisations,” added Alfred Bentley, CEO and Founder of vipHomeLink. “We are thrilled to be working with NFPA, globally recognised as a leader in fire and electrical safety. Together we will significantly reduce the risks and losses homeowners face caused by preventable fire and electrical hazards.”

Karan Narang, vice president of Strategic Partnerships at vipHomeLink, added, “Through this exciting collaboration, vipHomeLink will leverage the global expertise of this internationally recognised organisation and deliver the information and knowledge directly to our homeowners to reduce preventable homeowner losses and protect our members.”

“Fire departments respond to nearly 350,000 home fires per year, and most of those fires could have been prevented by following a few simple safety tips,” said Lorraine Carli, NFPA vice president of Outreach and Advocacy. “The information we will provide through the vipHomeLink platform directly to homeowners will help increase awareness of fire risks, how they can be avoided, and ultimately save lives.”

Across the UK, Fire and Rescue Services are once again stepping in to assist with the national vaccination programme.

Almost half a million vaccinations have been given by fire and rescue service staff – and hundreds of thousands of hours spent on setting up centres and helping to run them.

Praising the incredible work of the UK fire and rescue service, the National Fire Chiefs Council’s (NFCC) Chair Mark Hardingham, said: “Staff from fire services across the country have been assisting with the COVID response since day one and will now be increasing their work on vaccinations.

“It once again goes to show how flexible, dedicated, professional and passionate staff are in protecting the communities they serve.”

Mr Hardingham added: “The fire service across the breadth of the country are ready, willing and able to assist. NFCC has agreed with government we will offer this support to get the country through this difficult time and support this vital work to get everyone eligible vaccinated by the end of the year – just over two weeks away. I am in no doubt the public are proud of their local services as they once again step up to play their part.

The NFCC is also encouraging as many people as possible to ensure they take up vaccinations in a bid to keep themselves and loved ones safe, while helping to protect the NHS.

The Fire Fighters Charity is today launching a winter fundraising appeal amid a growing need for mental health support across the UK’s fire services community.

With one in five members of the fire service rating their mental health as poor or very poor, and 65% stating that it has got worse since the start of the pandemic*, it is little surprise the Charity has been receiving more requests for support from people with increasingly complex mental health needs.

It comes following unprecedented pressures on fire and rescue service personnel and their families throughout the pandemic which, when coupled with incredible demand on our NHS, has led to lengthy waiting lists and a perfect storm of circumstance.

However, the Charity vows to never leave anyone in need alone. Which is why it’s asking for help from its supporters today.

The Fire Fighters Charity is looking to further develop its teams, diversify its services, invest in new programmes and resources and reach every corner of the fire services community in order to ensure that it can meet the needs of every individual who asks for help.

But to do this, it needs donations this winter.

Chief Executive Dr Jill Tolfrey says: “We have seen our fire and rescue services push themselves like never before over the last two years to support their communities when they needed it most. But now it’s our turn to support them.

“Facing difficult and emotionally challenging situations every day, in roles far beyond their usual day-to-day work, has had a direct impact on many of our beneficiaries’ mental health and wellbeing. We will ensure we’re there for all of them, whenever they may need us, and donations from our supporters this winter can help us do just that.

“Together we can – and must – help them, so they can continue to help you.”

No one should have to carry the burden of poor mental health by themselves, so with help from its Winter Apeal, the Charity will continue to lighten the load for those in need across the fire services community.

Halma, the global group of life-saving technology companies focused on growing a safer, cleaner and healthier future, today announced an ambitious target for all its company boards to be within a 40-60% gender-balanced range by the end of March 2024.

Halma is a FTSE 100 company made up of nearly 50 small to medium-sized engineering and technology businesses each with their own board of directors. The new gender diversity target applies to more than 200 senior people across more than 20 countries.

The new target builds on significant progress at Halma’s plc Board and Executive Board levels, which are today 48% and 67% women respectively. At individual company board level, the figure is currently 23%.

The target forms part of Halma’s Sustainability Framework, announced earlier this year. This seeks to amplify Halma’s positive impact on the world and help to fulfil Halma’s purpose of growing a safer, cleaner healthier future for everyone every day. As well as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), the Framework includes a commitment on climate change and the circular economy.

Jennifer Ward, Halma Group Talent & Communications Director, commented: “We’re pleased with the progress we have made in recent years to achieve gender balance at the Group level. However, we want to challenge ourselves to do more and drive positive change across our entire portfolio of businesses around the world.

“We believe building inclusive businesses that reflect the communities in which we live and work is vital to achieving our purpose and accelerating the growth of our business.”

Halma has already put in place initiatives to help its portfolio of companies improve their gender diversity. This includes an inclusive leadership programme for all senior leaders; new talent acquisition practices to recruit and engage future female leaders in the STEM fields; and flexible working practices to attract more women into the businesses.

Halma has already begun to see the benefits of its efforts to improve gender balance on its company boards, with female representation increasing from 19% last year to 23% this year.

In 2021 Halma was recognised by the European Women on Boards as gender diversity leaders, coming 8th out of 668 companies. Halma has also been an active member of the 30% Club since 2017, a membership organisation which campaigns for at least 30% of board seats to be held by women. 

Read more about our Sustainability Framework.

Following a decision of its Board, Euralarm has welcomed its newest member Sitasys, the Swiss leader in alarm management, best-in-class finger-print identification, and secure communication. The company will join the Services Section of Euralarm.

Sitasys will now benefit from Euralarm’s services in terms of representation towards European institutions and standardisation organisations. This includes the monitoring of legislative and standardisation issues relevant to the industry. Sitasys will have access to the extended network of national associations and major companies in the electronic fire safety and security sectors, which form Euralarm’s members. The new membership will create opportunities for both sides, as it also strengthens the association.

Sitasys

Sitasys AG is the Swiss leader in alarm management, best-in-class finger-print identification, and secure communication. Every day, Sitasys works to make lives and valuables around the world safer by developing efficient security solutions and creating better customer experiences. As an integrated managed security solution that enables the communication between different systems, Sitasys’ digital alarm management platform evalink talos brings businesses, alarm receiving centers, and installers the right set of digital tools and applications covering the whole chain of their security operations’ needs. Visit sitasys.com for more information.

Gain expertise on markets and opportunities

Companies joining Euralarm get a unique insight into what is happening on other European markets and the opportunities that they might offer. They not only tap into the political expertise and understanding of the EU policy but can also make personal connections with technical and political experts and potential business partners.

Being a member of Euralarm enables companies and associations to gain expertise on standardisation. Members have their voice heard in Brussels and can support and direct standardisation and legislative processes.

Services Section

While maintaining focus on established fire and security services, the Euralarm Services Section aims at safeguarding new and innovative services. The Services Section meetings gathers experts presenting on actual topics such as the standardisation landscape on fire and security services. The section liaises towards key standardisation groups and closely follows technological developments to guide regulation and standardisation. Concerning standards, the section continues informing members of changes and advocacy activities at both national and EU level.

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) has ordered a total of 15 turntable ladders from Magirus through the UK distributor Emergency One, three of which are 64 meters high.

This means that the London Fire Brigade has the highest turntable ladders in Europe. Magirus has been supplying fire engines to London since 1905, providing state-of-the[1]art technology and an overall quality standard for which Magirus is appreciated worldwide.

The London Fire Brigade announced plans to upgrade its existing fleet and in July 2017, following the Grenfell Tower fire, it was decided to incorporate three extended height ladder appliances in the upgrade. It is one of the many improvements the Brigade has made since 2017 to equipment, training and procedures to enhance the response to high-rise fires.

The M64L turntable ladders are the highest turntable ladders in Europe, standing 64 meters high, and each of these supplied to London is equipped with a lift for the entire length of the ladder set. To ensure the smallest possible turning radius for the vehicles with a length of 12 meters in the densely built-up city, Scania 4-axle chassis with trailing axle were chosen.

For better assessment of a fire situation, cameras with thermal imaging technologies are integrated at the top of the turntable ladders, which also enable live streaming images for incident command. The appliances also have built-in technology that will alert the operator if weather conditions, such as wind, are too great to be able to use the ladders safely at their fully extended height.

Furthermore, 12 standard articulated turntable ladders with a length of 32 meters were delivered in order to improve London Fire Brigade’s ability to deal with high rise incidents. Xavier Moreau, Director Sales & Marketing Magirus comments: “The configurations of the delivered vehicles for the London Fire Brigade were developed intensively in cooperation with the customer and also Emergency One and finally adapted to the specific needs of the London Fire Brigade.

“Only the most reliable and modern technology can meet the requirements and the high loads here. We are therefore very proud that the LFB has been choosing Magirus turntable ladders for decades”.

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety has announced the acquisition of AlarmTec Systems, based in Memphis, Tennessee. AlarmTec has been a strong provider to the Memphis area, servicing and certifying fire alarm systems for over 20 years. This acquisition is the first in Memphis for Pye-Barker Fire and strengthens its overall footprint in Tennessee.

AlarmTec Systems was founded by Mark Shipp with a vision to be the go-to company for any and all fire alarm requirements. He and his team are well-regarded in the Memphis area, offering commercial fire alarm systems and servicing, and operating on the forefront of surveillance development and technology with closed circuit television, access control and automation security services.

AlarmTec Systems has earned considerable trust in the Memphis community over the past two decades, making it a great fit for Pye-Barker Fire.

“The AlarmTec family’s focus on providing reliable and exceptional customer service has been our primary difference,” said Shipp. “With this merger, it was paramount that our customers will continue to receive the highest level of service and the employees continue to be regarded as family. From the first conversation with Chuck Reimel and the Pye-Barker team, it was obvious that Pye-Barker has the same focus on long-term relationships. That’s why I am excited to be joining forces with Pye-Barker Fire.”

The company will continue to operate under the AlarmTec Systems name.

“Mark Shipp has built a great legacy with AlarmTec Systems. It’s an honor that we’ve been selected to uphold it,” said Pye-Barker Fire CEO Bart Proctor.