A Memphis (TN) firefighter participated in a nationwide effort led by the Environmental Defense Fund to identify chemicals in our environment. The project used a cutting-edge technology— a simple looking silicone wristband—that can track the synthetic chemicals that are used in products all around us. Gordon Ginsberg was one of 10 participants across the country who wore the wristband for a week to help EDF experts shed light on the previously invisible problem of hazardous chemicals in our lives.

“As a firefighter, I have to have a practical understanding of what goes into the products in our homes, our schools and our workplaces,” said Gordon. “So I was especially curious to see what chemicals my wristband picked up and learn about how they might impact our health. I was surprised to learn one of them was a chemical banned 30 years ago.”

Gordon is a Lieutenant for the Memphis Fire Department. Although there were no fires to fight the week he wore the wristband, he still came into contact with a number of hazardous chemicals through his home environment and routine work maintaining fire station equipment, responding to medical calls, and visiting commercial and industrial sites.  Among those chemicals was gamma-chlordane, a pesticide that has been banned in the U.S. since the 1980s, and 3,4-dichlorophenyl isocyanate, a “chemical intermediate,” which is reportedly used exclusively for chemical manufacturing processes.  Gordon wondered if he came into contact with these chemicals from a site visit to a location that formerly housed chemical stock piles, his local auto repair shop, the nearby highway – or even his fire suit.

Synthetic chemicals are used to make 96% of products in the United States, from couches and carpets to the clothes we wear. While chemicals are a critical part of modern life, they are also released into our environment—and end up in our food, water and air – which can result in harmful chemical exposures. Scientific research is increasingly linking chemicals in common use to some cancers, infertility, diabetes, Parkinson’s and other illnesses. Pregnant woman, infants, and children are especially vulnerable.

Yet, data on the general population’s exposure to hazardous chemicals is very poor, and we know little about the safety of the tens of thousands of chemicals in use today. Scientists and government officials have insufficient data about exactly what chemicals Americans are exposed to every day, and in what amounts. We need better data to understand potential risks to our health from daily chemical exposure – and to improve our ability to reduce risk through government action, market-based solutions, and individual choices. The EDF-led project made use of new technology from MyExposome, Inc., developed by researchers at Oregon State University (OSU), using a simple silicone wristband like those worn in support of causes, to detect chemicals.

Sarah Vogel, Vice President of EDF’s health program said, “Synthetic chemicals have changed the way we live in innumerable ways, from wrinkle-free shirts to stain-resistant carpets. Unfortunately, we know that some chemicals in wide use can impact our health. But we have surprisingly little understanding of the complex mixture of chemicals in our environment and how they may impact our health.  Gordon’s role in this project helped us raise awarenes

Paul Conway Fire is excited to partner with CMC Rescue Equipment. “We are proud to be a full line dealer of CMC’s highly specialized rescue equipment,” said Lee Kasten, Sales Director. “CMC has a long history of serving the fire and rescue industry, and their commitment to quality is one of the same values that we stand behind.”

With the addition of CMC Rescue Equipment’s full line of products, Paul Conway Fire continues to provide top level products with top level customer service.

At this time, individuals can request a quote or get more information from Paul Conway Fire here: http://fire.paulconwayshields.com/information-request. Products will be launching on Fire.paulconwayshields.com in the upcoming weeks.

Paul Conway Fire is a division of Paul Conway Shields, a family owned business with proven performance since 1985. Firefighting heritage runs deep within this organization, spanning three generations, with founder Paul J. Conway (retired Chief of Operations - Milwaukee, WI Fire Dept.) as President. To learn more about Paul Conway Fire, visit Fire.paulconwayshields.com.

PHOENIX—The Phoenix G2 Room Remote 2 is the next-generation, all-in-one fire station alerting peripheral from US Digital Designs, the Tempe, Arizona-based public safety engineering firm that manufactures the “Phoenix G2 Fire Station Alerting System,” which helps protect more than 23 million people in over 353 cities around the globe.

It’s “all-in-one” because it provides tone and automated voice alerting, an LED light alert, dispatch text information, and input/output (I/O) controls.

The Room Remote 2 comes with a built-in turnout timer and a 10.1-inch full-color high-resolution LCD touch screen display for immediate visual reinforcement of the alert. With more readable area on the screen than its predecessor, the Room Remote 2 can simultaneously show dispatched units, incident information text and turnout timer.

“We couldn’t be more excited to continue to use the latest technology in our next-gen peripheral,” said Dominic Magnoni, vice president, US Digital Designs. “The Room Remote 2 comes with a ‘tablet-like’ multi-touch screen, an ultra-efficient digital amplifier and a low-profile, low-power display.”

The Room Remote 2 allows first responders to adjust settings, such as the number of units to be alerted, radio monitoring, or volume. The original Room Remote, launched in 2005, is in more than 1,500 fire stations throughout the globe. Five hundred of the new Room Remote 2 devices have been built, and about half have been delivered to USDD clients.

Popular uses for the fire station alerting peripheral include:

• Dorm Rooms – select alerts only for unit in dorm
• Offices – Monitor other station units’ activity
• Training Rooms – volume control and quiet alerts

For more information, visit www.stationalerting.com.

Thanks to Groves/Ready Rack’s exclusive modular design, its wall-mounted Red Rack units can be ordered in virtually any wall run length. They create maximum organization, which helps shave precious time off response times. They are built with a tubular steel design and have a heavy-duty red powder coat finish. Using an open back design, these units allow firefighters to have easy access to stations’ building-code-approved switches and electrical outlets. The Red Racks are also available in mobile and freestanding units and have security options available.

All units for wall-mounted, freestanding, and mobile come complete with adjustable boot and helmet shelves, a hanging pole, adjustable apparel hooks, and label holders for each locker. Additional accessories such as helmet holders and hangers can be purchased separately to go with locker units. 

For more information, visit www.readyrack.com.

CLICK ABOVE FOR A GALLERY OF BOTH NEW STATIONS >>

By Alan M. Petrillo

Schreiber Starling Whitehead (SSW) Architects had designed several fire stations and a number of other projects for the Seattle (WA) Fire Department, so it was no surprise that the city came back to SSW for two fire stations that required different designs in dissimilar neighborhoods. And, those two stations earned both Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold awards and Honor Awards from the Fire Industry Education Resource Organization (F.I.E.R.O.). "We've done fire stations and other projects for the city, and helped them in the preparation for the levy that generated funding for the project to build 15 new stations and renovate and upgrade the rest of them," says Keith Schreiber, principal at SSW Architects. "The city had created a fire station design manual that prescribed the programmatic aspects of all their fire stations, but not the design."

Schreiber notes that Seattle's fire station design manual set out the parameters for various size stations: neighborhood one, two, and three and a battalion station. "The program identified what is standard for elements such as bunking, turnout gear storage, kitchen and dining sizes, apparatus bays, and storage options," he says. "We had worked with the city in the past on new stations and remodels to deal with seismic upgrades."

Fire Station 28, the first of the two, which was completed in 2009, cost $7.2 million and was initially conceived as a renovation project. However, at some point, it was decided to build a new station, which SSW had to accomplish by designing and building a fire station in an L-shape around the existing facility. Once the new station was in service, the old station was demolished. The advantage to building next to the existing station while it continued to operate, Schreiber says, "is the saved cost of temporarily relocating those operations. We built the new station five feet away from the existing building, and once the new one was operational, we demolished the old station, but used its basement as a cistern to collect storm water that is reused for irrigation and vehicle washing."

Fire Station 38, completed in 2011 at a construction cost of $3.8 million, is a smaller urban site that once was a gasoline station, Schreiber points out. "There had been fuel leakage into the soil over the years so we had to decontaminate the site," he says. "We drilled wells to remove the hydrocarbons, and replaced the top four feet of the soil on the entire site."

Both Station 28 and 38 are built on rock pilings, Schreiber says. "Because of the type of soils, we had to drill down 12 feet and put in compacted stone to create a geo-pier," he says. "The piers are placed roughly four feet on center over the entire footprint of each station, and then standard foundations and slabs are placed over that. The geo-piers provide stable soil for the stations and meet the essential facility crit