By Roger Lackore

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) apparatus committee has published NFPA 1911, Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Emergency Vehicles (2017 ed.), which took effect in January.

Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association (FAMA) member companies worked on the apparatus committee both as association members and as individual company representatives. While we all work hard to design great apparatus, like any machine, your fire apparatus is only as good as the care it receives. NFPA 1911 is an essential tool in providing the care that will keep your fleet safe and operational.

Title Change Expands Scope

The 2017 edition changed its name from “Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Automotive Fire Apparatus” to “Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Emergency Vehicles.” This name change was accompanied by changes that make the standard applicable to emergency vehicles in general. The standard is now applicable to ambulances as well as fire apparatus. It can also apply to chief vehicles and other light vehicles if the authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) so desires. The idea was to allow fire departments to cover the critical inspection and maintenance aspects of all their automotive vehicles with a single document.

Coordination with NFPA 1901 and 1906

Over the past decade, the apparatus committee has put a major push on better coordinating the documents under its control. This was done first by rewriting the municipal and wildland standards so the chapters match each other and by bringing them into the same revision cycles. This makes it easier to track changes between standards and ensures that these changes appear in both documents at the same time. While NFPA 1911 has yet to be brought into the same revision cycle, the committee has attempted to keep the revisions right on the heels of changes to NFPA 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus, and NFPA 1906, Standard for Wildland Fire Apparatus. For 2017, this includes removing outdated or inaccurate tabular information and adding stipulations that wildland fire pumps and ultra-high-pressure pumps be tested at least annually, just as the bigger pumps are.

Inspection and Maintenance of Trailers

Chapter 6 has been expanded to include out-of-service criteria for emergency service trailers to coordinate with the trailer chapter that was added to NFPA 1901 in 2016. A new chapter 16 has also been added to cover maintenance criteria for these trailers. Inspection criteria include all the typical trailer systems such as suspensions, axles, wheels, safety chains, hitch, and hitch mounting. An extensive section points out important brake-system-related inspection points, and the standard also provides a tire replacement schedule.

Inspection and Maintenance

A new Chapter 17 provides inspection criteria for patient compartments of ambulances or fire apparatus equipped for patient transport. The committee coordinated the chapter with NFPA 1917, Standard for Automotive Ambulances. Inspections cover the complete range of patient compartment features from heating and cooling to medical equipment and lighting.

The committee was unanimous in agreeing on the importance of diligent scheduled inspections and maintenance. They captured this sentiment in the annex, where it states, “The importance of the daily/weekly checks cannot be stressed

By Alan M. Petrillo

The ride to and from a fire scene in a pumper, rescue, or aerial can be exhilarating, tiring, or relaxing in getting from one place to another.

1 USSC Valor First Responder Seating makes the Magnus G2A driver seat in three versions, one of which can hold 650 pounds and has three lumbar settings, horizontal air slides, and electric controls. (Photos 1-2 courtesy of USSC Valor First Responder Seating.)

The seats that firefighters occupy in those apparatus have to be able to safely convey the firefighter to the job, provide access to the equipment needed along the way, and be durable to last the life of the apparatus. Seating manufacturers are focusing on attributes that allow for safety first while adding comfort and convenience for users.

USSC Valor

Steve Toren, vice president of USSC Valor First Responder Seating, says the company offers driver, officer, and crew seats in its first responder line as well as ambulance emergency medical technician (EMT) attendant seats and command-style seats that are stationary and mounted to the chassis. USSC Valor has three styles of driver seats: one air suspension and two air ride seats. The Valor Magnus G2A air suspension seat has front toggle controls for height adjustment and lower, middle, and upper lumbar adjustments.

2 The USSC Valor crew seating is available in 18- and 20-inch (shown) widths with a flip-up seat as well as either a fixed SCBA bracket or a dynamic adjustable bracket.

The Calor Magnus series heavy-duty model can lift and hold 650 pounds and has horizontal air slides, electric controls, and three lumbar settings, while the standard version will lift and hold 350 pounds and has electric controls, manual slides, and recline and lumbar settings. The models are available in all belts to seats (ABTS) and nonABTS models. All of Valor’s driver seat features are available for its officer seat as well as a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) back.

For crew seating, Toren points out the seats are generally fixed and have no sliding adjustments. “We make 18-inch- and 20-inch-wide crew seats,” Toren says, “in two styles: with a fixed SCBA bracket or a dynamic adjustable SCBA bracket that allows the user to push the air pack bottle back into the seat so it is out of the way, not impacting the firefighter’s back. That’s one of our unique designs.”

3 Read more 516 0 Article rating: No rating Posted: Jun 13, 2017 Fire Apparatus Seating Focuses on Safety, Comfort, and Convenience By Alan M. Petrillo The ride to and from a fire scene in a pumper, rescue, or aerial can be exhilarating, tiring, or relaxing in getting from one place to another. 1 USSC Valor First Responder Seating makes the Magnus G2A driver seat in three versions, one of which can hold 650 pounds and has three lumbar settings, horizontal air slides, and electric controls. (Photos 1-2 courtesy of USSC Valor First Responder Seating.) The seats that firefighters occupy in those apparatus have to be able to safely convey the firefighter to the job, provide access to the equipment needed along the way, and be durable to last the life of the apparatus. Seating manufacturers are focusing on attributes that allow for safety first while adding comfort and convenience for users. USSC Valor Steve Toren, vice president of USSC Valor First Responder Seating, says the company offers driver, officer, and crew seats in its first responder line as well as ambulance emergency medical technician (EMT) attendant seats and command-style seats that are stationary and mounted to the chassis. USSC Valor has three styles of driver seats: one air suspension and two air ride seats. The Valor Magnus G2A air suspension seat has front toggle controls for height adjustment and lower, middle, and upper lumbar adjustments. 2 The USSC Valor crew seating is available in 18- and 20-inch (shown) widths with a flip-up seat as well as either a fixed SCBA bracket or a dynamic adjustable bracket. The Calor Magnus series heavy-duty model can lift and hold 650 pounds and has horizontal air slides, electric controls, and three lumbar settings, while the standard version will lift and hold 350 pounds and has electric controls, manual slides, and recline and lumbar settings. The models are available in all belts to seats (ABTS) and nonABTS models. All of Valor’s driver seat features are available for its officer seat as well as a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) back. For crew seating, Toren points out the seats are generally fixed and have no sliding adjustments. “We make 18-inch- and 20-inch-wide crew seats,” Toren says, “in two styles: with a fixed SCBA bracket or a dynamic adjustable SCBA bracket that allows the user to push the air pack bottle back into the seat so it is out of the way, not impacting the firefighter’s back. That’s one of our unique designs.” 3 Read more 578 0 Article rating: No rating Posted: Jun 13, 2017 Fire Apparatus Seating Focuses on Safety, Comfort, and Convenience By Alan M. Petrillo The ride to and from a fire scene in a pumper, rescue, or aerial can be exhilarating, tiring, or relaxing in getting from one place to another. 1 USSC Valor First Responder Seating makes the Magnus G2A driver seat in three versions, one of which can hold 650 pounds and has three lumbar settings, horizontal air slides, and electric controls. (Photos 1-2 courtesy of USSC Valor First Responder Seating.) The seats that firefighters occupy in those apparatus have to be able to safely convey the firefighter to the job, provide access to the equipment needed along the way, and be durable to last the life of the apparatus. Seating manufacturers are focusing on attributes that allow for safety first while adding comfort and convenience for users. USSC Valor Steve Toren, vice president of USSC Valor First Responder Seating, says the company offers driver, officer, and crew seats in its first responder line as well as ambulance emergency medical technician (EMT) attendant seats and command-style seats that are stationary and mounted to the chassis. The Valor First Responder Seating line has three styles of driver seats. There are two air suspension seat styles and an electric style. The Valor Magnus G2A air suspension seat has front toggle controls for height adjustment and lower, middle, and upper lumbar adjustments. For the driver seat, the Valor Magnus series heavy-duty model can lift and hold 650 pounds and has air ride, horizontal air slides and three lumbar settings. The standard Valor Magnus will lift and hold 350 pounds, but the other settings are manual. There’s an air button for the air ride itself, but everything else is manual—manual slides, manual lumbar, and manual recline. The third driver seat is an all electric seat. It’s a 12-way electric seat, with most functions handled electrically. For the officer position, fire departments can use one of the three seats offered for the driver’s position. “Additionally in the officer’s position, many times departments will want to put in a crew seat—a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) style crew seat in the officer’s position,” says Toren. “Many times they will take that crew seat and want to put mechanisms under it, i.e. air ride suspension, slides, etc.” According to Toren, the crew seats are adaptable for the officer’s seat to incorporate these features. The models are available in all belts to seats (ABTS) and nonABTS models.  The air ride seats use technology that USSC brought from its transit seats to the first responder seats. “We decided to get into the first responder business about five years ago,” says Toren. “And, the reason we did that is based on our heritage of manufacturing transit seating for both the driver position and the passenger position in buses and light rail. We’ve been manufacturing seating for that for about 30 years.” He adds, “Also military. Our military line of seating is considered one of the best lines of seating for our war fighters. So, that’s our heritage really—in those two categories.” Read more 398 0 Article rating: No rating Posted: Jun 13, 2017 FDIC International 2017: A Platform for Discussion By Chris Mc Loone One of the most important aspects of FDIC International is that the event acts as a springboard for conversation. As great as it is to see friends, catch up, and share stories of FDICs past, there are many discussions taking place as the week commences regarding current issues that directly impact the future of the fire service. One such issue is cancer. There hasn’t been an FDIC International in recent memory where firefighter cancer was talked about more. From products like particulate-blocking hoods to presentations like Gavin Horn’s “Reducing Cancer Risks for the Fire Service” to major players in the industry committing support for the Firefighter Cancer Support Network, FDIC International 2017 proved that firefighter cancer awareness is increasing and that the industry is responding by designing new products to help firefighters reduce their risks. Discussion revolving around cancer centered on the products available to help protect firefighters as well as potential tactical changes on the fireground to help reduce firefighter cancer risk. Besides cancer awareness, one of the bigger stories at the show was REV Group’s acquisition of Ferrara Fire Apparatus. Announced before the exhibits opened, Ferrara joins E-ONE and KME to comprise the REV Fire Group. What follows here are reports from Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment team members regarding their impressions of this year’s event. For complete coverage, go to www.fireapparatus.com/fdic. FDIC 2017: What’s New for Safety By Robert Tutterow When fire service manufacturers decide when and where to introduce new products, the decision almost always defaults to FDIC International. If size matters, then the Miami-Dade (FL) Fire Rescue tow truck equipped for heavy rescue deserves top billing. The JERR-DAN rig’s rotating boom is rated at 50 or 60 tons, depending on the rating system used, and has a reach of 41 feet 7 inches. Tow trucks have been used in many European fire service brigades for years. Will this concept catch on in the United States? Keep an eye on Little Giant Ladders. This company continues to improve on one of the basic tools of the trade. This year, it displayed a ladder with stability legs at the base of the ladder. Last year at FDIC International, Dupont introduced its Nano technology for particulate barrier hoods. This year, W.L. Gore and Stedfast introduced new barrier hood technology. The Stedfast material is called “Prevent” and is available from various hood manufacturers. The Gore material is referred to as the “Gore Particulate Hood” and is currently available only through Majestic Fire Apparel. Photo by Chris Mc Loone. As chair of the NFPA 1971, Standard on Protective Ensembles for Structural Fire Fighting and Proximity Fire Fighting, task group on eye and face protection, I was particularly interested in eye protection products. Bullard’s “ReTrak” series of helmets features an eye shield stowed beneath the helmet shell and flips down with a close fit like safety glasses. Bullard was able to do this without expanding the size of the outer shell. Also, Edge Tactical Eyewear, ESS Eye Pro, and HexArmor Eyew Read more 457 0 Article rating: No rating RSS FirstPrevious6211621262136214621562166217621862196220NextLast Theme picker Filter News Catagories Categories News (193) RSS Expand/Collapse Washington News (11847) RSS Expand/Collapse National News (11518) RSS Expand/Collapse WFC News (109) RSS Expand/Collapse Legislative Announcements (7) RSS Expand/Collapse Flag Lowerings (15) RSS Expand/Collapse Memorial Information (24) RSS Expand/Collapse Sections (6) RSS Expand/Collapse Emergency Medical Services (1) RSS Expand/Collapse Fire Administrative Support (17) RSS Expand/Collapse Fire Mechanics (19926) RSS Expand/Collapse Fire Training Safety & Officers (25) RSS Expand/Collapse Public Fire Educators (4) RSS Expand/Collapse HazMat Committee (0) RSS Expand/Collapse Filter to see National, Washington or WFC News, or filter to the Section News you are looking for! 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