OCALA, FL—After weeks of preparation, and a yearlong wait, Ocala (FL) Fire Rescue (OFR) welcomed its 100-foot platform last night during a “push-in” ceremony. Elected officials, community members, firefighters, and local media gathered at Fire Station #1 to witness history in the making as OFR welcomed the department’s fourth ever tower truck.

The ceremony, which began with a presentation of colors by OFR’s honor guard, included a brief address by Fire Chief Bradd Clark, who spoke of the fire truck’s features, the design process, and the overall history behind the traditional ceremony. The pushing in of the truck, proceeded.

Having completed the age-old tradition, dating back to the times when horse-drawn steam engines had to be pushed back into the station by firefighters after a call, Tower One was announced to be officially in service. Completing an inaugural lap around Tuscawilla Park, Tower One returned to Station #1 to a warm welcome from those in attendance. The excitement of the night peeked after fascinated community members witnessed the magnitude of the ladder capabilities, and increased further more once the apparatus tours and photo opportunities took place.

“The purpose of this ceremony was to share the excitement of this valuable piece of equipment with the community which we serve. There simply could not have been a better measure of success than the support exhibited by everyone in attendance”, said Public Information Officer Ashley Lopez.

Honeywell (NYSE: HON) today announced AreaRAE Pro, the next-generation wireless, transportable, GPS-enabled, multi-threat monitor from Honeywell RAE Systems. AreaRAE Pro collects information on meteoreological conditions and simultaneously detects a broad range of threats including toxic and combustible gases, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and radiation. While monitoring for hazardous conditions, AreaRAE Pro uses state of the art wireless technology to communicate threats in real time up to two miles to a host receiver, where critical information is conveyed via remote software so that connected responders and decision makers across the enterprise have increased situational awareness to make faster, more informed decisions.

“The legacy AreaRAE notably served the HAZmat and emergency response community for almost 15 years as a multi-threat detector, but now the platform has been redesigned and upgraded through Honeywell technology and its considerable engineering resources,” said Thomas Negre, senior marketing director, Portable Solutions, Honeywell Analytics. “The result is more information being gathered by a single device and making that information easily accessible to local and remote decision makers. For first responders, understanding what the threats are, where they are and how they are moving is critical to determine an appropriate response plan. AreaRAE Pro’s detection capabilities give incident commanders more critical information, so that they can keep their teams and the community safe.”

With its versatile configuration options, AreaRAE Pro accommodates up to seven sensors that can be easily switched out as needs change. Users can select from over 20 sensors for toxic and combustible gases, a photoionization detector (PID) for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at parts per billion levels, a gamma ray sensor for radiation, and a meteorological sensor to monitor factors affecting the dispersion and direction of gas plumes, such as wind speed and direction. Meteorological data can be used to develop a visual plume model on a computer loaded with Honeywell’s real-time monitoring software, which aids in predicting the spread of a gas leak and planning of additional safety measures.

In addition, AreaRAE Pro includes an embedded GPS location identification, which provides critical information on where a unit is deployed, enabling responders to react to an incident with increased situational awareness.

Honeywell has re-engineered the wireless technology to provide untethered flexibility with choice of wireless protocols includingGPS, mesh wireless, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth® (BTLA). AreaRAE Pro also has a built-in mesh modem that facilitates the short-range transmission (up to 100 meters) of readings to a central monitor, while serving as a host for up to eight other portable Honeywell detectors. 

An optional Rapid Deployment Kit enables incident responders to configure and activate a wireless area monitoring system in minutes. Flexible power options are available for both short and long-term deployments, including switchable battery packs and AC power.

AreaRAE Pro builds on the AreaRAE’s legacy of excellence in the incident response community by providing responders with more information than ever to help them identify hot zones, set perimeters, and make other informed emergency decisions both onsite or remotely using AreaRAE Pro’s wireless technology.<

LUVERNE, MN—Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company (Midwest Fire) President and CEO Sarah Atchison was named a finalist along with two other companies for the Executive of the Year Award at the Minnesota Business Manufacturing Awards. The award recognizes an individual who has made major accomplishments in Minnesota’s manufacturing industry in the past few years.

The awards event celebrating the finalists was held in Minneapolis. Winners and finalists will be honored in an upcoming feature story of an all-manufacturing issue of Minnesota Business.

“Atchison’s leadership and accomplishments are inspiring,” says Minnesota Business Editor in Chief Steve LeBeau. “Manufacturing is an aggressive industry, and Atchison has adapted and prospered. We are very impressed with her career.”

“I’m grateful for the recognition,” says Atchison. “I have a great team behind me at Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company and credit them for our success and awards as a business.”