By Alan M. Petrillo
Firefighters and incident commanders are using more rugged laptops, tablets, and hand-held devices both in the cabs of fire apparatus and on the scenes of fires and other emergencies.
Makers of those electronic devices are responding to fire service needs by producing an array of devices that are proving to be durable, easy to use, and full of pertinent data and information.
David Plourde, Dell product marketing rugged manager, points out that firefighters should look at four main attributes in their tablets/laptops for fire use: elements-proof units, readable screens, dedicated GPS, and expanded accessories. “Dell designed and engineered the Rugged Latitude line separate from our standard Latitude,” Plourde says. These include the Dell Latitude 5430 Rugged and the Latitude 7330 Rugged Extreme, which have 11th-generation Intel® Core™ processors with optional vPro, Intel Wi-Fi 6E, and optional 5G capability and battery run time of nearly 25 hours with dual hot swappable batteries.
He notes the Rugged Latitude models are engineered to resist vibration, water, and dust ingress; enhance heat management; and protect from salt fog that can corrode sensitive parts. “We test the Rugged Latitude for operational thermal extremes from -20°F to +145°F and storage thermal extremes from -40°F to +165°F,” he says.
1 Dell makes the Latitude 5430 rugged laptop that uses an 11th-generation Intel Core processor. (Photos 1-2 courtesy of Dell.)
2 Dell’s Latitude 7330 Rugged Extreme laptop is tested for operational thermal extremes from -20°F to +165°F.
Plourde says that when a tablet is mounted on an engine’s doghouse, it gets a lot of vibrations, so Dell builds a dampening material into the unit’s chassis. “It’s a magnesium alloy made with high-strength plastics and carbon fiber into an extremely rigid hard case with dampening material on the inside,” he says. “We also do (military specification) testing of 26 drops from a six-foot height on the corners, sides, and faces of our Rugged Latitude laptop models. For our semi-rugged version, we do the drops from a height of three feet, while our Rugged Tablet, which has no integrated keyboard, drops from four feet high.”
Dell’s touch screens are very bright, Plourde says, going up to 1,400 nits brightness rating and as low as three nits for dimly lit conditions. “All of our touch screens are glove capable,” he adds. Plourde says that Dell sees more laptops installed in engines and ladders, while tablets are more in use on rescues and emergency medical services vehicles. “With the tablet, they want to hand-hold it easily,” he says. “Plus, we have a pens screen feature for signatures and touch boxes, and the user can add a bar code scanner on the back of the tablet for inventory management.”
Daniel Tyk, battalion chief for North Shore (WI) Fire/Rescue, says his department switched over to Apple iPads for their ease of portability, superior connectivity, and ease of customization. “We currently are replacing our seventh-generation iPads with eighth- and ninth-generation units,” T
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Posted: Jan 11, 2023
SVI Trucks—Las Vegas (NV) Fire & Rescue hazmat unit. Spartan Gladiator ELFD raised roof cab and chassis; Cummins X15 505-hp engine; Waterous 300-gpm single-stage pump; 300-gallon polypropylene water tank; Onan 20-kW generator; 18-foot walk-in crew area with computer docking stations; SCBA cylinder 8-position storage module. Dealer: Travis Grinstead, Emergency Vehicle Group, Anaheim, CA.
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Posted: Jan 11, 2023
The vacant former Mattapoiset Fire Station at 29 County Road in Mattapoisett has a new owner and a new purpose, sippican.theweektoday.com reported.
Marion-based Sky Development Ltd., which is owned by Michael and Katherine Sudofsky, bought the former fire station for $675,000, said the Mattapoisett Select Board during a Jan. 10 meeting, the report said.
The Sudofsky’s also own a number of properties in Mattapoisett including the Walrus and Captain Restaurant and the “Ropewalk Shops and Cafe,” according to the report.
A town official said at a previous meeting that because of the way the fire station sits diagonally on the property, he does not think the new owners could do much if they knocked the building down – in fact, it would add more restrictions, the report said.
According to the Select Board, this new property will follow in the footsteps of other properties owned by Sky Development Ltd. in Mattapoisett.
It’s going to be a grocery store-bakery set-up, according to a town official.
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Blog by Pierce Manufacturing
When a fire department is in need of elevated firefighting and rescue capabilities, it may consider an aerial fire truck.
But there is one critical component to consider: does the department require a water pump and tank on the apparatus?
This blog will compare aerial apparatus with a pump and tank versus an aerial apparatus with no pump and no tank to help fire departments understand the capabilities of each.
Aerial with No Pump and No Tank
An aerial apparatus with no pump and no tank is a very traditional type of emergency vehicle common to the Northeast and East Coast regions. Traditionally referred to as a ‘truck company,’ a no pump, no tank aerial has a large complement of ground ladders.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) typically classifies an aerial with no pump and no tank as an “Aerial Fire Apparatus” as outlined in Chapter 8: Aerial Fire Apparatus, stating, “The apparatus shall be equipped with an aerial ladder, elevating platform, or water tower that meets the requirements of Chapter 19 (Aerial Devices).”
A fire department may be interested in a no pump no tank aerial based on several key factors:
- Tight areas where the apparatus and aerial device cannot reach. In historical communities and congested urban areas, fire trucks and even aerial devices cannot access certain areas. In these cases, a truck with aerial rescue capabilities and a large number of ground ladders is essential. Ground ladders are critical in firefighting operations and a truck with a large complement of ladders is a great addition to an existing fleet of vehicles.
- High storage requirements. If a fire department finds itself in need of both an aerial device and high storage capabilities, it may choose a no pump, no tank apparatus.
- Fleet requirements. Each department fleet
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