3M Scott Safety Addresses Cancer Concerns with New Air-Pak™ Design

MONROE, NC—3M Scott Safety has introduced the Air-Pak X3 Pro, engineered to enhance cleanability, comfort, and connectivity while complying with upcoming National Fire Protection Association standards for 2018.

“We looked at how we can make the self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) more cleanable,” says John Dinning, associate director, firefighter solutions. “So, we looked at the materials of the soft goods and picked out materials that did not absorb water or chemicals. We changed the padding materials to a closed-cell foam. Also, we’ve made the soft goods removable without having to take the pneumatics off the SCBA.”

With minimal water absorption, the new harness assembly can be machine laundered to minimize contamination and reduce long-term carcinogen exposure. Because the gear can be laundered at the station, firefighters have fast and easy access to their equipment when they respond to the next call.

A new shoulder harness design improves the ease of donning the SCBA and minimizes pressure points to reduce user fatigue. A naturally articulating waist pad provides the user with a greater range of motion while transferring weight to the hips for a more balanced load.

The SCBA also offers enhanced electronics with Bluetooth® technology, which allows it to support wireless connectivity for improved firefighter safety and fireground accountability. An electronic PAR feature allows incident command to reliably communicate with firefighters without creating additional radio traffic. Data downloading and configuration changes are made easier using a wireless connection to smartphones.

3M Scott Safety is accepting orders now and plans to be able to make shipments after January 1, 2018. The company offers the option of buying a second set of soft goods so SCBA is not out of service while the padding is cleaned.

BOISE MOBILE EQUIPMENT (BME)is expanding its facilities and its product lines. BME has just acquired two new warehouses—one 25,000 square feet and one 50,000 square feet—to meet increasing demand and to produce innovative new firefighting vehicles. The expansion came as BME locked in a $10 million contract with CAL FIRE to produce more than 30 wildland fire apparatus. Since then, several additional fire departments have “tagged on” to this contract.

HONEYWELLhas announced the first five recipients of the Honeywell Dupont FDIC Scholarships: Louise Hind-Schmidt, Ottawa (Canada) Fire Services; Timothy Houston, Raleigh (NC) Fire Department; Lt. Charles Meyer, Seattle (WA) Fire Department; Justin Starks, Andrews Airforce Base, Maryland; and Priscilla Wilkins, Norfolk (VA) Fire Rescue. It’s simple and fast to apply. Just go to www.honeywelldupontfdicscholarship.com.

ALEXIS FIRE EQUIPMENT CO. recently launched a new corporate brand strategy, Web site, and online merchandise store. The new logo as well as its new tagline “Driven To Serve” can be found on the company’s revamped Web sites, which have been redesigned to provide a more user-friendly experience across a