CLICK ABOVE FOR A GALLERY OF BILL'S OBSERVATIONS >>

By Bill Adams

Catchy title, eh? This isn’t about the Raisin Squad having morning coffee watching joggers running by the station. I showed the Squad some photos taken at FDIC International of the working ends of pumpers and the general use of and lack of grab handles. Some observations of the not-your-primetime players have merit, reinforcing my prior rantings that climbing onto a rig to get a primary piece of equipment is unsafe. And, when climbing on or off of a rig with a piece of equipment you should always have one hand for me and one hand for thee. Looking at grab rails on a blue print doesn’t always reflect real life. A purchasing specification is almost useless when it only says “there shall be one horizontal hand rail below the hosebed and one vertical handrail on each side.” (Disclaimer: Some of the photos are of apparatus not yet delivered, hence not all grab rails may be installed.) The captions are paraphrased from the white hairs’ comments.

In Section 15.8, The National Fire Protection Association NFPA 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus, addresses Access Handrails or Handholes. Sentence 15.8.5 is—in my simple mind—important. It says: Handrails and handholds shall be constructed so that three points of contact (two hands and one foot, or one hand and two feet) can be maintained at all times while ascending and descending.” It does not say anything about carrying equipment and maintaining the three points of contact. Can you? Should you? Do you have to? It’s nap time—later.

Coxreels recently introduced an industrial duty LED light now available on the PC13 (Power Cord) cord reels. The new LED light features a variety of industrial-grade features, including: an LED end-light feature, internal light diffuser, adjustable steel hooks for hands-free placement, and shatter-resistant polycarbonate lenses. Coxreels’ new LED light is UL Listed with a 50,000 hour rating.
Manufactured with 5000K light color and made in the U.S.A., this reel is a must-have for a variety of applications.

Coxreels® has remained steadfast and focused on manufacturing high quality, industrial grade hose, cord, and cable reels with leading industry innovation since 1923. Offering a full product line serving the industry in every channel and application, Coxreels® takes great pride in designing, building, and supporting each and every product made exclusively in the U.S.A.

For further information on Coxreels® industrial duty LED light, contact Customer Service at (800) 269-7335 or visit www.coxreels.com.

Nomex® Nano Flex technology is the big news in VIKING’s new, triple-layered, yet super lightweight range of NFPA-compliant hoods that protect the head and neck area from heat and potentially dangerous particles.

There’s a clear gap between the protection offered by the FR (flame-resistant) knit hoods used today by many firefighters and the capabilities of modern high-tech fabrics. To narrow that gap VIKING Life- Saving Equipment has announced it is releasing a triple-layered, lightweight range of new firefighting hoods that make the most of revolutionary DuPont™ Nomex® Nano Flex material.

Combining protection and comfort

The new VIKING NFPA-compliant hoods are constructed with a paper-thin layer of DuPont™ Nomex® Nano-Flex between layers of comfortable viscose. On the one hand, DuPont’s innovative material acts as a barrier that filters out particles over 100 times smaller than the human eye can see – while simultaneously providing high breathability for maximum comfort. At the same time, the hoods provide a 25-percent improvement in thermal protection performance (TPP) compared with conventional FR knit materials. This means greater protection of the facial and neck region, where a hood is usually the single line of defense. At the same time the hood is designed to fit comfortably under the helmet.

“Using Nomex® Nano Flex in our firefighter hood composite structure provides improved particle barrier protection, especially around the neckline and upper jaw – areas that easily absorb chemicals,” says Lars Kersting, Global Fire Sales Director. “And the material’s incredibly lightweight keeps the hood comfortable despite the multi-layer design.”

Proven barrier performance

To test the hood’s particle-filtering performance, wear trials were conducted with hoods containing the Nomex® Nano Flex barrier sandwiched between the viscose layers on one half of the hood. After the wear trials, the hoods were turned inside out and inspected, and the numbers of particles penetrating the hood with then without the paper-thin Nomex® Nano Flex protective layer were compared. Results reflected up to 4 times improved particle barrier efficiency.

Nomex® Nano Flex is a specialty nonwoven textile made of submicron continuous fibers, providing a superior protective barrier. Moreover, heat and flame protection is inherent to the Nomex® fiber – meaning this capability can’t be washed away or worn out.

Founded in 1960, VIKING is a privately held market leader in maritime and fire safety with group headquarters in Denmark. The company provides essential firefighting and safety equipment for structural firefighting as well as marine and offshore applications.

More: www.VIKING-fire.com and www.VIKING-life.com

Wyoming (MI) Department of Public Safety Fire Division pumper. Enforcer cab and chassis; TAK-4 independent front suspension; Cummins ISL 450-hp engine; Waterous CSU 1,500-gpm pump.