• OPEN INCORPORATED, makers of the SafetyPAD® suite of technology products for emergency medical services (EMS), continues to provide critical tools to assist D.C. Fire & EMS's Street Calls program. The program has been in place since 2008, and this year alone D.C. Fire & EMS has reduced the most chronic users of the 911 system calls by more than 48 percent. D.C. Fire & EMS's implementation of the Street Calls program was a response to an EMS task force recommendation to develop an outreach program for patients with chronic needs to reduce misuse of 911 EMS and transport delays. SafetyPAD's electronic patient care reporting (ePCR) provides D.C. Fire & EMS with real-time statistical analysis and tools to identify those individuals who use 911 EMS transport services the most. The department can then proactively make sure callers are connected with appropriate preventive care and other services, thus ensuring department resources are used most optimally in support of the public.
• KME recently recognized its sales representative organizations (SROs) for outstanding sales and service performance. KME's Pinnacle Award recognizes organizations that have had significant growth over previous years. This year's winners included Safe Industries of Piedmont, South Carolina, and Bulldog Fire Apparatus of Woodville, Massachusetts, while Metz Fire & Rescue, of Guelph, Ontario, was the top award winner. KME's Summit Club recognizes SROs that have had the highest overall sales volumes over the past year. This year's winners included NAFECO of Decatur, Alabama, and Bulldog Fire Apparatus of Woodville, Massachusetts, with First Priority Emergency Vehicles of Manchester, New Jersey, taking top honors. KME's Vision Award is a special award that isn't based solely on sales or numbers. This award recognizes an organization that has made investments in its business at all levels-including training, service, personnel, branding, and sales-that have significantly affected market share in its region and overall ability to service its customers. The awards went to Cascade Fire & Safety from the western region, Mac's Fire & Safety from the midwest region, Safe Industries from the southeast region, and First Priority Emergency Vehicles from the eastern region.
• GLOBE, DUPONT, AND THE NATIONAL VOLUNTEER FIRE COUNCIL (NVFC) have announced three more recipients in the 2013 Globe Gear Giveaway Program. The Axtell (NE) Volunteer Fire and Rescue and Jasper Volunteer Fire Department, Duffield, Virginia, will each receive four sets of gear. The Lilbourn (MO) Volunteer Fire Department will receive two sets.
Axtell Volunteer Fire and Rescue, in rural Nebraska, has 19 active members who respond to about 100 calls per year as well as deliver mutual aid to nearby communities. All of the department's gear is greater than 20 years old and has been passed down to new fire department volunteers for many years. The Jasper Volunteer Fire Department in Duffield, Virginia, has also been struggling because of the economy. Protecting a population of more than 3,000, the 20 active firefighters have to make do with an inadequate number of sets of gear, all of which are more than 10 years old. The Lilbourn (MO) Volunteer Fire Department serves a population of 6,000 in New Madrid County, Missouri. The department's small annual operating budget only covers the cost of fuel and repairs to equipment. The 14 firefighters cover their own community as well as assist with tanker support for surrounding communities. Any new equipment must be purchased either through donations or from the firefighters' own pockets.
• E-ONE was recently awarded a contract for 18 custom eMAX™ pumpers from the United States Air Force. The 18 new eMAX pumpers are top-mount configurations on Typhoon® chassis with long cabs. The pumpers will feature 1,250-gallon-per-minute pumping capability, 500-gallon water tanks, and 30-gallon integral foam cells. E-ONE debuted the top-mount eMAX configuration on a commercial chassis earlier this year and has received interest because of its expansive storage space on a traditional top-mount configuration.
• ELKHART BRASS recently announced two partnerships. First, the company has partnered with Fire Rescue Safety Australia (FRSA), an emergency management solutions specialist, to increase accessibility of its product portfolio while enhancing customer support for the fire suppression industry throughout Australia and New Zealand. FRSA, headquartered in Perth, Australia, has six locations throughout Australia that offer a full scope of services including consulting, needs assessment, designing tailored solutions, and product implementation.
The company also announced that it is joining forces with Darch Fire Incorporated, a supplier and service provider for first response equipment and apparatus, to offer a comprehensive customer support solution for the municipal fire industry in Canada. Darch Fire, based in Ontario, Canada, offers an all-inclusive support solution for Ontario and Manitoba, which includes a trained and certified sales and service team that will provide support for new apparatus specing and access to Elkhart Brass's loose equipment product line and full service and maintenance offerings, including onsite support.
• CURTIS INDUSTRIES has introduced a new commercial grade cab system for John Deere Gator XUV and HPX models. This all-steel cab enclosure fits 2013 and prior year models and provides all-season protection. Curtis Cabs for the Gator XUV/HPX lineup are made in America from all-steel construction. Options for the new cab include a tuck-away heater that is discreetly mounted to provide more legroom, protecting the passenger's knees in off-road riding environments and providing multidirectional airflow and flexible outlet options including defrost. A full range of LED safety strobe and work lights, mirrors, and snow and ice equipment may be purchased separately. Curtis also expects to roll out its Gator XUV Series four-passenger cab system.
• W. L. GORE & ASSOCIATES, Inc. has issued an important firefighter product safety alert, along with information about enrollment in a product remediation program. The alert is in response to isolated incidents of seam-tape separation observed in turnout gear in North America-using both Gore and non-Gore moisture barriers-that has been stored in its original packaging for three or more years before being issued and worn. Gore's alert identifies the affected GORE® products and a course of action for proper product remediation. No seam tape separation was observed for turnout gear utilizing GORE® moisture barriers that had been removed from its packaging before being stored.
Once aware of the incidents, Gore investigated the issue and determined that the GORE-SEAM® tape affected has been used with CROSSTECH® moisture barriers (Type 2C), CROSSTECH® black moisture barriers (Type 2F), and GORE® RT7100 moisture barriers (Type 3B and Type 3D). The GORE-SEAM® tape used with CROSSTECH® three-layer moisture barriers (Type 4A) is unaffected.
Gore has not received any reports of adverse effects from this issue. However, it has implemented a remediation program. For turnout gear utilizing GORE® moisture barriers stored for more than three years and affected by this situation, Gore will remediate the gear. This North American program involves a newly developed GORE-SEAM® tape that is markedly unaffected by the storage interactions causing this issue. Evaluation of this issue outside North America is underway.
For more detailed information about this alert, visit: www.GoreProtectiveFabrics.com/FirefighterProductSafetyAlert.