“Various and Sundry”…comments
Kirk Grundahl, P.E.
Founder
Qualtim Technologies International
Madison, Wisconsin
I was amazed to read Bill Manning`s “Various and Sundry” (Editor`s Opinion, February 1996) and find him promulgating the negative stance the fire service continues to take with regard to engineered wood products. He states, “…since these structural elements are known to fare quite poorly under fire conditions–worse in comparison to our friend the lightweight metal-gusseted wood truss.” The question that must be asked is, Based on what facts is this statement made? Those of us in the engineered wood products field who have interacted with the fire service have continually asked for real life performance facts. The fire incident facts we have received show remarkably good fire endurance performance. In one case in particular, a center 18- by 26-foot bottom chord and lower web section of a 66-foot scissors truss was burned through. Even with six firefighters standing in the webs of what remained of the trusses to fight the fire, the trusses not only did not fail, but they were repaired by adding spliced trusses to the existing trusses. I have slides of this and two other cases that show the great performance of trusses in fire.
Given this, I again ask, Where are the facts to support the position in the editorial? It`s difficult to understand and rationally process anecdotal or this “feels-logical” evidence. Unfortunately, most of the rhetoric takes on a life of its own and becomes “fact” over time because no one is diligently testing the evidence…. Rationally, if there is a good solid fact base of information (with no emotion involved), one would be able to first determine exactly what the problem is, if there is one, and then begin to develop a logical plan of attack to solve the issues. We do not have this.
The editorial makes an interesting comment in the next-to-last paragraph, “…approximately 65 percent of all structure fires are confined to the room of origin.” I`m surprised that this figure is not higher, but it sure is better than 25 percent. The point here is that the TrusJoist MacMillan position with respect to sprinklers makes sense given this statistic. How would the statistic be affected if all buildings had sprinklers? My guess is that it would be closer to 100 percent.
Manning`s “White Cover” editorial was brilliant, especially the statement: “Most important, we must continually emphasize that training is the key that opens the door to firefighting success and safety. Good training is worth a thousand regulations. It begets responsible firefighting…. Training is your power.” We agree with this concept wholeheartedly.
It is very easy to cast negative innuendo toward something that is not completely understood. This does not help promote understanding or training and is very divisive. We would rather propose getting the facts, understanding them, and then taking some rational action together. We believe the answer lies in understanding and training. Engineered wood products are being demanded to produce the American dream every U.S. citizen considers an inalienable right [owning a home]. Houses need to be of high-quality construction and still be affordable. This industry is valuable to this country. Let`s work together to make it work well for all of us.
With regard to Bill Manning`s editorial in the February 1996 issue, I, too, am bothered by the incongruity I see in the fire service. You are not alone! This incongruity has resulted in an increasingly younger leadership core that has no allegiance to seniority. In this context, “seniority” refers to the accumulation of experience and training. These young, educated leaders have achieved their status not through decades of experience and training but through years of classroom time. Their lack of seniority has produced a defensive reaction toward career-oriented personnel who have seniority but lack a degree-oriented program.
I`m proud of the advancements made in building an educational base for the future fire service. But education does not replace seniority. This incongruity can be seen in the advertisements for chief officer in every trade magazine. The ad might read: “Fire Chief Wanted, required A.S./B.S. in Fire Sciences Desired or Equivalent Training/Experience.”
There is no equivalent to training and experience. No A.S. or B.S. degree will ever equal the knowledge one earns through training and experience. The fact is that a good education will make you a better leader only if you have a well-developed career that is strong in training and experience.
Bruce J. Cavallari
Lieutenant, Station #51 “A”
Palm Beach County Fire Rescue
West Palm Beach, Florida
Reference is made to “Various and Sundry,” in which Bill Manning contrasts the New Jersey State Legislature`s considering passing a bill requiring that all newly appointed police officers under a state civil service system possess four-year college degrees with the “dumbing” down of the state`s firefighters. This comparison is appropriate and representative of the same trend here in the state of California.
Our state fire marshal, Ronny J. Coleman, has worked diligently to improve the educational and training level of the fire service. Nevertheless, funding sources for education and training have been severely limited. At the same time, the police have millions of dollars allocated for training, instruction, and higher-education endeavors through a fund set aside from funds imposed.
We, the members of the fire service, also need to work together to develop a system to assist and financially support our training and education needs.
Fire Engineering seems to me to be the appropriate forum for raising this issue among members of the fire service by assisting in the surveying of the states to determine what sort of funding mechanisms are available to the fire service throughout the United States. By gathering this data and raising this issue, it might be possible to effect a change in our status.
Thank you, and you are “right on.” I am offering my support and assistance.
Ray O. Shackelford
Department of Technology
California State University
Los Angeles, California
