‘Don’t Worry, It’s Just an SCBA’: Developing a Breathing Air Program

By SCOTT ZELHART

The self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) is that singular piece of firefighting equipment we strap on our backs every workday with complete trust and faith that it has been serviced and tested and is in proper working order. This is the sole piece of equipment that provides contaminant-free air to breathe, allowing us to enter an immediately dangerous to life or health environment to save lives and protect property.

When I heard a firefighter say one morning, “Don’t worry, it’s just an SCBA,” I went a little bit off the rails. It did not help matters that the firefighter who said it just happened to be standing in front of his lieutenant, explaining that he shut his SCBA in a compartment door in a rush to complete the daily equipment check and now it was out of service because of mechanical damage. The time was 0715 hours, and we were off to a not-so-good start.

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As a battalion chief and SCBA program coordinator, I had early-morning department business to address at the station and was rounding the corner of the ladder truck when I heard that statement. In my earlier years working as a technician within our program and eventually assuming a leadership role, I might have detonated on that firefighter, but I am now older, wiser, and a bit more refined.

As I came into full view of the firefighter and the lieutenant, the look on both of their faces was priceless. The firefighter was speechless, while the lieutenant just shook his head and said, “Good morning, Chief. I think we have a slight issue here.”

I laughed out loud at this comment. I then spent the next 30 minutes not chewing out the firefighter but explaining to him exactly what it took for him to shut that SCBA in the door, damaging it, requiring its repair, and switching it into a spare unit. Now that I have painted a picture, do you really know what it took to get that SCBA on your back?

Let’s consider the fact that your department is running a “breathing air” program. First, your fire department has breathing air equipment. Without debating the merits of “Brand X” vs. “Brand Y,” know that someone within your organization at some point in time decided to purchase the SCBA you are using. How did that happen? Did he simply buy the same brand the department had previously? Did your department complete a field evaluation with the research and development process often used to decide on an equipment purchase or upgrade?

In my department, simply plunking down hard-earned cash for a major capital purchase is not a five-minute, two-step process; we have a procedure we follow and a very stringent and lengthy budgeting process. Obviously, what it takes to make a capital equipment purchase happen differs from department to department relative to the size and type of municipality you serve.

The Purchasing Process

Seven years ago, when our department was looking to purchase new SCBA, we completed a research and development process that consisted of testing four manufacturers’ products in field exercises, interviewing departments that used those products as to their reliability, serviceability, support, and cost.

Once we decided on the brand, we were required to submit three quotes to the public works board. The board evaluated the need for the equipment based on a fire department presentation and a review of the quotes, then submitted them to city legal for review and enabled the purchase. After completing these steps, the city controller worked with the fire department and its chosen vendor to cement the purchase agreement and delivery of the equipment.

That doesn’t seem like too much of a headache, right? Every department is different, but the point is that it is not as simple as dropping down the company charge card and buying what you want.

The purchase agreement signed by the city and submitted to the chosen vendor turns into a production build order at the factory. In the case of our most recent SCBA purchase years ago, our city submitted the order to the vendor in December, and we took delivery of 100 SCBA, 300 spare cylinders, and nine rapid intervention team (RIT) bags in mid-February. When we received all the equipment, it was cataloged and put into inventory. The next step was training, training, and more training.

At the end of December, prior to receiving the new equipment, we received an initial factory-required orientation. In January, our in-house technician group was trained on the upgraded technology and credentialed to perform work on our new equipment. During the month of February, as our in-house technicians were prepping the new SCBA, we provided an online training and a practical SCBA confidence course and Mayday exercise, giving us a total of three “touches” with our new gear. On March 5, we did a complete technology change—four months start to finish of the purchase and implementation process, placing all new SCBA in service.

It was a good feeling knowing that we had all new equipment, and it should be “bulletproof,” right? Wrong! Let’s face the facts: As a profession, we break things. Within the first week, our company officers were training hard with the new equipment. The technician group members, who spent 40 hours in factory training and who are recertified biannually, were busy and functioning as a well-trained unit.

Before we knew it, a year had gone by, and it was time to complete the annual required flow test and calibration for the now year-old SCBA. Our department does all this in-house with an approved in-house repair center for our chosen brand of SCBA. A group consisting of myself and eight other members work diligently to flow test each regulator, SCBA, and RIT pack. They also fit test each member of the department and complete all day-to-day maintenance as work orders come in. We have a 98% up time, with a turnaround time for repairs of less than three hours.

By the time I finished speaking to the firefighter who slammed his SCBA in the door, I noticed that the audience had grown. Every person in the station was now sitting or leaning on a truck listening. When finished, I looked at the lieutenant and said, “Hey, I forgot I have something you need to sign, which is why I came out so early this morning.” As we turned to go into his office, I stopped and turned to the firefighter and said, “That’s how you got the SCBA that’s on your back, but don’t worry, it’s just an SCBA.”

After that brief 30-minute exchange, those present had a much better understanding of what it took to put that SCBA in service. Too often, we encounter people who take things for granted and simply assume that equipment will just magically appear and that the appearance of said equipment is just part of the grand scheme of life.

Brand and Selection Process

Next, let’s break down some considerations when thinking of upgrading breathing air equipment.

• Are you simply sticking with what you have been using or, based on experience, do you need to consider a switch to another manufacturer?
• What quantity of devices do you intend to purchase and what are the costs? Are you able to change over the entire department to this new technology at one time, or will you have to stage the implementation? If you stage, who gets the new technology? Is it safe to do a phased implementation if you are switching brands?
• Who decides on the manufacturer and purchase? Is the task delegated to the safety and training division, with input from operations? Does the chief solely decide? Do the crews decide? Popularity contests can be both expensive and regrettable.
• When are you “taking the plunge”? This year or next? Which quarter? Are you buying or leasing? You must address all these questions.

Cost of Ownership

Other questions concerning cost include the following:

• How big is our SCBA population, and do we want to run our own repair program? Does the manufacturer we have selected support in-house repair operations, or will the new equipment be returned to the factory for any repair and require annual flow testing? A good number to keep in mind is 30. It seems that if we are around 30 or greater in the SCBA population and the chosen manufacturer supports internal repair and maintenance, then we can justify the expenditure to support an in-house repair center.
• What parts are we required to stock, and what will be the initial setup cost of a repair center (if you are going that route)? What tools and test equipment are needed? Will or should you develop an internal validation process (yes!)?
• Who will you select to participate in the repair program? Remember, you need people who have an interest and are mechanically inclined. It does you no good to force a square peg in a round hole here, and the costs, if you do, will be high. Also, are you going to pay these technicians an incentive? Yes. This is also something to consider in the cost of ownership.
• What is the life cycle of the equipment, and what is the department’s plan for replacement? Is replacement based on issues, life span, or a National Fire Protection Association standard change or is it politically motivated?
• Are you able to keep and use any of your old breathing air equipment when you make the upgrade? As a working example, if you had a number of spare cylinders that still had service life left, with respect to hydro testing, are you able to use them?
• What other ancillary items within the department depend on items associated with the breathing air program? Quite simply, for what else do you use cylinders? Did you account for that in your plan to upgrade?
• How will you track and manage inventory? Do you assign internal numbers or rely on manufacturers’ serial numbers?
• What items do you treat as hard, fixed assets, and what are the consumables within the program?
• What does the manufacturer see as a projected annual cost per device for maintenance?

The key to success is create a plan, blueprint, flowchart, or any type of organized proposal if you want to successfully deliver safe breathing air to your firefighters. In our operation, two officers and I within our technician group will sit down and review what we did the previous year, listing any issues with supplies, a projected timeline, and goals for the upcoming year. Once we put that down on paper, we break down the breathing apparatus by stations and assign work groups, which then goes out to the team. The group then reviews and provides any input or changes needed. The final draft goes back out to the group, the work plan gets posted in our shop, and we will be underway by the second week of January. The plan shows goal dates that must be met with respect to test equipment calibration, training, and recruit class needs. As we meet certain goals and make repairs, we update the plan. There is nothing complex about the process—just effective communication and a solid work group.

Those who read this may have a million other things to consider when heading down the path of an SCBA program. My goal here is simply to open some eyes and minds as to what it takes to put breathing on a firefighter’s back and keep that device working properly within the manufacturer’s specification. The goal of a breathing air program is to provide for the safety of our crews so that they may meet the customer service requirements we are challenged with every day. I hope this article has sparked ideas and questions you may have for your own SCBA program.

SCOTT ZELHART is a 25-year fire service veteran and a battalion chief with the Fishers (IN) Fire Department (FFD). He also serves as the FFD’s SCBA program coordinator, overseeing the air management program consisting of nine technicians covering seven fire stations. Zelhart has also been a 3M Scott Fire & Safety SCBA technician for 21 years.