>> STEVENS CONSTRUCTION CORP.obtained Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Certification, the highest green-build accreditation, for construction of the Madison (WI) Fire Department’s newest fire station, Fire Station No. 12. The station becomes the world’s second fire station (with Fire Station No. 2 in Scottsdale, Arizona) to reach Platinum status. To achieve Platinum Certification, a project must meet or exceed an array of the most stringent compliances set by LEED. For Fire Station No. 12, these compliances included a 96-percent total construction waste diversion from landfill by weight; construction of a live roof and rainwater harvesting system; and implementation of a geothermal exchange system which significantly reduces dependence on natural gas and electricity. www.stevensconstructioncorp.com.
>> MILWAUKEE (WI) FIRE DEPARTMENT Captains Aaron Lipski and Brian McNulty received the 2010 Humanitarian of the Year award from Homes for Our Troops. They were chosen for the award based on their efforts to kick off and lead a successful fundraising campaign to support the nonprofit organization’s mission to build a home for SPC Jason Schultz. Lipski and McNulty were recognized for helping raise nearly $45,000 by spearheading the two fundraisers “Running for the Troops” and “Red Shirt Fridays.” Homes for Our Troops was founded in 2004 to assist severely injured servicemen and women and their immediate families. www.milwaukee.gov/mfd. www.homesforourtroops.org.
>> The Houston (TX) Fire Department awarded SAFETY SUPPLY INC. a five-year, $1.01 million contract to supply the Cosmas® Titan leather bunker boot to its firefighting force. The Cosmas® Titan is a 14-inch structural firefighting boot with a full-grain leather upper equipped with an abrasion-resistant vulcanized rubber toe cap. It features a MIDSOLEARMOR® composite puncture plate/ladder shank/midsole, providing full puncture resistance coverage and thermal insulation for the bottom of the foot. www.cosmasusa.com.
>> FARO TECHNOLOGIES and its employees have donated $20,626 for Haitian Relief, including the Red Cross’s Haitian Relief and Development Fund, UNICEF, and other charitable organizations. Because of the recent devastating events in Haiti, the committee sent all January charitable donations to disaster relief in Haiti, and FARO agreed to match each employee contribution dollar for dollar. FARO develops and markets computer-aided coordinate measurement devices and software. FARO’s portable equipment permits high-precision 3-D measurement and comparison of parts and compound structures and are used for inspecting components and assemblies, production planning, inventory documentation, and investigation and reconstruction of accident sites or crime scenes. www.faro.com.
>> NAVISTAR, INC. launched its first commercial trucks for the Indian market. Mahindra-Navistar Automotives Ltd., the commercial vehicle joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. of India and Navistar, Inc., unveiled a family of commercial trucks and tractors in the range of 25, 31, 40, and 49 tons. The trucks are designed, developed, and tested for Indian roads and conditions and are capable of negotiating its tough terrain. The trucks are made in and for India and leverage Navistar’s expertise in designing and manufacturing medium- and heavy-duty commercial trucks. The joint venture will expand over the next two years to include full-range commercial vehicles. www.navistar.com. www.mahindra.com.
>> The FIRE PROTECTION RESEARCH FOUNDATION, an affiliate of the NATIONAL FIRE PROTECTION ASSOCIATION, announced the winners of the William M. Carey Award and the Ronald K. Mengel Award. The Ronald K. Mengel Award for the best presentation in the detection category went to Thomas Fabian, George Hunter, Paul Patty, and Pravinray Gandhi of Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. for Development of New Flaming and Smoldering Polyurethane Foam Test Protocols for UL 217 Standard on Smoke Alarms. The William M. Carey Award for the best presentation in the suppression category went to Roger Thomas of Tyco Asia Pacific for Water Conservation and Sustainable Use in Fire Suppression Systems. www.nfpa.org.
>> UNDERWRITERS LABORATORIES (UL) and ICC EVALUATION SERVICE, INC® (ICC–ES)announced that United States Gypsum Co. (USG) is the first to have products assessed through the new Dual Evaluation and Certification Program, receiving both the UL Mark for safety and ICC–ES Mark for code compliance. The Dual Evaluation and Certification Program launched in December 2009 to help building manufacturers show compliance with both standards and codes through one point of contact. USG’s Fortacrete® Structural Panels were tested and certified to UL safety standards and evaluated to meet ICC–ES acceptance criteria. www.ul.com. www.icc–es.org.
>> PELICAN PRODUCTS, INC. announced the retirement of Norman Barstow Jr. after 50 years of service to Hardigg Industries (acquired by Pelican in 2008). Barstow will retire as chief packaging engineer for Hardigg Cases, where he mentored and guided the development of military and commercial packaging solutions. He began his packaging career in 1960 as a plant floor supervisor developing performance curves for Hardigg packaging products under the tutelage of James Hardigg. This experience lead to a position as packaging engineer, where he directed the efforts of Hardigg’s package testing laboratory and developed packaging systems for fragile and sensitive military and government equipment. www.Pelican.com, www.hardigg.com.
>> VIKING LIFE-SAVING EQUIPMENT A/S has acquired turnout gear manufacturer Quest Enterprises, Inc. Quest Enterprises will receive additional investment and its Walsenburg plant will become VIKING’s future base for U.S.-approved protective clothing for industrial firefighting. VIKING will continue to support the maritime and offshore industries from its existing U.S. base in Miami, Florida. VIKING’s Global Sales and Marketing Director Henrik Uhd Christensen will now head Quest Enterprises’ management team, Hanne Dyrborg Lindstrøm will be factory manager, and Soren Hansen is the new director of sales, U.S. Fire Suits.www.viking-fire.com.
>> INFINITY GEAR™ moves forward under new ownership with extensive experience in developing and distributing quality emergency responder gear. Its Emergency Response Gear, which was developed with direct input from the urban search and rescue (US&R) and the emergency response community, will continue to operate under the INFINITY GEAR™ name. The company manufactures and designs customized garments and gear for firefighters and first responders in emergency rescue and deployment situations, such as the Battle Dress Uniforms, Job Shirts, Fire Fighter Over Nighter gear bags, and accessories. INFINITY GEAR™ supplies US&R; FEMA; and local, state, and federal agencies. www.infinitygear.com. (888) 987-9493.
