$40K Electrical Fire At Iowa State University Extinguished with Hand-Held Extingusher June 30, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Iowa Alarm Association.Tags: alarm, clean agent, clean agents, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, NFPA, Protex Central
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According to press reports, an early morning fire at the Metals Building on Iowa State University campus on Friday, June 29, 2012, was extinguished with a hand-held extinguisher.
The Ames Tribune states no injuries have been reported in a fire that damaged electrical equipment at Iowa State University in Ames. http://bit.ly/N2Ekeq The Ames Tribune reports that firetrucks were sent to the university’s Metals Development Building at 8 a.m. Friday. Heavy smoke was pouring from a room on the second floor. Firefighters used an extinguisher to put out the flames.
Ames Fire Department Capt. Rich Higgins says the fire damaged only electrical equipment. The fire cause is being investigated.
Protex Central provides clean agent fire suppression systems featuring NOVEC 1230 Fire Protection Fluid by 3M to automatically protect hazards such as electrical rooms.
Visit www.protexcentral.com to learn more about NOVEC 1230 Fire Protection Fluid by 3M and other clean agent fire suppression alternatives.
Fire System Contractors Advisory Board To Meet February 20, 2013 June 8, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, Iowa Alarm Association, Security Systems, Uncategorized.Tags: alarm, clean agent, clean agents, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, life safety, low-voltage, NFPA, Protex Central, security
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The Iowa State Fire Marshal’s office has announced that a Fire Extinguishing System Contractors and Alarm Systems Advisory Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, February 20, 2013 beginning at 9:00 a.m. in the ICN Room #122 at the Public Safety Building – 215 East 7th Street in Des Moines.
The proposed agenda includes:
- Call to Order – Chairperson Hoover
- Introduction of New Licensing Clerk, Jeannie Shepherd
- Approve February 1, 2012 Meeting Minutes
- Continuing Education for the Fire Protection Installer & Maintenance Worker Licensing
- Licensing Endorsements for the Fire Protection Installer & Maintenance Worker for Pre-engineered kitchen and Pre-engineered industrial
- Jonathan Lund, City of Des Moines Fire Department
a) Underground piping for sprinkler systems
b) Fire alarm installation as it relates to electricians
c) Residential 13D systems
- Presentation on The Compliance Engine – Ray Reynolds
- Public Comment
- Other Business
For information about the Board or to contact the Iowa State Fire Marshal’s Office, call 515-725-6156 or visit the Iowa State Fire Marshal’s Web Site.
Protex Central Launches New Website May 5, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Change Leadership, Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Good Stuff to Share.Tags: alarm, clean agent, clean agents, Data Centers, Dealer of the Year, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, FSSA, life safety, Mass Notification Systems, nurse call systems, Protex Central, SAMMY Awards, security
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Protex Central, Inc., a SDM Top 100 Systems Integrator and SAMMY award finalist announces the launch of its new redesigned website at www.protexcentral.com.
Working closely with John Hardy of Hardy Communications and David Sutter of the ICreative Group, Protex Central has re-branded its on-line presence with a bold and informative web design. Drawing on the collective web crafting experience of the Hardy/ICreative team, Protex Central’s new site is becoming a destination site for industries and individuals to learn about the solutions-based approach that Protex Central offers to the marketplace.
Featuring industry segmentation pages and solution highlights as well as Protex Central’s new re-branded logo, www.protexcentral.com seeks to educate and inform users on the unique benefits that Protex Central offers.
Shawn Mullen, President and Chief Energy Officer at Protex Central commented, “we’re very pleased with the overall direction of our new website and the re-branding of our corporate image. We’ll leverage our web presence with a renewed focus on solutions-oriented offerings to move us to the next level and beyond.”
Protex Central Named Sammy Installer Award Finalist March 10, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Change Leadership, Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Good Stuff to Share, Iowa Alarm Association, Mass Notification Systems, PSA, Security Systems.Tags: alarm, Change Leadership, Dealer of the Year, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, ISC West, life safety, Protex Central, SAMMY Awards, security
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Protex Central, Inc. has been named a 17th annual SAMMY (Sales and Marketing) Award finalist for Installer Of The Year in the small to midsize company category by Security Sales and Integration magazine. The SAMMY Awards is the industry’s only program of its kind to recognize and honor installing security dealers and integrators for their marketing, business, installation and overall excellence.
Shawn Mullen, President & Chief Energy Officer of Protex Central, noted, “We’re thrilled to be honored with this nomination. Our team is focused on the next level of professionalism and excellence for our customers’ benefit. Our envisioned future includes measuring ourselves against key industry standards. This nomination is validation of our vision.”
Security Sales and Integration will announce the winners at an open awards ceremony in Las Vegas on March 27 — the eve of opening day at ISC West. ISC West is one of the premier security and systems integration industry gatherings. The event will be held at 4:30 p.m. in the Casanova Conference Room 502 at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino. All are encouraged to attend.
Mullen will attend the ceremony along with other Protex Central management representatives including, Chairman of the Board, Dennis Mullen; Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Brad Reiber; and Sr. Vice President – Operations, Scott Miner.
Industry Gathers for FSSA 30th Annual Forum February 28, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA.Tags: alarm, clean agent, clean agents, fire, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, FSSA, hot aisle cold aisle, NFPA, Protex Central
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Over 150 industry leaders have gathered for the 30th Fire Suppression Systems Association Annual Forum in Rancho Mirage, CA.
A variety of topics ranging from economic outlooks to water mist fire suppression have engaged the attendees. The hot topic of fire protection challenges associated with hot aisle/cold aisle containment systems was reviewed by Steve Carter of Orr Protection Systems. It’s clear from the discussion generated that this topic continues to be one that FSSA is leading the way on.
Steven Turner with Turner Time Management demonstrated the myriad ways of improving productivity with tips and shortcuts available for smartphones and laptops.
Factory Mutual engineering specialist, Matt Daelhouse, provided an overview of water mist fire suppression systems from Factory Mutual’s perspective. He provided details on the various types of water mist suppression systems that FM Global tests as well as the testing methods employed. He further explained the future testing that take place for other types of hazards to be protected with water mist.
The 30th Annual Forum concludes today with morning sessions devoted to topics of interest for the two divisions represented in the association: Installers and Manufacturers.
To learn more about FSSA, visit www.fssa.net
FSSA Prepares to Celebrate 30th Annual Meeting February 25, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Uncategorized.Tags: alarm, clean agent, clean agents, Data Centers, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, FSSA, hot aisle cold aisle, NFPA
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The Fire Suppression Systems Association is set to celebrate 30 years of fire protection excellence beginning tonight at the opening reception at the Rancho Las Palmas Resort in Rancho Mirage, CA.
Over 150 attendees will gather to renew friendships, share industry experiences and learn about new activities and initiatives being undertaken by the FSSA.
The in addition to numerous committee reporting sessions, this three day annual meeting features several seminars including:
- Keynote Speaker: economist Alan Beaulieu
- Technical Session: Fire Protection Challenges with Hot Aisle/Cold Aisle Containment in Data Centers
- Educational Session: Liability for the NICET Designer
- Educational Session: Maximizing Your Productivity & Efficiency When You’re On the Road
Industry leaders William Eckholm, President and CEO of Firetrace International, and Roger Bourgeois, Founder and President of Bourgeois & Associates, Inc., will be presented with FSSA’s Leadership Award during the President’s Banquet on Monday evening, February 27th.
The FSSA Leadership Award is presented annually to honor individuals in the special hazards fire protection industry that have shown great leadership and responsibility in their professional and personal lives. When choosing a recipient, the FSSA Awards Committee takes into consideration a variety of attributes including dedication to and longevity in the industry, integrity and fairness in their work, and a desire for innovation and change to improve the industry.
To learn more visit: www.fssa.net.
The 30th Annual Meeting concludes on Tuesday, February 28th.
Open Letter to Iowa House Commerce Commitee February 18, 2012
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, Iowa Alarm Association, Uncategorized.Tags: alarm, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, iowa state fire marshal, nurse call systems, Protex Central, surety bond requirement
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The following letter was sent to the Iowa House of Representatives Commerce Committee in opposition to HB 2035.
Representative Sodeberg and sub-committee members:
Please know that I, as a registered Iowa contractor and an Iowa State Fire Marshal certified contractor for fire alarm, fire suppression, security and nurse call systems, am opposed to HF 2035 requiring contractors such as myself to post a surety bond.
Requiring a surety bond is unnecessary and, frankly, another attempt for government to interfere with private agreements between contractors and owners. In fact, many owners both public and private already require surety bonds to be posted as a part of the contract.
Iowa State Fire Marshal certified contractors must currently submit an acceptable certificate of insurance along with other industry related credentials to qualify for a contractor’s certification. The surety bond provides absolutely no additional benefit to the citizens of Iowa that the contractor is more qualified and capable of performing his or her work.
Such a requirement further penalizes the fire systems contractor by requiring yet another expense to be met with no benefit to either the contractor or the public.
I have served the citizens of Iowa as an industry representative to the Iowa State Fire Marshal’s Fire System Contractors Advisory Board for six years now. I am very familiar with the current regulations imposed by law on such contractors as I have been part of the process from the beginning. This surety bond requirement is unnecessary and bad public policy.
I encourage you to not allow this bill to come before your full committee for a vote.
Sub-committee members and their respective e-mail addresses are:
Representative Chuck Soderberg (committee chair): chuck.soderberg@legis.state.ia.us
Representative Jeff Smith: Jeff.Smith@legis.state.ia.us
Representative Chip Baltimore: Chip.Baltimore@legis.state.ia.us
Representative Brian Quirk: brian.quirk@legis.state.ia.us
SDM Magazine Features Protex Central and Technician Travis Brandt December 23, 2011
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Iowa Alarm Association.Tags: alarm, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, fire suppression, Fire Systems, life safety, NFPA, Protex Central
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Protex Central and its Des Moines based technician, Travis Brandt, are featured in the December 2011 issue of Security Distribution and Marketing.
Protex technician Travis Brandt tests a customer's fire alarm and sprinkler monitoring system.
“Fire Sprinkler Monitoring: Know the Code” is an article by Linda Pohle highlighting the opportunities to monitoring fire sprinkler systems in buildings.
The article features several comments from Protex Central’s President and Chief Energy Officer, Shawn Mullen, as well as a photograph of Travis Brandt, a Protex Central technician based in its Des Moines, Iowa office.
FSSA Presents Hot Aisle/Cold Aisle Challenges at SFPE November 27, 2011
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, FSSA, Uncategorized.add a comment
Members of FSSA’s technical committee recently prepared and presented a review of emerging fire protection issues in data centers that employ hot aisle/cold aisle containment techniques.
In response to requests from FSSA installer members, the technical committee set about to itemize the numerous fire protection challenges posed by various methods of containing hot and cold air in a data facility.
Technical committee members Steve Carter, Jeffery Kidd, John Spalding and Paul Rivers developed and presented a review of their findings at the resent Society of Fire Protection Engineers annual meeting held in Portland, Oregon this past October.
Their presentation highlighted five main challenges that hot asile/cold aisle containment system pose to fire protection systems:
- Obstructions
- Inadequate automatic obstruction removal
- Multiple areas of containment
- High temperatures
- High airflow velocities
Additional information and details about FSSA’s continuing awareness on this issue will be presented at FSSA’s upcoming 30th annual meeting in Rancho Mirage, California on February 25 – 28, 2012. For more information visit www.fssa.net.
Click on link to view a copy of the SFPE slide deck presentation: Emerging Fire Protection Challenges With Hot Aisle/Cold Aisle Containment In Data Center.
Iowa Alarm Assn Meeting Is Nov 17th November 14, 2011
Posted by shawnpci in Fire Protection, Fire Systems, Iowa Alarm Association, Security Systems.Tags: alarm, fire, fire alarm, fire protection, life safety, low-voltage, security
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The Iowa Alarm Association’s next meeting will take place on November 17, 2011 at Smokey D’s BBQ Restaurant just north of I-80/35 off of 2nd Ave. in Des Moines beginning at 6:00 p.m.
President Ron Heldt has announced the following topics to be covered at the meeting:
1. Details on the Cedar Rapids tradeshow scheduled for February 2012
2. IAA election of officers for 2012
Persons and companies involved with security, life safety and low-voltage systems are encouraged and welcome to attend. If possible, please RSVP to Ron Heldt at ADT Security Systems.
Onward and Upward 