FireTalk
Newsletter of Fire Protection Association Australia
Wormald Australia Joins FPAS
Autumn 2016 In This Issue
FPA Australia is extremely pleased to announce that Wormald, as well as co-owned company National Fire Solutions, have committed to accrediting all of their inspect and test technicians under the Association’s Fire Protection Accreditation Scheme (FPAS) as well as moving both businesses towards FPAS Recognised Business status. The move will mean over 600 technicians around the country will soon gain accreditation and it reinforces Wormald and National Fire Solution’s position as industry leading fire protection businesses committed to ensuring their technicians receive professional recognition for their training and competency.
vision of having all technicians in the industry accredited by 2020. It is a clear demonstration of Wormald and National Fire Solutions helping to raise the standard of work undertaken in this industry, which in turn promotes better fire safety outcomes for the community.”
FPA Australia CEO Scott Williams said Wormald and National Fire Solutions had made an important commitment to the future of the industry.
General Manager of Wormald Business Support Services John Lynch said the scheme represented an important benchmark for individuals in the fire protection industry.
“Wormald has a proud history of excellence in Australia and is still the largest fire protection inspection and testing business in the country. It is fitting then that they, along with National Fire Solutions, have taken the important step to highlight the training and competence of their fire protection personnel through FPAS,” he said.
“Wormald has undergone significant positive changes recently and we are undergoing a rejuvenation across all areas of the business. An important element of this is ensuring that our highly trained and competent technicians are appropriately recognised and FPAS is the ideal way of achieving this.”
“This announcement not only demonstrates industry leadership, but is a strong show of support for the Association’s 2020
Corporate Platinum Members
Wormald Australia Joins FPAS Free Transitional Accreditation Sees a Surge in Interest and Applications AS 1851-2012 Now Approved For Use In Victoria Bushfire Practitioner Accreditation Levels 2 and 3 Added in Western Australia New Standard on Fire Propagation of External Walls – AS 5113 CSIRO Releases Facade Safety Guidelines Document Fire Australia + HazMat 2016 – The Biggest Ever FPA Australia Appears at Senate Inquiry Hearing Important Logo Information For Corporate Members Fire Protection Industry Awards – Gala Dinner
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Free Transitional Accreditation Sees a Surge in Interest and Applications FPA Australia is extremely pleased with the interest that members have shown in our free transitional FPAS accreditation offer. Since launching the promotion, more than 150 companies have signed up to have their technicians accredited. We are busily sorting through registrations made using the online registration tool and will be contacting all companies who have registered over the coming weeks in order to get your applications underway and processed. Please be patient as we work through this process. The overwhelming response has even led to the association taking on more resources in order to help processing all the applications. If your business conducts inspect and test activities and you have yet to take advantage of the free transitional accreditation offer, now is the time.
To begin the process, simply click here to be directed to the CONNECT portal. From there, using your company login information, you can register the details of your technicians and either complete the individual FPAS Accreditation application forms or wait for a member of our team to contact you. Once accreditation of your technicians has been completed your company will also be eligible for up to 40% off the standard cost of inspect and test training. There has never been a better time to enjoy the benefits of accreditation to your business. Register your technicians today and start enjoying the benefits of FPAS!
AS 1851-2012 Now Approved For Use In Victoria Victoria has now regulated to provide for the use of AS 1851-2012, despite the version referenced on an occupancy permit or maintenance determination. The amended regulation can be viewed here. This is a much needed positive outcome after years of advocacy by FPA Australia to ensure the new best practice version of the standard could be used in Victoria.
FPA Australia CEO Scott Williams said the announcement was a win for building owners, occupiers and the Fire Protection Industry in Victoria.
The announcement is also highly significant as Victoria was the final state to adopt the new standard, meaning every state and territory in Australia can now use AS 1851-2012.
“We are very pleased the Victorian government has seen fit to amend its regulation to ensure that this important standard can be used across new and existing buildings in Victoria, despite what may be indicated on occupancy permits.”
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“The Victorian Government should be commended on taking these important steps to ensure everything that can be done, is being done to promote best practice in the fire protection industry, which leads to safer buildings and ultimately better fire safety outcomes for all Victorians.” Building owners, property managers, facility managers and other stakeholders in Victoria are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the Standard. FPA Australia has also developed a comprehensive suite of reporting and recording logbooks for the standard, which are available for purchase from the FPA Australia website here.
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FPA Australia Engagement & Education manager Chris Wyborn delivering Bushfire Training in Perth.
Bushfire Practitioner Accreditation Levels 2 and 3 Added in Western Australia The Western Australian Government has announced that FPA Australia is now recognised as a Level 1, 2 and 3 accrediting and training body for bushfire practitioners operating throughout Western Australia.
The State Government is committed to developing a professional training and accreditation system for bushfire practitioners to inform land use planning and building decisions in bushfire prone areas.
FPA Australia has been working closely with the State Government to support the implementation of the recently released bushfire reforms. The accreditation scheme supports the planning and building bushfire reforms, including the Map of Bush Fire Prone Areas, Building Regulations, State Planning Policy 3.7 – Planning for Bushfire Prone Areas and Guidelines, and Local Planning Scheme Amendment Regulations 2015.
New Standard on Fire Propagation of External Walls – AS 5113
According to the independent Chair of the Committee, Paul England, the expected impacts for Australia are:
contributing to the maintenance of acceptable levels of public safety’’ added Mr England.
• Improved fire safety through appropriate classification of the performance of external walls • Improved energy efficiency • Improved selection criteria for facade materials/system for the building industry • Net saving on reducing compliance costs and facilitating the use of cost effective facade systems
The standard was prepared by Technical Committee FP-018, Fire Safety. This committee has representatives from industry associations, fire authorities, testing laboratories, and Australian Building Codes Board.
Standards Australia recently completed the development of AS 5113, Fire propagation testing and classification of external walls of buildings. The standard sets out procedures for testing and classification of external walls according to their tendency to limit the spread of fire across their surface and between neighbouring buildings. It can be applied to external vertical surfaces and external wall systems. AS 5113 also integrates international standard test methods where practicable.
FPA Australia understand that ABCB is considering changes to the NCC to adopt AS 5113 however no decision on timings has yet been announced.
“The standard will facilitate quantification of performance in the area of fire safety consistent with ABCB initiatives. It will assist with the compliance of the energy efficiency requirements of the NCC whilst
CSIRO Releases Facade Safety Guidelines Document CSIRO has recently released an important document to assist in clarifying fire safety requirements for external walls. The document is available for viewing here. “Fire Safety Guideline for External Walls” has been compiled by CSIRO’s Infrastructure technologies team along with external stakeholders including FPA Australia.
This document is intended to aid building practitioners in understanding the fire hazards of external wall materials and pathways to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of the National Construction Code.
Fire Australia + HazMat 2016 – The Biggest Ever Over May 4 & 5 fire protection, hazardous materials and building and construction professionals descended on the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre for the largest industry event in the southern hemisphere – Fire Australia + HazMat. Over the two days we saw more than 1000 people visit the near 100 exhibition booths or hear from some of the 60 incredible speakers from Australia and overseas. The conference and tradeshow was the largest ever with more conference streams and a bigger tradeshow than ever before.
Amazing Presentations Day One Presentations Craig Lapsley
Robert Doyle
Day Two Presentations The Strategic, Technical and HazMat streams continued strongly on Day 2 with presentations from Brian Ashe from ABCB and Peter Schmidt from Emergency Management Victoria setting the scene for the day. Other highly notable presentations included Geoff Flower and David Swinson on Fire Risk in Historic Buildings, Alan Wilson from Alan Wilson Insurance Brokers on the threat of cyber attack to your business, and Giles Hobson from the National Chemical Emergency Centre in the UK who discussed 24-hour emergency helplines in the chemical emergency context. After lunch on day 2, the two fire protection streams came together for a major expert panel and debate on Australia’s building control system. Hosted by FPA Australia’s Chief Technical Officer and Deputy CEO Matthew Wright, this panel was made up
Melbourne’s Lord Mayor Robert Doyle formally opened the conference and attendees were treated to some great anecdotes and moving stories from Melbourne’s larger than life mayor. The opening was followed by two extraordinary keynote speakers – Victorian Emergency Management Commissioner Craig Lapsley, and Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) General Manager Neil Savery. Commissioner Lapsley discussed the ongoing trend toward coordination and integration of emergency services and development of common policies between each of the emergency services, while Mr Savery discussed the future strategic direction of the ABCB and some of the challenges facing the Board.
Bronwyn Evans
These two outstanding presentations set the tone for the rest of the day, which included insightful presentations from representatives from Standards Australia, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), CSIRO, Crown Melbourne, Kmart, Safe Work Australia, TOLL, National Chemical Emergency Centre and many others.
of a range of experts including Michael Lambert – independent reviewer of the NSW Building Professionals Act, Brian Ashe from ABCB and Forensic Fire Examiner Greg Kelly, among others. The robust panel discussion provided everyone in attendance with much to ponder as the different views of the experts and audience came together for this wonderful session, which was an ideal way to see out the second day of the conference proceedings.
Day 2 Expert Panel – (L to R) Don Bliss, Stephen Kip, Michael Lambert, Greg Kelly, Christopher Kerin and Brian Ashe.
Brian Ashe
Patrick Conway, Sales Director ANZ Tyco Fire Protection products accepts the award.
Massive Tradeshow The 2016 tradeshow was a truly monster event, dwarfing even the previous year’s exhibition space on the Gold Coast. Many exhibitors chose to book out multiple booth spaces in order to create huge multi-dimensional displays featuring their products and services. This year visitors to the tradeshow could also access free presentations in the dedicated Showcase Theatre area and also easily access the DesignBUILD expo also occurring at the Conference & Exhibition centre. This meant that more than 1000 people visited the Fire Australia & HazMat tradeshow over the two days, providing many opportunities for exhibitors to engage with end users about their latest products and services. The success of the 2016 tradeshow has allowed the Association to secure even more floor space at the newly completed International Convention Centre Sydney, for the 2017 tradeshow which is sure to be even bigger again.
Awards & Acknowledgements At the closing of Fire Australia + HazMat 2016, Association CEO Scott Williams addressed the tradeshow and conference attendees and exhibitors. As well as thanking everyone in attendance and inviting them to the Sydney event in May 2017, Mr Williams presented two important awards related to the Tradeshow – the People’s Choice Award for Best Exhibit and the Overall Best Exhibit Award.
People’s Choice Award WINNER – Tyco Fire Protection Products Attendees who visited the tradeshow over the two days had the opportunity to vote for their favourite exhibitor and this year we received a huge number of votes. Voting this year was very close and required careful counting. In the end the winner was decided by just two votes, and that winner was Tyco Fire Protection Products, with a very impressive and beautifully designed stand, which was easily one of the most impressive at the Tradeshow.
The Association would like to thank all of our tradeshow exhibitors and we can’t wait to see even bigger and better displays next year.
FPA Australia Thanks the Event Sponsors Without the generous support of these wonderful sponsors, such a world-class event wouldn’t be possible.
Platinum Flamestop National Sales Manager Ben Parkhill accepts the award.
Best Exhibit Award – WINNER Flamestop Australia
Gold
HazMat Supporting Organisations
Silver Charity Dinner
Delegate Satchels
Lanyards
Café Seating
Café Cart
H2O
Tradeshow Bags & Stationery
Conference Program
While attendees are checking out the great displays and voting for their favourite via the people’s choice award, members of the Fire Australia + HazMat secret judging panel are also wandering the floor, chatting with exhibitors and collecting product information to help establish the best overall exhibit of the tradeshow. The winner of this award is judged on a number of important categories including display presentation, product knowledge and the presentation and friendliness of staff on the stand. Honourable mentions this year went to Firesense, Honeywell, Brooks, Hochiki, AMPAC and Tyco. But this year, for the second year running, the judging panel selected Flamestop Australia as the winner of the Best Exhibit Award.
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Max Walker
Fiona Wood
ICC Sydney 2017 A Wonderful Cause – The Fiona Wood Foundation A dinner with Max Walker at the Iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) was always going to be special and the annual charity dinner did not disappoint.
also personal stories of her life as a British immigrant to Australia and her inspiration and vision for a world where burns can be healed without scars.
Bulldogs legend Doug Hawkins got the crowd warmed up with some trivia before Max “Tangles” Walker took the stage and recounted many tall tales from his time in and around the Australian Cricket Team, both on the field and in the commentary box.
Fiona’s words touched the Charity Dinner Audience, who dug deep and raised more than $16,000 through raffle tickets, direct donations and auction items.
Then the audience was lucky enough to hear from leading plastic surgeon and Australian of the Year Fiona Wood, who shared not only the wonderful work of her foundation, but
FPA Australia Appears at Senate Inquiry Hearing On Thursday April 7 representatives from FPA Australia, Chief Technical Officer and Deputy CEO Matthew Wright and TAC 11/22 Chair Brett Staines, appeared before the senate inquiry hearing into Defence Force use of firefighting foams in Australia.
The Association would like to warmly thank everyone who donated and also to the Dinner Sponsor Chubb who again made the charity event possible through their generous and valued sponsorship.
After the fantastic success of Fire Australia + HazMat 2016 in Melbourne, the Association is excited to be heading back to Sydney for 2017 and the newly constructed International Convention Centre Sydney. Fire Australia was held at the old convention centre in Sydney in 2013 and was a strong success so we are expecting big things in 2017 thanks to the beautiful new ICC venue at Darling Harbour. Fire Australia & HazMat 2017 will be held in early May. You can check out a video all about next year’s event here. We can’t wait to see you there!
firefighting foams will have an environmental impact and that any foam must be demonstrated as fit-for-purpose and its use managed, including training practices.
government to clarify best practice for the selection and use of firefighting foams in Australia. We look forward to the release of the enquiry’s findings on April 30.
FPA Australia was pleased to be able to present evidence at this important inquiry and the Association continues to advocate for national action to be taken by the federal
You can read more about the Association’s position on the selection and use of firefighting foams here.
The Inquiry has been set up specifically to address the issue of PFOS and PFOA contamination at the RAAF Base in Williamtown, NSW as well as other Australian Defence Force facilities. FPA Australia’s submission focused on the recommendations in our Information Bulletin published 1 July 2014 and called for a national policy position on firefighting foams based on risk management principles. FPA Australia highlighted the need for Australia to ratify the Stockholm Convention position of listing PFOS as a Persistance Organic Pollutant (POP) and banning foams containing PFOS but also for any national policy to be built on the premise that all
(L–R) Senator Lee Rhiannon, FPA Australia TAC11/22 Chair Brett Staines, FPA Australia Chief Technical Officer / Deputy CEO Matthew Wright, Senator Alex Gallacher, Senator David Fawcett.
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Important Logo Information For All Members FPA Australia is reminding all Corporate Members about important changes that will apply to the use of FPA Australia logos by members from July 1, 2016. The Association announced these changes some time ago however we are aware that there is still some confusion around them. After July 1, the old Member logos and Code of Practice Compliant logos can no longer be used at all including on any materials, including member websites or email signatures. These changes have been made to ensure all members utilise our new Member logos. The new logos have been specifically designed to more strongly highlight the relevant membership levels of Corporate and Organisation membership.
The Association hopes that members will prominently display the new logos on their vehicles, stationery and website (in accordance with the logo terms and conditions). By proudly displaying your member logo, you are letting your customers and the public know that your business is a valued member of Australia’s peak body for the fire protection industry – FPA Australia. You can download the new member logos relevant to your membership level via CONNECT. Also enclosed within your relevant logo folder are the logo terms and conditions for use, which we recommend you review carefully.
After July 1 we will be actively following up with any member who continues to use the old logos in violation of the guidelines. We thank you for your assistance and trust you will enjoy the benefits of using the new member logos. For enquiries please contact the Membership Services Team on 03 8892 3131.
3rd NOVEMBER, 2016 DOLTONE HOUSE, HYDE PARK, SYDNEY A BLACK TIE EVENT
Fire Protection Industry Awards – Gala Dinner FPA Australia is excited to announce the first Fire Protection Industry Awards Gala Dinner to be held on November 3, 2016 at Doltone House, Hyde Park, Sydney. Join us in an evening for recognising and awarding businesses and individuals leading the professional standard of commitment, excellence and contribution in the Fire Protection Industry. More information including award application details, sponsorship opportunities and dinner ticket registration will be announced soon.
The awards will include:
Association Awards • Platinum Member Recognition Awards • Meritorious Service Award • Honorary Life Membership • A.V Viscogliosi Oustanding Service Award
Independant Panel Judged Awards • Young Achiever of the Year Award • Barry Lee Technical Excellence Award • Harry Marryatt Fire Protection Company of the Year (1-49 employees) • Harry Marryatt Fire Protection Company of the Year (50+ employees)
New Members
FPA Australia would like to welcome our latest members.
Individual
QLD
ACT
Arunima Madhushani Bandara
NSW Alexander Anthony Pavlakis Glen Neil Hearne Rob Dennis
Cairns Fire Protection Hoz Fire and Electrical Integrated Fire Systems Strategic Fire Solutions
TAS Aintree Contracting
VIC
QLD
Fire Prevention Maintenance Pty Ltd First Call Fire Services Pty Ltd
Donna Williams
VIC Chris Katsouranis Gavin Criddle George (Owen) Green Robert Mark Ringeri
WA Martin Van Dongen
INTERNATIONAL Pravin Kumar Dikshit – Punjab, India
Corporate Bronze (1-4 staff) NSW
WA Basics Approval Services BCA Building Certifiers & Assessors Bushfire Smart Infinity Integrated Services WABAL Services
Corporate Silver (Fewer than 15 staff) ACT Complete Essential Fire & Air
NSW
Aegis Fire Guard Pty Ltd ENZCOM Help Fire and Training Noppen Essential Services Pty Ltd Proteck Pty Limited Sarge’s Fire & Electrical Snowy Fire & Freight Southern Fire Solutions Turbo Fire Solutions Pty Ltd
Absolute Pump Services Pty Ltd Bellfast Fire Protection Services P/L Independent Pipe Fabrication Kelly Fire Pty Ltd Progressive Fire Services Pty Ltd Universal Fire & Safety
Corporate Gold (More than 15 staff) NSW ADE Consulting Group
Organisation Bronze (1-14 staff) WA Staykool
Upgraded Members Corporate Silver NSW Beaver Fire Services MPK Fire Safety Services Passive First Pty Ltd
QLD FERM Engineering
VIC Smoke Signals Fire Protection
Corporate Gold NSW CBC Facilities Maintenance Firex Distribution (Australia) Pty Ltd
QLD Fyre Pro Aus Pty Ltd
VIC BSGM Essential Safety Measures
PO Box 1049 Box Hill VIC 3128 T: (03) 8892 3131 E: member@fpaa.com.au W: www.fpaa.com.au
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