Covering the entire spectrum of the Emergency Services
February 2015
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Volume 16 | 1
ESTCONTENTS | 1
IN EVERY ISSUE
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COMMENT
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NEWS
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EVENTS
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PEOPLE
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COMPANY PROFILE
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PRODUCTS
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LAST WORDS
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IN THIS ISSUE
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VEHICLES
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South West Ambulance Service takes delivery of a new mobile treatment centre, Babcock makes conversion company acquisition, BMW STRIVe unit evaluated by metropolitan fire and rescue service, NHS Blood and Transplant service invests in new Ford Transit Customs and the first of 12 multi-purpose support vehicles goes into service with the RNLI
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NAPFM SUPPLEMENT
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Crown Commercial Service, working closely with the Home Office and the National Association of Police Fleet Managers (NAPFM), has let the new vehicle purchase framework. Find out about the history of police vehicle purchasing and details of the wider public sector remit of the new framework in this exclusive supplement
PROTECTIVE CLOTHING
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Product design and development in focus from Bristol Uniforms, the latest on the police National Uniformed Managed Service (NUMS), YDS celebrates Welsh fire and service boot contract plus the latest
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fabric technology, gloves and headwear
TRAINING
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The Fire Service College’s new Mobile Carbonaceous Training Unit has been on the road, training over 100 operational staff at Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service
COLLABORATION
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A round up of the latest multi-agency projects from the Emergency Services Collaboration Working Group, plus CFOA highlights how
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training is the key to an improved Counter Terrorism capability from the UK’s emergency services
February 2015
16 | ESTVEHICLES
Unmanned robotic fire fighting system available to lease in the UK An unmanned robotic fire fighting system, the DOK-ING MVF 5, has taken part in a series of trials, demonstrations and displays to the UK emergency services. The first outing for MVF 5 was as the base for a CBRNe reconnaissance concept demonstrator at the VXIII International CBRN conference recently held at Shrivenham.
The MVF 5 has been developed by DOK-ING, the Croatian robotic vehicle company. The company also produces humanitarian mine clearance, combat and civil engineering and confined space digging vehicles that deal with violent and dangerous incidents in critical national infrastructure, underground, oil, explosive and similar facilities. With its size, power and attached ‘ripper gripper’, the MVF 5 is able to deal with hazmat events where the deployment of fire and rescue service personnel close to the incident is considered too dangerous. The 11-tonne tracked MVF 5 features a remote control system that can be managed from a small hand
held box similar to a game controller or a fully equipped command centre up to 1500m line of sight away from the fire or other event. Carrying 2000l of water and 500l of foam, it can be deployed into the heart of a fire or other hazardous incident and fight the fire, cool hazardous devices such as gas cylinders, decontaminate items needing this, rip open closed containers allowing access or pull things such as vehicles or gas cylinders from the scene.
with other issues in blazing ammunition and fuel depots and deal with the impacted debris at major vehicle and train crashes where it has been too dangerous to deploy firefighters. Where these sorts of hazards and issues exist everyone in the fire departments have rapidly come to appreciate the capability these machines have to offer in protecting the population and containing damage and doing so with reduced risk to fire and rescue personnel.”
Centralised demonstrations
Welcome challenge
The MVF5 will be available through DOK-ING’s UK representative Lutra Associates Limited and based at Tactical HazMat Ltd in Evesham. The unit will be available for demonstrations and trials, mainly at Tactical HazMat’s facility, and will also be taking part in centralised demonstrations. In addition, the unit will be available to be leased and deployed by fire and rescue services should the need arise. Tim Otter, Lutra’s Chief Executive, said, “At this early stage in MVF 5’s development only a few units have been produced so it is a strong sign of the importance of the UK market that the prototype MVF5 is making its first overseas deployment in a demonstration role here. Its other deployments have been to fight fires and deal
Kevin Miller, the Chief Executive of Tactical HazMat, said, “We will have an initial training period with teachers from DOK-ING then once trained and certified as competent instructors ourselves we will be able to run demonstrations and courses for the UK’s fire services whether public, private or military. The ability, in this initial period, to deploy the unit as a leased vehicle, to authorities that find they have a need for the capability MVF 5 brings, is a challenge we look forward to helping our colleagues in the fire and rescue services with. We see this as a natural extension of our hazmat activities.”
www.lutra-associates.com www.tacticalhazmat.com
Ford Transit Custom vital to blood circulation The Ford Transit Custom is to play a vital role in the country’s wellbeing – with the NHS Blood and Transplant service (NHSBT). Around 65 percent of the NHSBT fleet of nearly 500 vehicles are already Fords, from blue light Ford Focus Estate models to specially adapted Ford Transits, each of which has a key task in keeping blood supplies circulating.
The Ford Transit Custom.
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NHSBT’s National Fleet Service Manager, Larry Bannon, said, “We are pleased to welcome the Ford Transit Custom on to our fleet and we are sure it will more than meet our expectations. The Transit is recognised throughout this industry as the perennial best in class, and it is certainly the best vehicle that fits our purpose, with excellent network support and a spare parts supply second to none.” In addition to emergency service livery and the fitment of special storage equipment, each van is lined in a special waterproof resin to enable power washing of the interior to ensure cleanliness to prescribed and regularly audited levels. Larry Bannon added, “The Ford vans are used in every stage of the blood donation process, from collecting the blood from the village halls and schools where blood donation sessions are set up, then transporting the donated blood to our regional processing sites where it is tested, processed and sorted, through to delivering units of blood to hospitals, whether as part of a routine order or under emergency blue light cover to meet a hospital’s urgent needs.”
Ford vans are used in every stage of the blood donation process.
Ford Direct Sales Manager, Terry Adams, said, “It is reassuring to know a life-saving service that any of us might need to call upon, has placed its faith in the safety and reliability of Ford Transit.”
www.ford.co.uk February 2015
30 | ESTNAPFM SUPPLEMENT
The new police vehicle purchase framework The new vehicle purchase framework (RM1070) has been let by Crown Commercial Service (CCS), working closely with the Home Office and the National Association of Police Fleet Managers, as part of a wider contract across government . The new arrangement benefits from the efficiencies of large-scale collaborative procurement, but protects the unique needs and brand value of policing.
Skoda Octavia 2014.
The collaboration with CCS for the new framework highlights how the police fleet sector is able to explore new opportunities and change its model for delivery where appropriate. The new framework allows access to the facility to take part in e-auctions for the first time on a national scale. The ability to purchase vehicles that are then financed on a lease with real-time leasing rates is also available should this be required.
Blue light lots The new framework has specific blue light lots, which will enable forces and other emergency services to purchase new vehicles with enhanced specifications. This preserves what is unique about the police and emergency services market while aggregating spend with other government departments. Police forces spend around £100m per year on new vehicles and CCS estimates that savings of around £8m will be achievable through using the new framework. Based upon a recent evidence gathering exercise the NAPFM believes significant additional savings could be
realised if forces signed up to the national specifications currently being finalised. There are many benefits from using the blue light lots in the new framework, which include: • Enhanced warranty terms of at least 36months/100k miles • Liquidated Damages are available • Original Equipment Parts are available • Vehicle handling and emission testing is available if requested • Blue light training for technicians • One stop shop conversions are available • Supply of liveried demonstrator vehicles.
Driving greater savings To drive good value for money, evaluation of the mini-competitions within the new framework is based on whole life costs as opposed to solely purchase price. This is a tried and tested methodology and recognises that purchase price is around 30 percent of the whole life cost. It is also worth remembering that the majority of the remaining whole life costs, such as fuel, servicing and repairs, will be spent in the local force area and hence contributes to the local economy. The motor industry is a complex global industry and the UK is still at the heart of this, although the structure of who and how it employs people has changed. Despite the perceptions, several manufacturers on the current vehicle framework do manufacture in this country and those that do not still employ a large number of people to support their brand through a dealership network and head offices.
Blue Light Lot awarded suppliers on the new framework • Lot 7 Blue Light Cars & 4x4 Vehicles: Audi UK, BMW (UK) Ltd, Ford Motor Company Ltd, General Motors UK Ltd t/a Vauxhall Motors, Honda Motor Europe, Hyundai Motor UK Ltd, Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd, Peugeot Motor Company Plc., Seat, Skoda Auto, Volkswagen UK, Volvo Car UK Ltd • Lot 8 Blue Light Vans: Ford Motor Company Ltd, General Motors UK Ltd t/a Vauxhall Motors, MercedesBenz UK Ltd, Peugeot Motor Company Plc., Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles • Lot 9 Blue Light Motorcycles: BMW (UK) LTD, Honda Motor Europe, Kawasaki Motors UK, Yamaha Motor (UK) Ltd
Under the former national contract, significant savings on the framework price were being realised. This was based on using buying groups formed at ACPO region level. We now have an opportunity to create more sophisticated buying group arrangements based on common requirements that would increase purchase volumes and drive greater savings. This will lead to the formation of larger buying groups procuring a narrower range of models. There is no reason why for some categories, such as liveried patrol motorcycles, a single national mini competition exercise could not be undertaken.
Larger buying groups
Ford Focus (left) and Ford Transit 2013.
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Work is ongoing with NAPFM, the Home Office and the National Policing lead to exploit the potential to aggregate volumes, reduce the variety of models, and achieve greater savings. Discussions are already taking place among police fleet managers to agree vehicle specifications and to build these larger buying groups. It is important to build on the initiative and creativity that has gone into these discussions and it makes sense to coordinate and align proposed ideas to optimise the ability for all forces to access the best opportunities for savings.
February 2015
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“The new framework has specific blue light lots, which will enable forces and other emergency services to purchase vehicles with enhanced specifications.” The proposed approach The proposed approach involves asking police forces for their vehicle purchase plans so that a national demand summary across the different vehicle categories can be determined. The NAPFM would then design a category strategy that considered a range of areas, including the optimum buying group size, lead force considerations, duration of contract, market management opportunities, timing of purchase and procurement route (e.g. e-auction). Based on the proposals within the category strategies, a national mini-competition plan would be shared and at that stage, hopefully in early February 2015, when forces would be asked for their commitment to purchase. Unlike the previous vehicle purchase framework, the Home Office does not mandate the use of the new
BMW 530d Touring 2012.
framework for police vehicle purchases. However, as the vehicle market operates at a global scale significant additional discounts will be possible if forces can aggregate volumes sufficiently by working together. Therefore the aim is that a mandate is not needed as the
framework will offer the best value due to the larger volumes being purchased and the leverage from the market positioning of the largest and only route to market for the majority of large public sector vehicle purchases.
Procurement of vehicle equipment across government National frameworks available for blue light fleets in addition to the vehicle purchase framework, which accounts for roughly half of police fleet spend, are shown in the table below.
Equipment type
Spend per annum
Emergency Warning Equipment £1.5m Disposal framework £10m (sales) Supply of Vehicle Glass £1.1m Oils and Lubricants (led by GMP) £700,000 Supply & Fit of Tyres RM955 £8m Supply of Fuel Cards (led by CCS) £80m
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Increasingly, the contracts and frameworks are being broadened to include other emergency services such as fire and rescue, and ambulance services. In addition, some of the frameworks that have been developed with the Crown Commercial Service are open to all of the public sector including both Central Government and the Wider Public Sector. This is in line with the Government’s demands for wider procurement across government and the adoption of each individual framework to cover the entire government vehicle fleet: • The tyre framework was awarded as a result of a collaboration between CCS (formerly Office of Government Commerce) with NAPFM and the Home Office. By using a new methodology the tender process was able to satisfy the desire for one Government tyre contract while still providing a unique police specific category
• More recently, the Call off instigated by NAPFM from the new fuel cards framework included fire and rescue as a full partner in the process • Looking ahead, the planned vehicle telematics framework will be open to ambulance services and fire and rescue services. It is estimated that these nationally operated frameworks and contracts will have saved local procurement departments more than £2.5m over the life of these frameworks.
February 2015
42 | ESTPROTECTIVE CLOTHING
A fitting way to provide police uniform There are few images more iconic than that of a police officer in uniform; for a lot of people it’s a symbol of authority and respect. But in the UK the myriad of uniform styles, from Land's End to John O’Groats, creates unnecessary confusion for the public. At a time where we have to make significant savings, it makes little financial sense for each force to contract and maintain their own individual uniform stocks. The National Uniform Managed Service (NUMS) will deliver a standard uniform differentiated by insignia. Over the last few months work has been progressing on NUMS, a project that aims to establish a standardised UK police uniform provided by a centrally managed, nationally consolidated supplier who will deliver benefits through the supply chain. Paul Butcher, a Director of Strategic Procurement in the Met, said, “We're in a good position; NUMS can really benefit policing, being an enabler to standardising uniform helping to establish a clear police identity whilst delivering greater value for money in the current financial climate.”
Looking to the market The process to identify a supplier started back in November 2013 when a Prior Information Notice was issued to the market inviting suppliers to express their interest in helping revolutionise the delivery of the critical service. A procurement process was launched early in 2014. Following completion of the Pre-Qualification stage (PQQ) six companies were shortlisted for the invitation to tender (ITT) stage, which commenced in December 2014. In January 2015, a bidders day was held in London where the shortlisted bidders had the opportunity to talk to the project team and users, as well as a networking event where bidders had the opportunity to meet with existing MPS suppliers.
Getting it right Liz Church, a Service Lead for NUMS representing the Met Police, said, “I am extremely excited to be trialling the ‘Dynamic Ordering Platform’ that will allow officers to order uniform and some personal protective equipment simply and efficiently – which will help in reducing extraction times.” The platform will eventually allow individual forces and other customers’ service requirements to be built in and managed by the overarching NUMS contract.
The NUMS team is preparing an engagement programme to present the managed service to all potential customers. This will include a structured plan to enable customers to join the NUMS contract post commencement in April 2016.
What’s next? Formal tenders will be submitted shortly and will be evaluated by the project team. The contract is expected to be formally awarded to a supplier in autumn 2015, after which date the official NUMS supplier will gather data and engage with forces/other customers to establish a transition plan for the new service. The national NUMS project board and Uniform Working Group are already in place to ensure regular and consistent communication and engagement with all forces. It is envisaged that these groups will continue throughout the contract term as the support mechanism to standardisation and achieving the goal of a standard UK police uniform. “We are looking forward to more forces joining NUMS,” says Paul Butcher. “Our goal is to share the benefits nationally and by acting as one intelligent customer instead of individual customers we will be able to drive innovation whilst improving cost and service.”
www.met.police.uk
New opportunities for Ballyclare 2014 was a year of unprecedented growth and expansion for Ballyclare Limited, one of the UK's leading providers of protective clothing and equipment to the emergency services, military, transport and construction industries. Taken into private hands at the beginning of 2013 the business sits on a strong financial footing and is staffed by an extremely dedicated and knowledgeable team of people, whose combined experience is unrivalled in the industry.
Since then Ballyclare has gone from strength to strength, underpinned by the core values of trust, protection and integrity. The purchase of the Lion firefighter business in January 2014 from LHD Group signalled the company’s intention to remain a major force in the development and supply of PPE. The amalgamation of Lion’s existing facilities also added two more care and maintenance centres, in Uxbridge and Livingston, to Ballyclare’s existing operations in Stockport and Barnsley, providing further resources to service major contracts across all its core markets.
New dimension Further restructuring in July 2014 saw the Ballyclare business joined by Simon Jersey, a leading manufacturer of corporate wear, and Logistik Unicorp. This has added a new dimension to Ballyclare’s offering in the emergency services sector, particularly for the supply of uniforms and station wear. Ballyclare supplies the Ministry of Defence with highly complex aircrew flying suits, the Ministry of Justice with public order suits for the prison service and the police with a range of technical PPE, clothing and public order garments. It supplies hi vis and uniform garments to the ambulance sector and hi-vis technical clothing to the rail, aggregates and highways sectors. It is also one of the main suppliers of structural fire fighting and rescue kit to the UK fire and rescue service.
Improving efficiency In the South East and Eastern fire regions the framework agreement awarded in 2010 is going from strength to strength, attracting additional fire and rescue
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services up and down the country. At the heart of this agreement is the option to choose Ballyclare’s fully managed service – a turnkey solution that takes safety to a new level.
Maintaining garments Ballyclare will take on the responsibility for laundering and maintaining the garments and making sure they are fit for purpose and comply with health and safety standards. They will maintain the exacting quality control and product management procedures that allow every garment to be tracked and traced and finally decommissioned. This is helping fire and rescue services to cut costs and improve efficiencies by taking advantage of a complete support package that covers testing, sizing, fitting, supply and personnel management.
www.ballyclarelimited.com February 2015
ESTTRAINING | 47
College training unit gets mobile in Mid and West Wales The Mobile Carbonaceous Training Unit (MCTU) – the latest development from the Fire Service College – has been designed to enable fire and rescue services across the country to put their staff through live fire training without having to travel to remote training facilities. Launched at The Emergency Services Show 2014, the MCTU was popular with fire officers across the UK, who immediately saw the potential benefits of having assessed, accredited and assured hot fire training delivered locally – as well as the potential savings to their stretched training budgets. Since The Emergency Services Show, the MCTU has been travelling across the UK – and in November, teams from Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MAWWFRS) had a chance to try out the new mobile facility.
Safe hot fire environment Ensuring that teams in MAWWFRS have the opportunity to keep their breathing apparatus (BA) and fire behaviour training up-to-date is logistically complicated at best. As a rural service, it is expensive and difficult to send large numbers of staff to complete their training together – even without taking into account the cost of transport and accommodation. The MCTU solves these problems, bringing a safe hot fire environment into the local area; meaning that complete crews can undergo training and recertification without missing shifts or – in some cases – having to take leave from primary employment. It does not replace a full training programme; the MCTU and the development modules created by the Fire Service College’s expert trainers have been designed to fit within existing courses used by fire and rescue services. When integrated as part of a periodic ongoing competence assessment programme, the financial benefits are substantial. The MCTU means that services do not pay for maintenance or consumables – and are faced with substantially reduced staffing and transport costs.
The MCTU has been designed to produce minimal particulate emissions.
Following its arrival in Wales, over 100 operational staff undertook training on the unit over two weekends, practising breathing apparatus (BA) procedures and fire behaviour techniques. The crews were impressed by what the MCTU had to offer. One trainee said, “Conditions we’ve had today have really helped me sharpen my BA skills while under the pressure of heat and smoke ...it’s much better and more realistic than practising with a flash hood over your BA mask in the appliance bay.” While another said, “The appliances and crew who attended the training event this weekend were still available for life risk calls, which helps to address availability issues encountered when running risk critical training events at a central location.”
www.emergencyservicestimes.com
Public engagement tool
Minimal emissions
The training session carried out in public was a huge success for MAWWFRS, generating 14 direct applications for recruitment for the service – and a total of 32 home fire safety referrals, four of which were deemed high risk, in hard to reach communities. Craig Flannery, Response Manager for Powys County Command, MAWWFRS, said, “The MCTU is a fantastic development for fire and rescue services. My fire crews are able to train together, in their local area – and all without missing a shift or taking the pump off the run. I think this will revolutionise hot fire training for many services across the UK. “It is also an excellent public engagement tool. The unit attracts attention, and once the fire gets going people stop to watch. It gives local residents the confidence that their firefighters are prepared for anything, as well as giving us a chance to talk to them about safety in their home – and potentially recruit them into the on call service.” The MCTU will be continuing its journey around the UK – so look out for it on a fire training ground near you – or your local supermarket car park – at some point soon.
One of the key benefits of the 23 tonne MCTU – with its separate blast filtration unit – is that it has been designed to produce minimal particulate emissions and
www.fireservicecollege.ac.uk www.mawwfire.gov.uk
“The MCTU means that services do not pay for maintenance or consumables – and are faced with substantially reduced staffing and transport costs.”
Following the MCTU’s arrival in Wales, over 100 operational staff undertook training.
as little excess heat as possible through insulated walls, allowing it to be safely used in public areas. This unique ability means that the MAWWFRS were able to carry out their training in the car park of a local supermarket, turning a routine training exercise into a public safety awareness and recruitment tool.
February 2015
ESTCOLLABORATION | 53
Voluntary and faith sectors support resilience in Merseyside The Merseyside Resilience Forum (MRF) Voluntary Agencies and Faith Sector Forum (VA&FS Forum) was established in Merseyside over two decades ago. Since the Civil Contingencies Act (CCA) was enacted in 2004 the VA&FS Forum has been a permanent element of the MRF and under the current structure is a standing group, which reports to the Capabilities Sub-group of the MRF. Words: Dr J David Mitchell, Chair, Merseyside Resilience Forum Voluntary Agencies and Faith Sector Forum. The VA&FS Forum is a core grouping of third sector organisations and draws representation from Category 1 and 2 responders as well as a range of voluntary and faith sector organisations, particularly those with crisis and humanitarian remits. Core membership includes: the British Red Cross, Royal Voluntary Service, Rotary International, RAYNET, St John Ambulance and the Maritime Volunteer Service, with faith representation led by Churches Together in Merseyside alongside the Salvation Army who bridge the humanitarian and faith sectors. Additional voluntary groups (eg Samaritans) have been engaged, along with a range of wider faith representatives. The forum hopes to welcome Northwest 4x4 responders during 2015. The MRF UNITY Plan, developed by the VA&FS Forum and also originating over 20 years ago, is an agreement and mechanism for voluntary support in emergencies. It has the British Red Cross as lead or primacy agency to coordinate response and provides a means by which statutory agencies can easily access support via a single point of contact. There is a MRF Faith Plan alongside the UNITY Plan.
“The capacity of the voluntary and faith sector to act in support in a crisis is both varied and considerable.”
Members of RAYNET displayed their mobile control vehicle.
Raising awareness The MRF VA&FS Forum seeks constantly to promote its capabilities and in May 2014 the group held an event to raise awareness. This was not the familiar public facing ‘blue light’ day or fundraising effort, but an event to demonstrate to key personnel within the emergency services, local authorities and other responders the capacity of the voluntary and faith sector to act in support in a crisis is both varied and considerable.
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Members of the Royal Voluntary Service at the awareness event.
The Maritime Volunteer Service RIB on display.
British Red Cross colleagues subsequently reported that the event had caught the imagination and attention from responders across the north west. Plans are being made for similar showcasing events in Manchester and in Lancashire in 2015.
Government guidance
The Salvation Army catering vehicle was especially popular.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) hosted the event at its Training and Development Academy in Croxteth, Liverpool. Following a welcome from the MFRS Chief Fire Officer, Dan Stephens, and an introduction by John Blake, National Emergency Communications Manager, British Red Cross, attendees were treated to a range of outdoor presentations and practical demonstrations of capabilities, vehicles and equipment, from the British Red Cross, Royal Voluntary Service, Rotary, RAYNET, Salvation Army and the Maritime Volunteer Service, supported by displays from MFRS and North West Ambulance Service (NWAS). Identical sessions were run morning and afternoon and were appreciated by those who came. The Salvation Army catering vehicle was especially popular as practical demonstration included an apparently inexhaustible supply of tea, coffee and biscuits for all!
Shortly before the event the updated government guidance ‘Brief guide on engaging the voluntary sector in civil protection’ and ‘Brief guide on engaging the faith communities in civil protection’ had been issued. Following the event a senior local authority officer commented that ‘the VA&FS Forum on Merseyside seems to be well placed to meet much of this guidance already and has been so for many years’.
www.merseysideprepared.org.uk
The MRF UNITY Plan has the British Red Cross as lead or primacy agency to coordinate response.
For further information please contact: Chair, MRF Voluntary Agencies and Faith Sector Forum: Dr J David Mitchell Tel: 0151 443 3756 E-mail: david.mitchell@knowsley.gov.uk E-mail: david.mitchell@knowsley.gcsx.gov.uk
Secretary to the MRF and VA&FS Forum: Diane Smith Tel: 0151 296 4536 Email: dianesmith@merseyfire.gov.uk Email: diane.smith@mfrs.cjsm.net
February 2015
54 | ESTPRODUCTS
SOLO 7 MultiVue2 – Cobham
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2
www.tracerco.com Tracerco, part of the Johnson Matthey group, has added to its range of award winning radiation monitors with a family of Personal Electronic Dosimeters (PEDs), providing a solution for every radiation monitoring need: the PED-IS can be used to measure radiation exposure in potentially explosive environments (Intrinsically Safe); the PED Blue, featuring DoseVisionTM software, is aimed at first reponders, for use in medical and life sciences, nuclear and industrial environments and in Non-Destructive Testing (NDT); and the PED+ has several additional functions, most notably its ability to serve as a personal dosimeter and as a handheld dose rate survey meter.
www.cobham.com/tcs The new SOLO 7 MultiVue2 briefcase diversity receiver from Cobham is a virtual control room in a briefcase. Designed specifically for fast, reliable deployment, and an ability to monitor multiple video and audio feeds, the new MultiVue2 features a simplified, robust internal architecture, tilting touchscreen control, full HD monitor, new easy-touse touchscreen interface, speakers for independent audio monitoring and the ability to receive four SD/HD videos at once. It is compatible with Cobham’s range of SOLO transmitters and all existing telemetry frequencies.
K55 fire fighting camera – FLIR Systems
Personal Electronic Dosimeters – Tracerco
3
www.flir.com/FIRE The K55 is the newest member of FLIR’s K-Series family of thermal imaging fire fighting cameras. The unit incorporates the company’s revolutionary Flexible Scene Enhancement (FSX) technology, which produces 320 x 240 pixel thermal images on a large bright 4in LCD display, allowing firefighters to navigate safely and make accurate decisions when attacking fires and searching for victims. The FLIR K55 also has on-board video recording, making it an excellent tool for documenting what happens inside the fire and providing a valuable training aid for later review. The K55’s intuitive and simple three-button user interface lets the firefighter access all of the camera’s controls, even while wearing heavy gloves. The K-Series is also designed to operate in tough operating conditions; it withstands a drop from 2m on a concrete floor, is water resistant (IP67), and fully operational up to +260°C / +500°F. The K55 is available for purchase through established distribution networks from 1 March 2015. It also comes with FLIR’s exclusive warranty covering the full camera for two years and the detector for 10 years.
Parabag equipment bags – SP Services
4
www.spservices.co.uk Parabag are one of the most popular specialist equipment bags produced by SP Services, covering key equipment requirements for first responders and paramedics. The new Parabag range, available from Spring 2015, has been completely redesigned around functionality and modern materials. Developed with the latest Blood Borne Pathogen (BBP) resistant fabric, the bags are robust and easy to maintain in a hardwearing environment. The new features include rapid fix handles, robust access zips and fluid resistant coating to ensure it is both functional and durable. Reinforced stitches, anti-slip under cushion pads mean that these bags are designed to stand the test of time. Available in a range of colours, models and sizes so that you can find the right bag to meet your professions needs.
Body-worn recorder – Marantz Professional
www.marantzpro.com The high definition PMD-901V personal A/V recorder from Marantz Professional captures up to eight continuous hours of full HD video at 2304 x 1296 resolution, rendering impeccable detail and clarity, in harsh conditions. Weighing less than 200g, the PMD-901V attaches unobtrusively to the user’s clothing with a swivelling clip for optimum video capture from the ultra-wide 140-degree field-of-view lens. The unit seamlessly integrates with uniforms and heavy outerwear, making gloved operation a simple task, even in extreme temperatures. A backlit, high-resolution 2in colour screen provides in-field review capabilities, while the password-protected files are secure from tampering or erasure by unauthorised personnel.
www.emergencyservicestimes.com
5 February 2015
56 | ESTLAST WORDS
Keeping the country running when the lights go out The fragility of the UK’s ageing power generation network is widely recognised. However the loss of Didcot power station to fire in 2014 coming hard on the heels of decommissioning several nuclear power stations and the lack, as yet, of sufficient, cost effective and reliable renewables alternatives is pushing the country to the brink. Yet despite the very real risk of power outages, a huge proportion of the critical UK infrastructure is still 100 percent reliant on the mains supply – leaving businesses, consumers and organisations responsible for public safety extremely vulnerable should major outages occur. Words: Andy Parfitt, Sales Director, Harland Simon UPS. From traffic lights to railway crossings and utilities providers, the fact is that in today’s joined up and internet enabled society, every aspect of the infrastructure is reliant upon clean, reliable power supply. And for those tasked with delivering these services, contingency planning is not just about safeguarding the infrastructure; it is increasingly about safeguarding revenue. In today’s target driven and highly regulated society, any significant failure in rail or road networks, water or power utilities will result in fines, negative publicity and a drop in shareholder value. The lights may not go out – yet. But can any business afford to take the risk? Failing to safeguard that power supply could compromise both revenue and public safety.
Lights out When the UK Government takes out what is effectively a £1bn insurance policy against the lights going out, it is clearly time for the rest of the country to take note. With Britain facing a severe power generation crunch for the next two winters and Ofgem warning that the margin – the spare capacity above peak demand – could fall to as low as two percent next winter, contingency plans are becoming important. In addition to the recent controversial announcement regarding the proposed payment of £990m in subsidies to power plants to guarantee demand can be met from 2018, the Government has also invested heavily in the Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) and the Securities and Emergencies Measures Directive (SEMD), designed to protect critical sites against terrorist attack.
Risk of terrorist activity Not only does the UK have to contend with a power generation network still in transition, a loss of power may not just come from grid overload: there is a significant risk of terrorist activity compromising the power network. That means there is a pressing need to safeguard not only the most obvious aspects of the nation’s infrastructure – the banks, the petrochemical plants, the power stations, and the Government – but to also ensure that the air, road and rail networks are able to manage in the event of power outage; that water supplies are not affected and that emergency services can still communicate effectively.
Fragile society The importance of such contingency planning is demonstrated on a nearly daily basis. When less than an hour’s downtime of the air traffic control system over London resulted in two days of chaos; or when a road closure can cause gridlock in the surrounding area for hours, the fragility of the UK infrastructure becomes
www.emergencyservicestimes.com
very clear. How will the emergency services respond to problems caused by a power outage when the roads are gridlocked because the traffic lights are not working? When innovative technology enables controllers to turn all the lights green on a key route to support rapid emergency response – failing to protect the traffic lights against mains failure would appear somewhat shortsighted. Furthermore, this is not just about protecting against a full power outage – in reality just a small percentage of power problems are associated with complete failure. It is far more likely that individual components will be damaged as a result of a power spike, surge or dip. Protecting against these problems is also critical to keep the infrastructure working effectively and to minimise the additional costs associated with costly repair.
“How will the emergency services respond to problems caused by a power outage when the roads are gridlocked because the traffic lights are not working?” Of course, these are not standard environments. In addition to being typically unmanned, from traffic lights to water treatment plants, these are harsh environments subject to extremes of temperature, vibration, water ingress, dust and dirt. They are certainly not suitable for the standard Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) that are deployed in clean, temperature controlled offices and data centres to provide clean, reliable power supplies. Put these UPSs into the power plant and the life span will shrink from 10 years plus to perhaps just months as a result of dust or shorting out due to water ingress. Place them in any environment subject to significant vibrations and failure will be rapid; while exposure to cold – or hot – temperature extremes will result in battery life plummeting.
Protecting critical locations These are critical locations that require protecting; but they are also often unmanned and organisations need equipment that is reliable and offers long-term protection. While some manufacturers insist data centre and office UPSs need to be regularly tested (including
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monthly discharge tests) this is simply not a practical option for an out of the way, unmanned location. Demanding monthly maintenance activity creates an unjustifiable whole life cost in these harsh environments – the key here is to put in place a device that is ultra reliable and can both guarantee a long life and requires minimal ongoing maintenance. The solution is to provide a rugged protected UPS that is designed specifically to work reliably and for a long life within a harsh environment; one that has been engineered, modified, ruggedised and tailored to fit within specific site and application space constraints: a ‘Protected UPS’. The UPS needs to be the correct Form-Fit-Function! With the right UPS in place, organisations can be assured that these critical aspects of the national infrastructure will keep running irrespective of power outages or glitches. Quite simply, put a UPS on a key traffic light intersection and the traffic continues flowing, the emergency services can respond as required; provide a UPS to support a hospital’s internal phone system and staff can continue to communicate irrespective of power problems.
Power contingency planning Of course, when it comes to national contingency there is also a financial consideration. Power stations and water companies, rail providers and emergency services are all subject to strict targets – failure to meet these targets will result in fines, damage to brand image, and an impact on shareholder value. Whether the UK hits its full capacity and the lights go out, or a sub-station trips for a few seconds resulting in a surge that damages equipment, the nation’s reliance on power cannot be underestimated. Safeguarding critical infrastructure is as much about protecting the smooth operation of the nation as it is about safeguarding the smooth flow of revenue – and power contingency is now a fundamental aspect of business planning.
www.harlandsimonups.com February 2015