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Hosted by TV and radio presenter Jeremy Vine, the Fire Industry Awards were a spectacular celebration of all that is best in the fire safety community. Innovative design solutions for some impressive building projects were among some of the entries in the FSE Design Awards this year.
The winners were announced last month in front of some 700 people from all sectors of the fire safety industry and community, as part of the Fire Industry Awards, a biennial event held during International Fire Expo.
The fire safety engineering category was won by Arup Fire’s Manchester office for its project at the University of Manchester. The judges were especially impressed by the comprehensive nature of the project, which considered the safety of large, mix use buildings, including the School of Nursing, lecture theatres, student accommodation and a 1000-seat auditorium. Warringtonfire was highly commended in this category for its project on the Victoria Square shopping development in Belfast.
The winning entry for the small-to-medium sized project was Warringtonfire for its work on the new air traffic control tower at Heathrow Airport. This is a truly unique structure which consists of a three-storey ground building, a tower, and a ‘cab’ located 90m above ground level. The work included a structural fire protection analysis of three sets of steel cable stays which support the cab, as well as evacuation procedures and the need for operational continuity.
The hotly contested product innovation category in the Fire Industry Awards was won by The Firebeam Company, for its reflective optical beam smoke detector, which incorporates a novel automatic beam alignment mechanism to compensate for naturally occurring building movement – which could otherwise produce false alarms. The judges were impressed with the uniqueness of the product and the cost savings it could bring.
On the installation side of the industry Fire Protection Limited, which forged good business partnerships and put significant investment into staff training and health and safety, won the award for fire safety installer of passive systems. Some recent projects include the refurbishment of kitchens at the House of Lords and an installation at BBC Egton House.
Meanwhile, Hall Fire Protection walked off with the award for best installation company in the active protection category. The company practices staff development as a core part of its business and has been involved in longterm partnering initiatives, such as with the Morrisons supermarket chain.
The fire safety manager award went to
Peter Aldridge, for his work at Leeds Training Hospital, one of the largest teaching hospital sites in Europe. He has made a real impact with a risk assessed approach and targeted staff training.
The export innovation award went to Advanced Electronics, for being on track to fulfil its ambitious goal of achieving 50% of its business from exports by the end of 2007, and for the systematic way it went about achieving this. Apollo Detectors was highly commended in this category for its strong export performance and Freedom to Choose campaign in the US.
Other category winners were:
Best individual contribution to community fire safety: Clive Robinson, West Midlands Fire & Rescue. As deaf community link officer, Clive forged significant links with this group of vulnerable people, helping to raise the profile of fire safety and the work of the West Midlands fire and rescue service.
Best team contribution to community fire safety: The special needs programme at West Midlands Fire & Rescue. The judges were impressed with the levels of commitment shown and they way the team communicated with a vulnerable group in the community.
Best corporate contribution to community fire safety: Lancashire Fire & Rescue’s Heritage Project, for developing a risk-based inspection programme for heritage buildings.
Outstanding action in the fire & rescue service: Firefighter Steve Binns and Firefighter Paul Myers for risking their own lives to save a woman in a frozen lake
Best fleet engineer was Peter Warner of Essex Fire and Rescue for using best practice and recognised standards for vehicle and plant maintenance, while achieving cost effective management.
The lifetime achievement award went to Professor Rosemarie Everton
The special commendation went to Paul Guyver and Stuart Fisher for their work in showing children the damaging effects of car crime among young people.