F.I.E.R.O.

FIRE INDUSTRY EQUIPMENT RESEARCH ORGANIZATION

F.I.E.R.O. is a non-profit group of Southeastern fire service people who meet to network about equipment and safety issues. It was formed in 1990.

Scope
An unlimited range of inquiry in quest of improvements throughout the fire service.

Objective
To provide a safe, more efficient, effective and progressive fire service through the application of shared knowledge, testing, research, development, and data analysis for fire apparatus, equipment, protective clothing, related subjects, and firefighter safety.

Why?
No doubt, we are in the information age. Change is occurring at an accelerating rate. Keeping abreast of changes in safety and equipment standards as well as the fire equipment industry is an avocation every fire department must have. F.I.E.R.O. exists to fulfill this avocation. The fire service historically has never learned the benefits of benchmarking. Through F.I.E.R.O., a forum is provided for the fire service to learn from each other. Why go through the trial and error approach to purchasing equipment? It's simply too expensive. Get involved with F.I.E.R.O. and learn first-hand the experiences of other fire departments about equipment. Why accept fire fighter injuries as being "part of the job"? With today's medical costs and litigious society, it's simply too expensive. Firefighter injuries can and are being reduced. Through F.I.E.R.O. you learn more about injuries and how to prevent them. How do you know an equipment manufacturer or dealer produces quality products and service? Not knowing and taking a risk is simply too expensive. Join and participate in F.I.E.R.O. to find out the true track record of vendors.

What you get
Presentations - From nationally recognized experts on equipment and safety topics.

Roundtable - The open forum where everyone shares and seeks information.

Newsletter - Published following each meeting. (Members consistently report learning more from F.I.E.R.O.'s newsletter than from national fire service publications).

Contacts - Learn names and faces of people in other fire departments with your interests as well as manufacturer’s representatives.

Backtable - Fire departments share their latest SOP's and other informational handouts.

Sidetable - Vendors provide the latest literature about their products.

Who?
Anyone in the fire service - including vendors (they should be our partners, not our enemies). F.I.E.R.O. is especially suited for apparatus and equipment committees, safety officers, equipment officers, purchasing agents and specifications writers.

When?
F.I.E.R.O meets quarterly on Fridays.

Where?
Meeting locations vary.

Cost?
ANNUAL DUES:
$20 for an individual
$50 for a fire department
$100 for a dealer
$125 for a manufacturer
In addition, there is a small registration fee (usually around $20) for each meeting. This fee covers lunch, breaks, speaker expenses, etc.

TO JOIN OR FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION:
Contact:
President Dart Kendall
dartk@bellsouth.net
404-557-3170 (cell)

Vice-President Robert Tutterow
rtutterow@ci.charlotte.nc.us
704-336-5609