Blog Posts

JOIN US FOR OUR FEBRUARY MEETING!

1/31/2020

Join us Thursday, February 6th, for our monthly meeting. Gary Paul of Protectowire Fire Systems will be presenting on linear heat detection, including various technologies and products. During this meeting, Gary will also discuss the applications and industries where linear heat detection is used.

Gary Paul is the Regional Sales Manager at Protectowire FireSystems where he manages their distribution partners throughout the U.S. and Canada as well as deliver educational trainings to the fire protection community. Gary has extensive experience working with engineers, project managers and distribution partners throughout the United States. Prior to joining Protectowire, he worked in the wire and custom cable connector industry for 15 years. He is a member of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE). Gary holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Stonehill College.

Lunch begins at 11:30am with the discussion beginning at noon. We'll be at Cinzetti's Italian Buffet in Overland Park. You can RSVP and pay online ahead of time here: http://www.mokansfpe.org/calendar.html.

Don't forget to register online for this monthly meeting and check-in with Jaime at the door. We look forward to seeing you there!

REMINDER: Our early-bird membership discount is only good through the end of March, so register today!

DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER FOR OUR JANUARY MEETING!

1/7/2020

Join us Thursday, January 16th, for our monthly meeting as Jeff Kochelek will be presenting about Fire Code changes regarding management of corrosion risk in water-based fire sprinkler systems. During this meeting, Jeff will discuss the Evolution of corrosion requirements in the Fire Code, benefits of using automatic air vents on wet pipe systems, nitrogen inverting for dry and preaction fire sprinkler systems, nitrogen inverting for wet pipe fire sprinkler systems, and FM approved nitrogen generators as replacement for desiccant air dryers in cold storage.

Jeff Kochelek has spent more than 30 years designing corrosion control strategies in a variety of industrial applications. Mr. Kochelek has published numerous articles on the subject of corrosion in water-based fire sprinkler systems. He has been a member of the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE), the American Chemical Society (ACS), the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and is a member of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). He has numerous patent applications pending and has been granted 23 US and International patents regarding corrosion management in the fire protection industry. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from St. Louis University and is currently CEO of Engineered Corrosion Solutions, LLC.

Lunch begins at 11:30am with the discussion beginning at noon. We'll be at Cinzetti's Italian Buffet in Overland Park. You can RSVP and pay online ahead of time here: http://www.mokansfpe.org/calendar.html.

Don't forget to register online for this monthly meeting and check-in with Jaime at the door. We look forward to seeing you there!

DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER ONLINE FOR OUR DECEMBER MEETING!

12/3/2019

Join us Thursday, December 5th, for our monthly meeting as Mike Eckhoff will be presenting about Fire-retardant-treated wood and today's model codes. Recent national code changes, combined with the current construction boom, have increased the number of applications and the demand for code-compliant, impregnated with chemicals, fire-retardant-treated wood (FRTW). Through an AIA-approved (HSW credit), interactive, basic lecture supported by short videos and historical case studies, participants will learn about: The history of FRTW, how it is produced, how to identify code-compliant FRTW in the field, FRTW design values, and where FRTW is applicable per IBC/NFPA.

Participants will also learn about wildland-urban interface (WUI) applications via the 2018 IWUIC to increase structural fire resistance.

Mike is a public policy expert with over 15 years of experience in the forest products industry. He has worked for both the Colorado State Forest Service and the USDA Forest Service where he shaped policy for the natural environment in response to the mountain pine beetle epidemic. Currently, he is a marketing representative for Hoover Treated Wood Products, Inc. He has delivered over one-hundred invited presentations on sustainable wood products, including FRTW, to firms, municipalities, and universities throughout the United States. He earned his PhD in Forest Science from Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

Lunch begins at 11:30am with the discussion beginning at noon. We'll be at Cinzetti's Italian Buffet in Overland Park. You can RSVP and pay online ahead of time here: http://www.mokansfpe.org/calendar.html.

Don't forget to register online for this monthly meeting and check-in with Maryann at the door. We look forward to seeing you there!

We will also be accepting nomination for officer positions at this meeting. If you or someone you know is interested, please reach out to us so we may record their nomination.

2020 OFFICER NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN!

11/15/2019

Nominations are now open for 2020 officers for the Missouri-Kansas Chapter of Society of Fire Protection Engineers. Elections will be held at the December 5th meeting.

Current nominees:

President - Jessie Warren (current Vice President)
Vice President - Kita Gandhi (current Secretary)
Treasurer - Jaime Wilson
Secretary - OPEN

To submit a nominee, please email info@mokansfpe.org.

DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER ONLINE FOR OUR NOVEMBER MEETING!

11/1/2019

Join us Thursday, November 7th, for our monthly meeting as Bob Sullivan will be presenting about the new NFPA 855, Standard for the Installation of Stationary Energy Storage Systems. This presentation will provide an overview of the new NFPA 855 Standard, as well as provide information regarding fire protection and firefighting challenges associated with EES.

Mr. Sullivan has over 31 years of experience serving on fire departments in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Colorado, including several years at the rank of Lieutenant. Prior to coming to NFPA, he served on the Thornton Fire Department in Colorado as the Senior Fire Protection Engineer and Deputy Fire Marshal, focusing on new development construction and code enforcement. Previously, Mr. Sullivan worked for National Foam Inc./Kidde Firefighting USA and Industrial Risk Insurers. He has a Master's Degree in Fire Protection Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and is a Certified Fire Protection Specialist.

Lunch begins at 11:30am with the discussion beginning at noon. We'll be at Cinzetti's Italian Buffet in Overland Park. You can RSVP and pay online ahead of time here: http://www.mokansfpe.org/calendar.html.

Don't forget to register online for this monthly meeting and check-in with Maryann at the door. We look forward to seeing you there!

For those of you that requested a copy of the presentation, it has been provided by Mr. Sullivan and is available for download below.

ks_-_mo-kan_sfpe_-_nfpa_855_-_overland_park_ks_-_11-7-2019__distr-pdf_.pdf
File Size:	8848 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE AFAA LUNCH MEETING!

10/29/2019

As previously posted, the Automatic Fire Alarm Association (AFAA) is in the process of attempting to start a new AFAA Chapter. This local State Association will cover the four (4) state Midwest Region of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Nebraska.

The intent for the creation of the local chapter is to increase the level of training available to help promote and advance the fire alarm industry while also enhancing the networking capabilities of the fire alarm community. This would allow fire alarm designers, fire alarm system contractors and integrators, inspectors, testing and maintenance contractors, fire protection engineers, electrical contractors, fire marshals, building officials, equipment manufactures, and facility owners to network together and share industry knowledge.

AFAA is hosting an introductory lunch meeting (lunch will be provided) on Wednesday October 30, 2019. The goal of this meeting is to get a feel from the industry to determine if there is truly enough interest to start a local AFAA State Association. The meeting will be held at the following location:

Please be sure to RSVP by October 25th using the RSVP button below to email Sandra Johnson.

Meeting Flyer

RSVP