Center for Public Safety Excellence - Press Releases

CPSE Annual Awards Annoucement

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 18:31:44 GMT

CFAI Meets to Accredit Agencies

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 20:18:22 GMT

J. Michael Stallings, CFO, Receives Ronny Jack Coleman Leadership Legacy Award

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:36:02 GMT

Mike Brown Selected as the 2011 Ray Picard Award Recipient

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 05:54:09 GMT

Richard T. Haase, CFO, CFPS, CEM Appointed to Commission on Professional Credentialing

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:42:20 GMT

Commission on Professional Credentialing Conducts Business Meeting During Fire-Rescue International

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 21:18:50 GMT

Residential Fire Sprinkler Installer Accreditation Moves to Beta Phase

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 15:54:40 GMT

Fire Chief Randy Bruegman, President of the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc. (CPSE) announced from Fire Rescue International in Atlanta, GA., the beta testing phase for the development of accreditation for residential dwelling fire sprinkler installers. In his announcement Chief Bruegman said, “I would like to commend the hard work that has been put into this process by all the representative groups to date. The importance of identifying and assuring the competencies of installers of residential dwelling sprinkler systems is of paramount importance to the future success of the wide spread application of this life saving technology. We are excited to see this work continue into the beta testing phase and look forward to bringing this work to a successful conclusion in the near future.”

CPSE’s partners in the development of the accreditation are actively engaged in the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) charged with building the model and process. Phillip A. Brown, SET, CFPS, and the Director of Technical Program Development & Codes for the American Fire Sprinkler Association, capturing the importance of the beta phase for the TAC states, "As a contractor-based organization, it has been very important for the American Fire Sprinkler Association to offer common-sense ideas on critical competencies. While much has been accomplished, AFSA is hopeful that the beta-testing process will further identify areas of improvement. It is important to devise an accreditation program that is meaningful and useful rather than rush to a final program that will not be effective or accepted." Jim Dalton, National Fire Sprinkler Association Liaison to the Accreditation (Technical) Advisory Committee added, "Having spent the past year working with our principle partners and other stakeholders on the development of an Accreditation Program for installers of one and two-family fire sprinkler systems, we are confident that, after a suitable period of Beta Testing in the field, we will be prepared to introduce a national program that gives the consumer, the Authority Having Jurisdiction and Public Policy Representative a high level of confidence in these most important life safety systems."

Jay Peters, ICC Executive Director, PMG, summed up the sentiments of the TAC as the partners and members look forward to the beta phase and beyond. “ICC is extremely pleased with the progress of the Technical Advisory Committee and for the dedication of all the stakeholders that have created a consensus recommendation for the essential accreditation criteria. The diversity of organizations participating in the Technical Advisory Committee will help ensure market acceptance of this accreditation model. We look forward to the beta test and the roll-out of the program after approval by the CPSE Accreditation Commission.”

In August 2010, the Center for Public Safety Excellence, American Fire Sprinkler Association, National Fire Sprinkler Association and the ICC signed an MOU creating a partnership to promote installation of residential dwelling sprinkler systems and to develop a new accreditation program for installers of residential dwelling fire sprinkler systems. CPSE, the accrediting organization, created a Technical Advisory Committee to develop and recommend to its Board of Directors the accreditation model to include competencies, application and review processes, and general guidelines for the new program. The TAC met in person in November of 2010 and July of 2011 and has held several web meetings resulting in the creation of the criteria and competencies, and draft documents and guidelines for the application and review process. After an “alpha” review by the members of the TAC, the model has been moved to the beta phase for field testing and feedback from actual installers. Beta participants are being selected by the principal trade associations serving on the TAC. The beta phase will begin immediately and the TAC final recommendations are expected to be presented to the CPSE Board of Directors in December of 2011.

Fire Departments Awarded Accreditation Status in Atlanta

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 17:01:13 GMT

News Release

Atlanta, GA - The Commission on Fire Accreditation, International convened in Atlanta, GA on August 23-24, 2011. Twenty-one fire departments were represented by their Chief, Accreditation Manager, City/Elected Officials and their CFAI Peer Team Leader. After sixteen hours of deliberations, a total of ten Fire Departments received their Accredited Agency Status and eleven Fire Departments received Reaccredited Status and three Fire Departments received deferral status.

Fire Department representatives received direct and challenging questions from Commission Members before a vote was taken. The meetings concluded with an awards banquet where agencies who received accredited or reaccredited status in calendar year 2011 were recognized and celebrated for their hard work and vision towards continuous quality improvement. This now brings the total accredited agency count to 144 agencies in three countries. "This process has created unique challenges to the fire industry; measure 100% of your organization and benchmark your findings towards continuous quality improvement. We are seeing more and more organizations who can and want to meet these industry challenges and for that; the Commission remains proud to refer to them as internationally credible fire departments." says Chief Ernst Piercy, Chairman of the CFAI.

Accredited Agency Status was approved for the following Agencies:

Morrisville Fire & Rescue Department, NC
Red Deer Emergency Services, AB
Rockford Fire Department, IL
Rogers Fire Department, IL
Spokane Valley Fire Department, WA
Summit Fire Department, NJ
Wayne County Airport Authority Fire Division, MI
Davenport Fire Department, IA
Durham Fire Department, NC
Fayetteville Fire/Emergency Management Department

Reaccredited Agency Status was also approved for the following Agencies:

Town of Menasha Fire Department, WI
Gastonia Fire Department, NC
Geneva Fire Department, IL
Kingsport Fire Department, TN
Wilmette Fire Department, IL
Virginia Beach Fire Department, VA
Winter Park Fire-Rescue Department, FL
Mount Pleasant Fire Department, SC
Palm Beach Gardens Fire Rescue
Westmont Fire Department, IL
Temple Terrace Fire Department, FL

Congratulations to each of these agencies and communities.

Commission on Professional Credentialing Launches Fire Marshal Designation

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 20:02:24 GMT

CPSE Adopts the NFFF Fire Service Vulnerability Assessment Project

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 23:01:31 GMT

The Board of Directors for the CPSE has passed a resolution adopting the Fire Service Vulnerability Assessment Project (VAP). Over the past decade on average, 100 firefighters die in the line of duty each year and over 80,000 have suffered injury. Chief Randy R. Bruegman, CPSE President stated, “The Center for Public Safety Excellence is supporting the vulnerability assessment project as a means to provide a systematic process to assist communities in the evaluation of risk and resource capabilities, help to identify areas of vulnerability that are predictable and will lead to the reduction of deaths and injuries, as most are preventable incidents. I commend the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, the U.S. Fire Administration and Honeywell International, Inc., who is underwriting this project, for their commitment and vision to such an important endeavor.”

At the end of the process, a department will have a customized report identfying areas and remedies for vulnerabilities linked to firefighter injuries and deaths. It is expected that with this tool, firefighter injuries and deaths should decline, along with building safer communities for our citizens. The CPSE invites its members and consumers to support and embrace this tool which will be valuable to them immediately and in the future.

Ronald J. Siarnicki, Executive Director of the NFFF said, "The fire service organizations who are partnering to develop the Fire Department Vulnerability Assessment tool, underwritten by Honeywell, Inc. and the United States Fire Administration, are extraordinarily proud to receive a resolution of support from the Center for Public Safety Excellence. This is a key endorsement as the CPSE has been this country's key evaluator of fire department excellence for many years. With CPSE assistance, the developers of the Vulnerability Assessment will have a trove of data and observations upon which to draw. We are humbled and greatly appreciative for this public stamp of support. "