Alarm co. owner next
Governor of Rhode Island?
By Martha Entwistle, managing editor
tremendously,” he said.
WARWICK, R.I.—Alarm company owner Joseph Trillo is mulling a bid for governor of Rhode
Island and he says his experience running a business for the past 30 years is one of his most important qualifications for the job.
Rhode Island’s current governor, Republican Don Carcieri, cannot run for reelection in 2010. Three Democrats and one independent are considering running for Carcieri’s seat. Trillo is the only Republican who has expressed an interest in running.
In addition to running Triple A Custom Alarm
Joseph Trillo
Systems, Trillo has served as State Representative from Warwick for the past nine years. “One of the problems in the Legislature is that there are not enough business people, especially people who have run small businesses,” he said. This experience “helps
Trillo created an exploratory committee and expects to make a final decision by September. With $60,000 in his campaign war chest, Trillo has more cash on hand than most of his legislative colleagues. However, Trillo’s likely Democratic opponents have substantially more money. According to the Providence Journal, State Treasurer Frank Caprio has $1.2 million, Attorney General Patrick Lynch has $418,917 and Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts has $302,103.
fundraising. “I’m not concerned. The money will come once I commit,” he said. More than 700 people have contributed to Trillo’s campaigns in the past “and a lot of those people have told me that they’re willing to give me a lot more money.” Among some of his staunchest supporters, he said, are others in the alarm industry.
The Boston Herald described Trillo as a “public access TV host best known for his outbursts.” Asked about this, he said he considers his outspoken nature a plus. “Sure. When I get pushed far enough I’ll outburst at you. Put it this way, I’m not one of the pansies in politics.” Trillo hosts two public access television shows, “Trillo Talks” and “Issues and Ideas,” which air statewide.
He considers himself an
Rep. Trillo is not worried about
TRILLO see page 25
partner Collaboration to prevent hassles with AHJs
En-guage installed in N.H.
By Martha Entwistle, managing editor
NASHUA, N.H.—When Bill Degnan, New Hampshire state fire marshal, found out that SimplexGrinnell was going to install en-Guage monitored fire extinguishers at its Nashua showroom, he suggested they install the system at the New Hampshire State House instead.
Those involved say the installation, completed in April and announced in late May, not only improves fire safety in the State House, but also increases security, saves money for the state and gives SimplexGrinnell a unique showplace for this technology.
Robert DuMais, business
Bill Degnan, NH State fire marshal (L), State Rep. Daniel Eaton, and Jim Rose, en-Gauge director of operations. Photo credit: Tom Roy.
development manager for SimplexGrinnell, said the installation was a great training tool for Simplex installers, and now SimplexGrinnell “will use it as a site to bring customers to demon-
strate the product … it’s a real-life application in a museum-like setting.”
The system, which includes 50 monitored fire extinguishers in three separate buildings, “improves security and fire safety without [heavy security measures that] impede the freedom of people to come in and out of the building,” Degnan said.
“In different places around the world, fire extinguishers have been used as IEDs, that’s one of the concerns,” Degnan explained. Another is that someone could take fire extinguishers and spray them around to disrupt legislative
EN-GUAGE see page 25
want to buy multiple systems from a single source,” said Mike Swiecicki, SimplexGrinnell manager for sound and communications. This partnership will enable SimplexGrinnell to provide “best of breed sound systems along with SimplexGrinnell’s fire, security and emergency communications systems.”
AVI-SPL’s portfolio includes sound and video reinforcement,
By Martha Entwistle, managing editor
BOCA RATON, Fla.—Aiming to provide a one-source solution for customers looking for life safety systems and high-qual-ity, concert-level sound systems, SimplexGrinnell announced May 14 a partnership with AVI-SPL, a global integrator for audio video systems and services.
“Many customers, such as school systems and hospitals,
SG, AVI-SPL team for deal
video conferencing, collaborative communications and streaming media as well as services.
Simplex Grinnell “is already in schools and hospitals,” Swiecicki noted. These customers will be particularly interested in AVI-SPL’s offerings for auditoriums, gymnasiums and cafeterias. Likewise, SimplexGrinnell believes its clients in healthcare, government,
CHICAGO—In a move designed to save fire installers time and money, Underwriters Laboratories announced June 1 it had forged a new partnership with Rolf Jensen & Associates, a fire protection engineering and life safety consulting company.
The partnership will help fire installers and building contractors ensure quick approval of projects by local AHJs ( authorities having jurisdiction). Under the new arrangement, UL and RJA will work together during the design and construction phase of a project to help ensure that a project will meet all UL specifications, and thus, avoid any problems with getting the job approved by AHJs.
The partnership will be particularly helpful with international jobs, said Randy Tucker, executive vice president and chief technology officer for RJA. It will also be useful domestically, he said, because RJA has resources all over the country.
Tucker explained how the partnership may help a fire installer. “It could be that a fire detection system is designed in a way that appears slightly beyond UL limitations,” he said. In that instance, RJA could do an “analysis of the project and demonstrate that it is in compliance with UL.” RJA would send its analysis to UL, which would issue a letter to the contractor for the local AHJ stating that the project is in compliance.
“It will save a lot of money for the contractor,” he said.
Although UL and RJA have worked together over the past 40 years, this collaboration represents a new approach to working with consultants and contractors for UL, according to Tucker. “UL has partnerships with other [entities], but not with consultants and engineering firms like ours. It’s a new partnership approach for them [that will enable us to] leverage our capabilities together.” SSN
FEMA appoints Tidwell
CLEVELAND, Ohio—The Fire Equipment Manufacturer’s Association (FEMA) appointed Jim Tidwell, of Tidwell Consulting Corp., to code consultant.
As FEMA’s code consultant, Tidwell will be the liaison with the ICC, NFPA, Underwriter’s Laboratories, as well as fire authorities across the nation. For six years, Tidwell has worked for the International Code Council, most recently holding the title of deputy senior vice president of government relations.
Tidwell also spent more than 30 years as a firefighter, in every capacity from fire marshal to interim fire chief of a metropolitan fire department. FEMA is an international, non-profit trade association representing manufacturers of fire equipment including fire hose, standpipe systems, interior equipment, portable fire extinguishers and pre-engi-neered systems.
Plymouth hosts first spinkler demo
PLYMOUTH, Mass.—In what is expected to be the first of many live sprinkler demonstrations, fire officials on May 27 staged a demonstration of how quickly homes will burn with and without sprinkler systems.
Two “living rooms” were constructed and then set on fire. The Plymouth Fire Department put out the fire. “It took the unsprinklered room only a minute and a half to be totally engulfed in flames,” said Lorraine Carli, VP communications for NFPA. “In the sprinklered room, you could go in and sit down on the couch after the fire.”
The demonstration, the first of many across the country, is part of a public awareness and advocacy awareness campaign by NFPA and the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition. The goal, said Carli, is to get jurisdictions to adopt codes that require sprinklers to be installed in new one- and two-family homes.
The NFPA has kits available for fire departments that would like to do similar demonstrations. Kits include instructions and materials to build the two “rooms.”
NFPA appoints officers, directors
CHICAGO—The NFPA announced June 8 at its conference here the reappointment of officers and new members to its board of directors. Officers reappointed to their current positions on the board are: Paul M. Fitzgerald, Thomas W. Jaeger, Philip C. Stittleburg, Vincent Bollon, H. Wayne Boyd. New members of the board include: Thomas Groos, Peter M. Holland, Brian J. Hurley, and Bill McCammon.
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