POLICY REPORT
PUBLIC SAFETY
Date: October 18,1995
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Assistant Fire Chief (Fire Prevention)
SUBJECT: Certification of Fire Protection Equipment
Inspection Technicians
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council authorize the General Manager Fire & Rescue
Services to implement a program to ensure the adequacy of
public safety by requiring Fire Protection Equipment
Inspection Technicians to be certified to an acceptable
standard.
B. THAT Council approve in principle amendments to the Fire By-
Law as summarized in Appendix A of this report.
C. THAT Council instruct the Director of Legal Services to
bring forward the appropriate By-Law amendments.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Fire & Rescue Services RECOMMENDS approval
of A, B and C.
COUNCIL POLICY
On November 1, 1992, Council approved Vancouver Fire By-Law No. 7004,
Section 6.1.1.(1)(c) of the By-law, authorizing "the inspection and
regulation of agencies which service fire safety equipment".
PURPOSE
This report seeks Council approval to ensure that an adequate
standard of inspection and testing of fire protection equipment is
conducted by Fire Protection Service Technicians by certifying the
technicians to an acceptable standard.
BACKGROUND
Over the years, Fire & Rescue Services has received complaints about
the quality of service provided by some Fire Protection Equipment
Service Companies. At this time, the only advice we are able to give
complainants is to seek quotations from competitors. If we find after
investigation that the work has not been performed to an acceptable
standard, an order is issued to have the required testing and
inspecting redone. After researching this issue with other
jurisdictions throughout North America, we found many areas are using
a Certification Program to ensure the quality of service work. The
Certification Programs are generally administered by the Fire
Department. Some of the areas with this kind of program are: the
State of California, the Province of Alberta, the City of Seattle and
the City of Honolulu.
DISCUSSION
As a result of the research conducted by Fire and Rescue Services, we
are proposing implementation of a certification system for individuals
who are employed in the field of fire protection equipment inspection
and servicing, together with a system where approved Inspection Record
Tags are attached to the building safety equipment being serviced.
The initial program would include technicians in the following fields:
1. Fire Alarm Systems
2. Smoke Control Systems
3. Emergency Power and Lighting (generators and battery
packs)
4. Automatic Sprinklers; Standpipes and Fire Pumps
(excluding single family dwellings)
5. Fire Extinguishers (fixed systems and portable)
6. Commercial Kitchen Vent Inspection and Cleaning
Additional disciplines could be added as required.
Considerable research was directed to finding out who should be
responsible for certifying the technicians. Some of the alternatives
investigated were; a Fire and Rescue Services administered program or
a program administered by one of the following organizations:
- Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC);
- National Association of Fire Equipment Distributors (NAFED);
- Inchcape Testing Services (formerly Warnock Hersey);
- National Fire Alarm Association;
- Applied Science Technologist and Technicians of B.C. (ASTTBC).
ASTTBC was chosen for three reasons:
1. They are a self-governing, professional association operating
under a Provincial Statute, the ASTT Act. ASTT has a mandate to
establish standards in technical fields.
2. They are independent of government, which removes any possible
conflict of standards between the City and the industry.
3. They are the only organization able to certify the individual
technician and have broad industry support.
Over 60 industry representatives volunteered their services for the
subcommittees representing the 6 disciplines. These members, along
with representatives from the Fire Services, Educational Institutions
and ASTT, developed the standards and procedures for the program.
The Chair of each Subcommittee, the Executive Director of ASTT and a
Representative from Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services formed the
Central Committee. Thousands of hours of volunteer time has gone into
developing this program.
The Proposed Program
1. Registration for Interim Certification would begin in October,
1995. Interim Certification will begin on January 1st, 1996 for
each of the disciplines and will be valid for three years. A
different duration may be established for full certification,
i.e., commercial vent cleaning - two years; fire extinguishing
service - two years; sprinkler and standpipe - three years. Each
year the certification must be renewed by meeting ASTTBC
standards.
2. At the request of industry, the British Columbia Institute of
Technology (BCIT) is actively developing educational packages for
each of the disciplines involved. Other educational institutions
are interested in participating in the program.
3. Once the interim certification phase of the program is over,
ASTTBC will move into full certification of inspection/service
technicians on an annual basis. There will be a provision for
new technicians moving into the area or new employees of
established companies to receive Interim Certification prior to
receiving full certifica-tion.
4. When the program is fully operational, the City will have a means
of effectively ensuring the inspection/testing and service work
performed by technicians is up to the required standard. If
complaints are received, or during an inspection non-compliant
work is noted regarding a technician's work, a referral will be
made to the Disciplinary Board of ASTTBC. The disciplinary
process under ASTT is established under statute and is comparable
with other professional bodies.
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS
There will be an assurance of adequate safety to citizens of Vancouver
when this program is in place. Although this will be the first
program of its kind in B.C., it is not a new concept. Programs of
this type are operating in many areas throughout Canada and the USA
with good success. This program is slightly different in that
training will be offered to assist technicians to qualify, in much the
same way as an apprentice-ship program. There will be a cost
associated with this program that technicians are not presently
paying. These are registration fees for A.S.T.T. and possible future
fees for registration of inspection results. This should be
outweighed by creating a level playing field whereby all technicians
must meet the same competency standards and perform their tasks in a
like manner accountable to the City, the public and their association.
PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS
No additional staff will be required to implement this program of
certifying Inspection and Testing Technicians. Information will be
available and easily accessible for Fire Inspectors to determine
whether fire safety equipment inspection and testing was performed by
a qualified person.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The proposed program will not have any effect on City resources. A
future report to Council on a method to track the results of the
Inspection/Testing Program may require resources; however, these costs
would be offset by fees.
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
A public meeting was held on November 30, 1994, to advise Industry of
the proposed program and to solicit input. Close to 100 people
attended and expressed their concerns. Sub-committees were formed
from volunteers after this meeting. A second public meeting was held
on June 28, 1995, to inform interested people of the status of the
program.
Once the program is approved, it will be publicized for all who will
be affected. Direct mailouts to Service Companies and Businesses
affected will occur.
* * * * *
APPENDIX A
MAINTENANCE OF FIRE PROTECTION EQUIPMENT
[add]
6.1.1.2.(1) No service agency shall test, inspect or provide
maintenance to fire safety equipment and commercial
kitchen equipment including fire alarms, fire
extinguishers, sprinklers, standpipe, fire pump, smoke
control equipment, emergency power and lighting,
kitchen exhaust systems without the approval of the
Fire Chief.
reason to add authority in the bylaw to regulate service
agencies (see definition of Service Agencies).
[amend]
6.1.1.2.(2) Maintenance. Fire protection installations shall be
maintained in good operating condition.
reason to add measures of acceptance of operating
condition.
[add]
6.1.1.2.(3) The fire safety equipment and commercial kitchen
equipment shall be labelled in a manner acceptable to
the Fire Chief.
reason to standardize the type of records used to show fire
protection equipment has been inspected and tested.
VFBL PROPOSED CHANGE - DEFINITIONS
Service Agency means a person or company who is acceptable to the Fire
Chief to provide testing, inspection and maintenance
service for fire safety installations and equipment.
* * * * *