The Typology of Volunteer Departments
Last year, I had an interesting conversation with FIRE CHIEF columnist Chief Ron Coleman about building volunteer fire stations. Coleman had just completed a consulting project to determine the minimum a volunteer department would need to effectively and safely operate for volunteer departments in northern California.
In addition to his consulting, Coleman is also with California’s Statewide Training Advisory Committee and has an obligation to make sure their training programs are adequate. Over the last five years, Coleman has either visited or been engaged with chief officers from more than 500 volunteer fire departments. He has visited fire stations made of everything from bales of hay to pole barns to high-tech facilities.
Coleman and Rick Tripp, AIA, NCARB, have developed a program for the 2009 Station Style pre-conference program specifically for volunteer fire departments and departments on tight budgets.
Tripp, a principal with MSA, has a great deal of experience working with fire departments that transitioned from part time to full time.
“Our firm has worked with over 25 departments assisting them with strategic planning and implementing a facilities master plan,” said Tripp. “From our experience, this involves a strategic approach towards staffing/manpower, response times/ number of calls for service, station locations etc and finally an approach towards funding these operations.”
Coleman and Tripp’s presentation will help fire departments identify their service needs and how these needs can be accommodated with a process they call the “Typology of Volunteer Departments.” This typology or standardization process will assist the volunteer department in understanding how to approach the building design process and how the building can be used to enhance a department’s services to a community.
A new standardization process will also be discussed within the larger context on how a national program is being developed to assist volunteer departments design and construct buildings complying with local governing requirements. The process is designed to assist local communities to consider grant programs for their facility needs.
Don’t miss Coleman and Tripp at the 2009 Station Style Conference, Sunday, May 3. www.firechief.com/stationstyleconference.conferenceregistration
March 26th, 2009 at 12:19 am
As a rural fire chief, I’d love to see what they have developed.
Here’s the problem, if you have trouble keeping the lights on, how can we afford to go to the 2009 Station Style conference…..so what are we suppose to do????????????
May 10th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
I BOUGHT MY OWN FIRE TRUCK FOR MY PROCTION THE FIRE DEPT UP THE ROAD IS SO SLOW AND SOME TIMES DON’T EVEN MOVE BECAUSE NO ONE SHOW UP FOR AN ALARM
I’VE SEEN TIME WHERE THEY WERE TEN MINUTES WENT BY BECAUSE THEY COULDN’T SEE WHO WAS GOING TO GO ALSO ON MEDICALS THEY SOME TIMES DON’T EVEN AFTER 3 TONS GET ANY ONE TO HELP I HAVE GIVEN MY LAST VOTE AND DIME TO THEM AND URGE OTHERS TO DO THE SAME. WE PAY FOR FIRE PROTECTION AND GET POLITICS INSTEAD THERE GOOD AT STARTING FIRES BUT CAN PUT ONE OUT. PEOPLE THAT ARE FIREFIGHTER SHOULD KNOW WHAT THERE GETTING INTO SO DON’T CRY WOLF WHEN IT DOESN’T GO YOUR WAY.
YOU CAN SEND THIS TO THE FIRE CHIEF AT STAYTON OR. IF YOU WANT BUT I’VE HAD IT WITH THERE POLITICS
LOYD FERY
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