firetrain

Regarding System Maintenance

Thu, 31 Aug 2023 11:09:03 GMT

Five Year Maintenance & Check Up

Dear Customer:

We expect our System 203 lining systems to last at least twenty-years. NFPA mandates that live fire training structures be inspected every five years by a structural engineer specializing in live fire training structures. Because our lining systems typically cover most of the structural elements in a burn building, preventing the inspecting engineer from conducting a thorough visual inspection; and because the engineers do not thoroughly inspect our lining system, it is important to have HTL complete a maintenance on our systems at the same time the engineer performs their inspection.

Two maintenance cycles should ensure that you attain the expected twenty-year lining-life. The total cost for both maintenance services is typically only about 5% to 10% of the initial cost of the installation.

Our services include a thorough evaluation and maintenance of the lining system. We remove and replace inspection tiles to facilitate the engineer’s inspection. We go through the system, looking for damage from normal wear and tear, and possible damage from water migrating behind the systems. We replace bolt hole mortar as needed, tighten the system and replace damaged refractory cast-in-place packing and/or curbs. We may also make comments and/or recommendations with respect to the overall structure if we observe deficiencies.

Since our systems are lasting longer than even we projected, we feel it is incumbent upon HTL and yourself to take proactive steps to confirm that your training structure is safe, sound, and capable of providing continued service throughout the life of the lining. We hope you agree that this is a logical and prudent approach.

We make every effort to coordinate with your schedules to avoid disruptions to training.

Please let us know if you require a proposal or contact us to let us know how your structure and our lining system are performing. Thanks for your time and safe training.

Bill/William E. Glover

Regarding Warranties

Mon, 16 Sep 2019 15:02:07 GMT

Regarding Warranties

First, understand that every thermal lining system on the market is susceptible to damage and replacement. Every system needs to be routinely inspected and maintained; not only as a practical component of a reasonable standard of care, but also as a requirement mandated by NFPA’s 1403 Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions, Chapter 7.

Though System 203 is also imperfect, HTL has achieved our initial goal of producing a thermal lining system that will last well over twenty years without replacement. We have several twenty year plus systems that are still in service for large municipal fire departments; and many more that are over fifteen years old. This is a track record that is hard to match. We are so confident that we list every completed project with contact information on this website. We are unaware of another company that does the same.

Nevertheless, our competition is very good at making promises. One of our competitors came out with a new composite lining system about ten years ago. They offered a dandy fifteen year warranty to attract new business. Turns out the warranty only covered the insulation behind the protective shield which proved not to be so protective. Today, another competitor says they also have a fifteen year warranty. But the actual warranty doesn’t cover labor, and only covers 100% of the material cost for five years as long as other conditional provisions are met. After that, your cost for materials is prorated.

HTL offers a five year warranty. Labor and materials. Five years. We also have conditions, but basically we cover our full system for five years. But really, who cares? We almost never get called. And frankly, we have been known to repair systems that are older than five years if we feel we made a mistake. The bottom line is that our customers can realistically expect our lining systems to last twenty years or more. That was our goal in the beginning, and we can honestly say we are generally meeting or exceeding that goal. So if you’re looking for a proven history of performance, try us out. If you’re looking for empty promises, you’ve come to the wrong place.

Just ask our customers!

Live Fire Training

White is Not Right

WCAdmin@marketamerica.com (Market America WebCenters) — Mon, 16 Sep 2019 14:54:56 GMT

Ask yourself a simple question. "Are my burn rooms white? Or black ?"

If the answer is white, you need to ask yourself a much more critical question. "Are we burning too hot?" My guess is the honest answer will be yes.

And when your honest answer is yes, ask one more question. "Why?"

That is the most basic "black and white" question. Why are you burning so hot? What, exactly, is the point? Because I can almost guaranty that you are damaging gear and quite possibly, subjecting your recruits and, perhaps more critically, your stokers to unrealistic conditions that they should frankly never encounter on a real fire ground. If such conditions developed on the ground, say in a residence, the structure would undoubtedly be compromised, and the firefighter should have already evacuated.

Remember, I don't care how hard you try, you will not burn down one of our live fire training structures. But I can also guaranty that you can create environments that are critically damaging to your gear and yourselves. And it simply isn't necessary.

Two items that should be of interest to all fire training instructors:

The new 2012 NFPA 1403 Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions includes important requirements and procedures for documenting and controlling fuel loads and burn room conditions.
Secondly, NFPA, in cooperation with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, have sponsored a webinar reporting the conclusions of a study into The Hazard Assessment of Fire Service Training Fires .

We encourage you to promote the spirit of both resources as you offer the best and safest training.