The 2009 SFPE Annual Meeting, Professional Development Conference and Exposition to Commence on Sunday, October 18, 2009

The 2009 Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) Annual Meeting, Professional Development Conference and Exposition will be held on October 18-23, 2009. This event will be held at the Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The following is the schedule of events:

Sunday, October 18

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. -- Senate Meeting featuring the Chapter Excellence Awards
3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. -- SFPE Annual Business Meeting featuring the Hat’s Off Award Presentations

Monday, October 19

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. -- SFPE Engineering Technology Conference
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. -- SFPE Awards and Honors Luncheon
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. -- SFPE Fellows Reception

Tuesday, October 20

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. -- SFPE Engineering Technology Conference
10:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. -- Exhibitor “Tech Talks”
12:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. -- SFPE 7th Annual Engineering Technology Exposition

National Fire Protection Association President and CEO to be Named Society of Fire Protection Engineers Person of the Year for 2009

At its Annual Awards Luncheon, the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) will recognize James M. Shannon as SFPE Person of the Year for 2009. Shannon is the president and CEO with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The Awards Luncheon will be held on Monday, October, 19, 2009 at the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The SFPE Person of the Year Award was created in 1973 to recognize significant achievement in fire protection. The award winner must come from beyond the membership of SFPE.

“Shannon has shown great leadership in the development of coalitions and initiatives that are focused on protecting people, property and the environment from fire,” said SFPE Engineering Program Manager Chris Jelenewicz.

Shannon organized the Coalition for Fire-Safe Cigarettes, which is a national group committed to saving lives and preventing injuries by reducing the threat of cigarette-ignited fires. As a result of their efforts 99.8% of the U.S population is now or soon will be better protected from cigarette fires.
He also established the Fire Sprinkler Initiative as a means to provide resources for the fire service and other sprinkler advocates who want to demonstrate the need for home fire sprinklers in their communities.

“These efforts, in addition to NFPA’s standards and education efforts have made
significant contribution to improving fire safety throughout the world,” said Jelenewicz.

Past SFPE Persons of the Year include: Movie & Television Star Dick Van Dyke, University of Maryland’s Dr. John L. Bryan, Former FDNY Fire Chief Daniel A. Nigro and former Director/Under Secretary for the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency R. David Paulison.

Rolf Jensen & Associates to Receive the Society of Fire Protection Engineers 2009 David A. Lucht Lamp of Knowledge Award

Rolf Jensen and Associates (RJA) will be awarded the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) David A. Lucht Lamp of Knowledge Award at its Annual Awards Luncheon on Monday, October, 19, 2009 at the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Lucht award honors an organization, company or individual that has contributed substantially to increasing the opportunities for higher education in fire protection engineering. The award is named for David A. Lucht in recognition of his 25 years of leadership and dedication to the Worcester Polytechnic Institute Center for Firesafety Studies and his tireless efforts on behalf of the fire protection engineering profession.

“Since 1985, RJA has been substantially contributing to increasing the opportunities for higher education in fire protection engineering by providing support for scholarships and the scientific laboratory facilities at the University of Maryland,” said Chris Jelenewicz, SFPE Engineering Program Manager. “Most recently, RJA has pledged $100,000 toward a state of the art fire sciences laboratory at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute.“

To find out more about the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition go to http://www.sfpe.org/Education/2009TheAnnualMeetingProfessionalDevelopmentConferenceandExpo.aspx.

Archibald Tewarson to Make Invited Guise Medal Lecture at the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition

Dr. Archibald Tewarson who is a research scientist with FM Global (FM) will be awarded the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) Arthur B. Guise Medal on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Arthur B. Guise Medal recognizes eminent achievement in the advancement of the science and technology of fire protection engineering and is named in memory of the achievements of Arthur Guise, who singularly developed dry chemicals for use as fire extinguishing agents.

"Tewarson has advanced the science of fire protection engineering through his studies on the flammability of materials and the development of measurement methods and
apparatus for generating engineering data on a wide range of materials,” said SFPE Engineering Program Manager Chris Jelenewicz.

Tewarson has been a research scientist with FM for over 40 years. He has published more than 140 papers on topics ranging from the flammability and smoke generation of plastics to fire safety in mines to the fire hazards of electrical cables to examining the fire properties of materials used in ships, aircraft and automobiles. One of his more popular publications is his chapter in the SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, “Generation of Heat and Gaseous, Liquid and Solid Products in Fires,” He has updated this chapter for each of the four editions of the handbook.

SFPE Chapters are Invited to Support the SFPE Educational & Scientific Foundation

The SFPE Annual Meeting and Professional Development Conference is approaching. Every year at the Annual Business Meeting, Chapters are invited to demon­strate their support for the SFPE Educational & Scientific Foundation (E&SF) by making a financial contribution.

The mission of the E&SF is, "To advance the science and practice of Fire Protection Engineering internationally, by advocating and supporting engineering research, technology transfer and education."

The Educational & Scientific Foundation serves to protect the heritage of the fire protection engineering profession and to enhance the legacy of our generation of fire protection engineers to future generations. The Foundation is currently involved in several projects that serve both the heritage and legacy of the profession.

If your Chapter plans to make a contribution to the Foundation at please contact Allan Freedman at SFPE Headquarters. Each Chapter that is making a contribution will present its donation at the SFPE Annual Business Meeting on Sunday, October 18, 2009 at 3 p.m. at the Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.

UL to Sponsor Symposium on Designing Fire Safety into Residential Construction

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and the Phoenix Fire Department are hosting a two-day educational symposium in Phoenix, AZ on December 2nd and 3rd, 2009. The symposium's goal is to share ideas and foster discussion among interested parties who want to learn more and share ideas about designing fire safety into residential buildings in North America.

Topics covered in this symposium include:

• Overview of today’s residential fire environment


• Benefits of lightweight construction materials within residential building designs


• Scientific fire research results of testing lightweight construction materials


• Protection methods for lightweight construction materials used in home building


• Smoke characterization research and advances in smoke alarm technology


• Fire resistant building materials: properties and benefits


• The experience of selling and installing residential sprinklers


• Industry comparisons of safety initiatives


• The realtors’ perspective on fire safety solutions in the home


• Perspective of builders on home fire safety


• Additional topics related to home fire safety, including insurance and fire prevention

To find out more go to http://www.uluniversity.us/catalog/display.resource.aspx?resourceid=228281.

Professor James A. Milke to Receive the SFPE John L. Bryan Mentoring Award

At its Annual Awards Luncheon, Professor James A. Milke will receive the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) John L. Bryan Mentoring Award. The SFPE Awards Luncheon will be held on October 19, 2009 during the SFPE Professional Development Conference and Exposition in Scottsdale, Arizona

The award is named after John L. Bryan who established the University of Maryland Department of Fire Protection Engineering and served as the as the Department Chair from its establishment in 1956 until his retirement in 1993. The award is given for recognition of commitment to mentoring that enhances the practice of fire protection engineering.

Milke, a faculty member of the University of Maryland Department of Fire Protection Engineering since 1977, currently serves as associate chair of the department, director of undergraduate studies, and co-director of the online Professional Master of Engineering Program. Since he began his teaching career at Maryland, more than 650 undergraduate students have graduated with degrees in Fire Protection Engineering.

“He is an outstanding teacher and a truly exceptional mentor and advisor for our undergraduate students, said Professor Marino di Marzo, Chair of the University Of Maryland Department Of Fire Protection Engineering. “I have heard expressions of esteem, gratitude and affection from countless alumni who see Jim as a major national and international reference point in our field.”

Milke’s research interests include smoke management and analyzing the response of materials exposed to fire conditions. His leadership and commitment to education in these areas has resulted in a chapter on smoke movement in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Handbook and a chapter on determining the fire resistance of steel in the Society of Fire Protection Engineering (SFPE) Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering. He also serves as a Vice President with SFPE.