SFPE Greater Atlanta Chapter 7th Annual Fire Safety Conference Will be Held on March 14-16, 2011

The Greater Atlanta Chapter of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) is hosting their 7th Annual Fire Safety Conference. It will be held March 14-16, 2011. This event draws hundreds of fire safety professionals from around the country and even from Europe. The program has top-notch speakers and Atlanta is an easy plane trip from just about anywhere in the US.

If anyone is preparing for the PE exam, they have a two day PE prep class in conjunction with the conference. March is early enough that any attendee will be able to put the information to good use prior to the October exam.

To find out more go to https://sfpeatlanta.org/events_conference.htm.

Call for Papers for the 2011 Society of Fire Protection Engineers Engineering Technology Conference

The Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) is now accepting abstracts for the educational presentations for its two-day Engineering Technology Conference that is part of the 2011 SFPE Annual Meeting. This conference highlights presentations on advanced and cutting-edge practices in fire protection engineering that are used to protect people, property and the environment from fire.

We invite you to share your knowledge with your peers in the advances in fire protection engineering as a presenter on October 24-25, 2011 in Portland, Oregon, USA. Presentations should be noncommercial in nature with no specific brand names being mentioned. The program committee will review all abstracts. Selections will be made based on quality, relevance, focus, practical application, and timeliness.

Deadline for submission is March 31, 2011. Click here for Guidelines for submission.

Two new publications available from the Society of Fire Protection Engineers

SFPE has just completed the Engineering Guide to Substantiating a Fire Model for a Given Application and the fourth edition of the Fire Alarm Signaling Systems Handbook.

The Engineering Guide to Substantiating a Fire Model for a Given Application provides a framework for determining and documenting the suitability of a fire model for use in a specific application. The framework in the guide is applicable to all types of fire models, ranging from algebraic calculations to zone or lumped parameter models to CFD or field models.

The guide addresses:
• Definition of the problem that is intended to be solved using modeling
• Selection of a candidate model
• Model verification and validation
• Uncertainty analysis

The price is $58 for SFPE members or $161 for non-members (in the US) and $63.70 for members or $201.15 for non-members outside the U.S. (Soft cover, approx. 70 pages)

The fourth edition of the Fire Alarm Signaling Systems Handbook was updated to reflect the many changes in the design of fire alarm systems that have occurred over the last seven years. New chapters have been added on mass notification, communications strategies and on fire department interfaces. As with the last edition, the fourth edition was written by Wayne Moore, P.E., FSFPE and Richard Bukowski, P.E., FSFPE.

Fire Alarm Signaling Systems also provides information on how to:
• Establish fire protection goals, match the fire alarm system to the goals, and know system limitations
• Effectively design a mass notification system
• Weigh the benefits of prescriptive versus performance-based design approaches
• Maintain quality control during installations
• Analyze and improve intelligibility of voice communication systems
• Understand the elements and importance of a well-designed fire service interface

Get up-to-speed on plans review, acceptance testing, and commissioning...the latest testing schedules...and methods for cost analysis. Fire Alarm Signaling Systems is an indispensable tool for installers, designers, engineers, maintainers, and inspectors, as well as an excellent training text. (Hardbound, Approx. 480 pp., 2010)

The price is $107.95 for members or $118.95 for non-members, including shipping. Contact SFPE Headquarters for shipping prices to addresses outside the U.S.

Orders can be placed by downloading an order form from see http://www.sfpe.org/upload/publications_order_form.pdf.

January 15, 2011 Deadline for SFPE Fellow Nominations

Fellow is the highest grade of membership in SFPE.

To be eligible to be come a Fellow, individuals must have been a professional member (previously known as "Member" grade) for at least 10 years, have a record of significant accomplishments and stature in fire protection engineering.

Elevation to the grade of Fellow requires nomination by at least five Fellows or Professional Members, review by the SFPE Honors Committee, and action by the SFPE Board of Directors.

To be considered this year, nominations must be received by January 15, 2011.

If you are interested in nominating a Fellow and need additional information go to: http://www.sfpe.org/Membership/Levels.aspx

Deborah Boice Takes Office as President of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers for 2011

Deborah Boice, P.E. takes office as President of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) for 2011. Boice is a Senior Vice President, Western Portfolio Leader with Swiss Re 's Corporate Solutions team.

Boice who is SFPE’s first female president has served on the Society’s Board of Directors since 2002 and is an SFPE Fellow. SFPE Fellows represent a distinguished group of members who have attained significant stature and accomplishment in engineering.

“Over her 24 year career at Swiss Re Boice has made significant contributions to the profession of fire protection engineering by advancing the science and technology that makes people and property safe from fire,” said SFPE Engineering Program Manager Chris Jelenewicz.

At Swiss Re she is responsible for the property insurance sales management in the Western United States. Since 2003, her focus has been on providing expert underwriting for the region’s insurance customers.

Boice holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and earned a Masters of Business Administration from California State University, Fullerton. She is a Licensed Fire Protection Engineer in the State of California.