Fire Department Awards Dayton, Ohio's - Lion Apparel a TotalCare Contract
DAYTON, Ohio/EWORLDWIRE/Aug. 1, 2006 --- The Chicago, Ill. Fire Department (CFD) awarded a $10 million TotalCare(R) contract for the supply and maintenance of firefighter protective clothing and equipment to Dayton, Ohio-based Lion Apparel. The contract will begin with an initial order of 4700 turnout coats and 9400 turnout pants and is expected to run through 2008.
The new turnouts, fully certified to National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 1971, replace aging gear in the field and help accumulate reserve inventory for CFD. Additionally, the contract provides for a comprehensive care program that helps CFD meet the requirements of NFPA 1851. Lion Apparel’s TotalCare portion of the contract includes scheduled cleanings, inspections, repairs and full accountability tracking of the equipment over the life of the contract.
CFD selected Lion Apparel after thorough consideration of offerings and competitive bids from multiple manufacturers. Evaluations included supplier care and maintenance capabilities in addition to site visits, overall cost and in-depth technical product assessments of comfort, fit and construction.
For the first time, turnout pants will be standard issue for this department that has a long-standing history of wearing long coats and three-quarter "day boots" for structural firefighting. "It's a huge step forward that is as important as the adoption of the self-contained breathing apparatus in the 1980s," 1st District Chief Jose Santiago said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune.
CFD selected Lion Apparel’s Janesville(R) Super Deluxe(TM) coats and pants featuring Lion’s exclusive isodri(R) protective system. Each layer is engineered to reduce water intake and heat storage capacity. "Chicago’s turnouts are designed for real safety and performance," said Mike Kucharski, Lion Apparel regional sales manager. "Firefighters are exposed to a lot of water from hose spray, rain and sweat. Added moisture in the system causes fire fighter stress, and as it heats up, can lead to burn injuries at temperatures well below steam conditions. isodri(R) components keep liquids out so that the gear stays lighter and drier to reduce fire fighter stress and burn injury potential."
Another first for CFD as well as the U.S. fire service is a vendor-supplied clean and repair commitment. First introduced by Lion Apparel in the U.K. in 1998, Lion TotalCare is the global standard for managed services for fire departments that want a turnkey risk management solution. Partnering with the department every step of the way, Lion TotalCare follows through program development, product assurance and program fulfillment. Lion Apparel will set up a Lion TotalCare Center in Chicago that will go live upon the delivery of CFD’s turnout gear in December 2006.
The second largest fire department in the United States, CFD employs approximately 4,000 career firefighters and 700 EMTs operating out of 99 stations in seven districts. The department provides greater Chicago with a full range of critical services such as fire suppression, medical and tactical rescues, hazardous materials response, building inspections, fire code enforcement and public education.
Lion Apparel Inc. is a 108-year-old, privately held global company based in Dayton, Ohio, USA. Lion’s offices in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Germany, France and Australia serve the uniform and personal protective equipment (PPE) and logistics requirements of police and fire departments, civilian government agencies, emergency services and military organizations around the world. Each and every day, Lion fulfills the personal safety, readiness and identity needs of its customers worldwide.
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