From the editor - September 2018

It’s been a busy couple of months since our last issue and a lot of interesting developments have happened across the fire and security sectors. In relation to fire, associations from across the sector continue to respond and give feedback on Judith Hackitt’s review on fire safety and the building regulations. We have further comments on this topic from the Fire Sector Federation and the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association inside this magazine. 

The government has also conducted a consultation on the possibility of banning the use of combustible materials in buildings and we now await the results. It has also published a response to the Review of the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 consultation as well as raising concerns over the performance of a number of fire doors. 

The Scottish government is now aconsidering recommendations made by an independent review on fire safety regulations. In addition, one fire and rescue service has now determined that it will no longer respond to alarm calls unless it’s proven to not be a false alarm. 

Inside this issue of FSM, we focus on three key themes: enforcement, loss prevention and educational premises. We have a number of articles that address key fire safety issues and security concerns in relation to schools and university premises. 

The evolving nature of crime is still proving a challenge for the security sector and for authorities. It has been revealed that terrorism-related arrests have increased by 17 percent this year and the Office for National Statistics released new figures, which show people are more likely to fall victim to fraud or cyber offences above any other crime.

With that in mind, we have two detailed articles in our security section that tackle the emerging risks of cyber crime and the increasing capability of criminals. Ben Ledoux is a security expert at a leading US university and he shares key advice on how to protect yourself and your organisation from cyber attacks. Lee Wallace provides an insurer’s perspective on physical security that needs to be considered in commercial premises. 

Fire Safety Scotland

Fire Safety Scotland returns to SEC Glasgow on 12-13 September with more than 125 exhibitors and 2,000 delegates expected to attend Scotland’s only dedicate fire safety exhibition. Once again, we have more than 30 hours of CPD accredited content on offer, which includes sessions on submissions to the Grenfell tower inquiry, responses to the independent review on fire safety, fire safety order mock trial, protecting tall buildings, preventing major fires in hazardous environments and much more.

You can see an extensive preview of Fire Safety Scotland inside this issue of FSM and I hope to see many of you there. It’s FREE to attend so please do register now at www.firesafetyevents.com/scotland

I also hope to see many of you at Security Essen in Dusseldorf on 25-28 September. The event is the largest security event in Europe and also has an impressive fire safety exhibition. You can see full details of the event inside this issue.

Sadly, this is the last issue of FSM that we will have Keith Gabriel acting as sales manager. Keith and I joined WBE to launch the Fire Safety Events and FSM magazine together. Many of you will pretty much know of us as a double act. It has been a privilege to work with Keith and I’m really proud of what we have achieved together. Keith is leaving the world of media to be part of a new business venture and I hope you’ll all join me in wishing him all the best. He will be sorely missed, and I will personally miss working with my friend.

But I’m still as excited as ever about the future of FSM and the Fire Safety Events. We’ve just increased the circulation from 8,000 to 11,000 and each Fire Safety Event continues to attract more and more delegates. We will be having our second webinar on 1 October, which will be delivered by C-Tec’s Andy Green who places Stay Put policies under the spotlight and explains key things that need to be in place to ensure that this practice works as planned. You can register to attend this FREE webinar at https://events.streamgo.co.uk/fsm-hsm-To-Stay-Put-or-Not-to-Stay-Put/

FSM returns next month with focuses on passive fire protection, safeguarding waste management facilities and connective security.