A bright future for CFA's fire equipment maintenance work

By supplying and servicing fire protection equipment, CFA brigades are providing fire safety services that reduce risk and boost the safety of our communities.

More than 260 brigades participate in FEM, which includes maintaining fire extinguishers, fire blankets, layflat hose, fire hose reels and fire safety training for more 24,000 customers across the state. This includes small businesses, local councils, state government agencies, water authorities, schools, aged care and other healthcare facilities.

These interactions with local businesses are also opportunities to develop meaningful relationships where fire safety messaging is welcomed.

CFA will soon be launching new technology which will modernise FEM operations and reduce the administrative workload on volunteers. We will also ask FEM brigades for their ideas about how we can build on the services we already provide to further enhance fire safety in industry.

Funds raised through FEM work have helped brigades buy critical equipment such as branches, helmet torches, thermal imaging cameras, breathing apparatus sets and specialist tools. Over the past five years, 70 field command vehicles have been funded through FEM work, plus the Scoresby Hose Layer and light tankers.

We’ve recently rolled out an updated FEM manual, moving away from hard copy documents in favour of digital versions. The FEM manual, for example, is available on USB and SharePoint (accessible via Members Online). To complemnet this change, we’ve created an FEM Servicing Field Guide to support our members' existing knowledge about field-based tasks.

We’re also working closely with CFA`s digital training team to modernise the FEM qualification and skills maintenance courses and expect to see big changes to improve support for volunteers over the coming six to 12 months.

To find out more or to become involved in FEM, go to Members Online or phone 1300 36 36 61.