NH'S STATE HOUSE FIRST IN NATION WITH ELECTRONICALLY MONITORED FIRE EXTINGUISHERS

The State of New Hampshire General Court and SimplexGrinnell of Nashua, NH today announced that all 46 fire extinguishers in the New Hampshire State House complex in Concord were upgraded with en-Gauge electronically monitored fire extinguishers.

The New Hampshire State House is the first State House in the nation to install these state-of-the-art technology safety devices. SimplexGrinnell along with its partners, en-Gauge, Inc., Ansul, Pacom and Inovonics donated the extinguisher monitoring platform to the State of New Hampshire – a value of more than $20,000.

State Rep. Daniel Eaton (D-Stoddard), a member of the Legislative Facilities Committee, said the en-Gauge extinguishers are the latest in the line of post-9/11 facility safety improvements made to the State House, the Legislative Office Building and the Upham-Walker House.

"All three of these buildings are quite historic and protecting their integrity is an important matter to us," Rep. Eaton said. "These new monitored extinguishers will help prevent vandalism, theft and general misuse of our fire extinguishers," he continued, adding they make the buildings safer and more secure places.

Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-Exeter) said, "We are very appreciative of this generous gift that will improve the safety of the employees and public who use these historic buildings. This act is a great example of the public private partnership that distinguishes New Hampshire."

New Hampshire State Fire Marshal J. William Degnan said accepting the en-Gauge extinguishers was an easy decision, "It's simple, we now have confidence that our fire extinguishers are available and ready to go in an emergency." Degnan noted that fire extinguishers are a "first aid device" that can help keep fires small; and are an important component of protection for the State House complex.

en-Gauge provides the only building safety fire extinguisher monitoring system device that lowers maintenance costs and reduces the likelihood of costly and tragic fires. That's because en-Gauge's patented system instantly and wirelessly alerts

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NH State House gets en-Gauge extinguishers, May 21, 2009, p.2

building management the moment a fire extinguisher has been removed, becomes obstructed or loses operating pressure. The en-Gauge system seamlessly integrates with other real-time intelligent safety and security systems to help avoid dangerous and expensive surprises. The New Hampshire State House is among a number of buildings including airports, educational institutions and hospitality, penal and healthcare facilities across the United States with these advanced fire safety systems.

Ron Brassard, Director of Suppression, for SimplexGrinnell in Nashua said making the donation to the State House made good business and community sense for a number of reasons. "First, en-Gauge is an excellent and proven safety technology that can help prevent emergencies. Second," said Brassard, "we were in search of a local site to train our staff and demonstrate the technology. The State House complex made logical sense because we can show the benefits of en-Gauge to new customers while supporting the fire community and contributing to the safety of these valuable historic public buildings."

The technology to electronically monitor fire extinguishers is fully recognized by the 2007 editions of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes NFPA-10 and NFPA-72, and the 2006 International Fire Code as an alternative to the requirement for monthly physical inspections of fire extinguishers. It is also listed with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Manufactured by en-Gauge, Inc. of Rockland, MA, the technology, which is installed on Ansul fire extinguishers, is powered by Pacom Systems monitoring and Inovonics for wireless monitoring.

Degnan noted the State House has, over the years, become an icon representing New Hampshire; therefore they have become even more diligent in protecting the building complex. He also pointed out that New Hampshire's is only one of a handful of State Houses across the nation that remains completely open to the public. Degnan said Simplex Grinnell's donation helps with both causes. "These en-Gauge fire extinguishers help us enhance safety and security while keeping the freedoms we have here in New Hampshire."

For more information please visit http://www.engaugeinc.net .