Consortia chosen to develop innovative fire-fighting suit
Four consortia comprised of European organisations have been selected by the smart@fire project to design a personal protection system for firefighters. The system will comprise information and communication technology that monitors environmental parameters, displays body vital signs, determines the position of fire-fighters and enables them to better assess situations they find themselves in. These capabilities will be integrated into the firefighters' protective clothing.
The selected consortia are: e-Bo and Seyntex; Texport, BHT Solutions, ICON, IOS International, and Omnisense; Applycon, Elitronic, Holik International, Vochoc, University of West Bohemia, and Dune; and Prevent & Deloza, Titera, Biotech Knowledge Center, Biotek Lab, and ITP. These organisations will be tasked with designing their solutions by 30 April 2015. The selection of the four consortia is based on the results of a series of market consultations, in which procurement officers and potential suppliers met to discuss the specifications and requirements of the products.
The next phase of the pre-commercial procurement will see the development of a working prototype, with a view to large scale production. Following the successful manufacture of the solution, the EU fire and rescue services will purchase the final product. The smart@fire project is financially supported by the European Commission.
For more information, visit the smart@fire website.