Association News

Retired Fire Marshal Dedicated to Saving Lives After spending over 40 years in fire protection and life safety, retired Virginia Fire Marshal Ed Altizer can safely say that he has shaped the course of Virginia’s fire safety landscape. From his beginnings as a field engineer to his two decades as state fire marshal, there …

I write this message on the Fourth of July weekend and contemplate leadership. When our association was founded in 1981 we did so as a group of open shop contractors whose business needs and demands were not being addressed. Our founders felt compelled to figure out a way to give open shop …

The nation’s largest fire sprinkler industry group, the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA), is pleased to announce the growth of its Membership Department with the hiring of Bradley Elliott as director of member services, further bolstering the organization’s commitment to its membership experience. As director of member services for AFSA, …

Retired State Fire Marshal Receives Fire Sprinklers Save Lives Award On Tuesday, April 5, Charles E. Altizer (Ed), P.E., C.B.O., C.F.O., retired state fire marshal of the State of Virginia, received the “Fire Sprinklers Save Lives Award” from the Virginia Chapter of the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA). He was …

Utilize This Free Service to Save Time and Money Have you ever had a technical question that you just couldn’t seem to answer? Found yourself wondering who was in the right when you disagreed with an Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) or design team? As a member of the American Fire …

AFSA Announces Next Gen Initiative With SkillsUSA One of the greatest challenges our industry faces today is the sustainability of our workforce. As more and more of our experienced employees are retiring, contractors and suppliers across all regions are struggling to find quality young tradesmen, drafters, project managers, estimators, salesmen and …

Despite widely varying projections for growth of the economy and the dramatic ups and downs in the stock market, 2015 became the year we could say “we’re back” from the Great Recession. We are seeing much greater optimism among contractors and suppliers. The American Fire Sprinkler Association’s (AFSA) year-end numbers …

Celebrate AFSA’s 35th Annual Convention & Exhibition It’s a big anniversary for the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA): the 35th Annual Convention & Exhibition! To be held in Nashville, Tennessee,  “A Grand Ole Opportunity: AFSA in Nashville,” will be housed in the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center September 14-17. This …

Of all the roles the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA) has, one of the least appreciated is our role in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards process. The process that NFPA uses is designed to be very egalitarian and to give all the stakeholders in the fire protection community …

How Can AFSA Assist You? One of the many benefits of your AFSA membership is access to AFSA”s Technical Services Department and its archives of Informal Interpretations. Have you taken advantage of it? In 2015, members saved over $80,000 and 200 hours on jobs by putting AFSA’s Technical Services staff …