Integrated ICT Solutions for Smart Personal Protective Equipment for Fire Fighters and First Responders

Pre-commercial procurement

Smart@Fire aims at regrouping several EU-procurers (and other stakeholders) active in the area of ICT enabled Smart PPE to establish and execute an agreed PCP methodology taking into account the legal constraints and cultural differences of each participating country. The bundling of the demand on procurers „side will increase the capacity to invest in a workable prototype in the pre-commercial phase and will allow purchasing Smart PPE at a better price in the procurement phase.

Smart PPE

Smart@Fire project aims to stimulate the development of a new, previously not commercially available, mass-production feasible solution that can measure and monitor crucial information, both personal parameters (eg hearth rate, body temperature,…) and environmental parameters (concentration of gasses, positioning,..) in a 100% reliable way and that can communicate this information to an external control unit. It is clear that the domain of Smart PPE is already heavily researched. Smart@Fire will use the past experiences and results maximally via the interactions in the Innovation Platform. Moreover, it is complementary to previous projects by offering two novel aspects:
  • practical usability (durability, reliability, ergonomics, washability) of the developed solution
  • mass production feasibility. This aspect will be a crucial guiding requirement from the beginning

Approach:

Over the last three years IWT (the Agency for Innovation) has, as one of the first Member States, created a Knowledge Centre on PCP and developed a PCP- methodology in line with the EU procurement directives. Therefore, IWT took the lead of a consortium that wants to organise a joint PCP call for smart PPE. The pooled expertise in our project is unique and therefore will allow developing a best practise case that will bring the PCP research to a higher level. The outcome will be of significant added-value on how to implement PCP in practise and will be disseminated throughout Europe.

The three steps in the precommercial procurement process:

Impact of the project:

Within Smart@Fire, the broader societal challenge being tackled is the increased safety of first responders via the most advanced Smart PPE. The Smart@Fire consortium is looking to anticipate and reduce the consequences of risks for first responders in training and operational circumstances, resulting in less (deathly) injuries.

Role of Centexbel:

  • CENTEXBEL as notified body for fire fighter PPE will play a key role in the assessment of the proposed solutions. The solutions have to fulfil the specific PPE requirements (according to the relevant standards) which have to be tested and certified by a notified body.
  • CENTEXBEL as expert for smart PPE: within CTB there is a lot fo expertise available on smart textiles and smart PPE particularly. As such, CTB will be involved in the innovation platform and contribute to defining realistic requirements for the smart PPE.
  • CENTEXBEL as standardisation actor: CTB is involved in several CEN standardisation committees. It is chairing the CEN Technical Committee 248 – Work group 31 on ‘Standardisation of Smart textiles’. This expertise will also be put in the Smart@Fire to help develop solutions that fulfil the standardisation requirements and to help forward standardisation issues stemming from the development of smart PPE.

Target group:

Fire fighter brigades and public procurers

partners:

  1. (Coordinator) Agency for Innovation by Science & Technology IWT Belgium (Flanders)
  2. Federal Public Service Internal Affairs IBZ Belgium
  3. Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Authority GMFRS United Kingdom
  4. Nederlands Instituut Fysieke Veiligheid: Landelijke Faciliteit Rampenbestrijding LFR Netherlands
  5. Service Départementale D’Incendie et de Secours des Bouches du Rhône SDIS 13 France
  6. INNOVA Észak-Alföld Regional Development and Innovation Agency Nonprofit Ltd. INNOVA Hungary
  7. Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili del Fuoco CNVVF Italy
  8. Stadt Dortmund FDDO Germany
  9. European Apparel And Textile Confederation a.i.s.b.l Euratex Europe
  10. Centexbel Belgium
  11. Universiteit Gent UGent Belgium
  12. Addestino Addestino Belgium
Project website
Project funding:
European Commission Research & Innovation