News

November 30, 2009

SAFARILAND Re-launches PROTECH Tactical Web site

JACKSONVILLE, Florida – Safariland™, a BAE Systems line of business, announced today that it has re-launched the Web site for its PROTECH® Tactical product line. The Web site, www.protechtactical.com, features the full line of products; including an expanded line of ballistic shields, helmets, hard armor rifle plates, IMPAC™ special threat plates, and Tactical body armor products and accessories.

The site features a completely updated look and feel, updated product display and informational sections, including a body armor selection guide, body armor threat identification guide, product use and care instructions, warranty information, and much more. Plus, 360-degree views of all tactical vests and shields are featured, as well as highlights of the latest in ballistic protection solutions for SWAT operators, first responders, and for government, security and military applications.  

“The re-launch of our PROTECH Tactical Web site reinforces our commitment to being a total armor solutions provider,” explains Dan McNeil, Director, Category Marketing, Tactical Armor. “Our Web site offers product demonstration videos and technical information on our tactical products, and gets the information into the hands of our customers much more quickly and effectively.”

For more information about Safariland’s line of PROTECH Tactical products, please visit www.protechtactical.com .

Safariland, LLC is a premier provider of law enforcement and security products and services, delivering a full-range of customer-specific solutions. Offering many of the world’s most recognizable branded products in the public safety market, Safariland is committed to saving lives. For more information about Safariland, please visit www.safariland.com .

About BAE Systems

BAE Systems is the premier global defense, security and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £18.5 billion (US $34.4 billion) in 2008.

For further information, please contact:

Marsha S. Mathias

Manager, Communications

Safariland Tel: +1 904 807 4951
Marsha.mathias@baesystems.com

APCO INSTITUTE PRESENTS NEW TRAINING ON PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNICATIONS STAFFING AND EMPLOYEE RETENTION 

November 2, 2009, Daytona Beach, Fla. - APCO Institute today announced the release of its new course, Public Safety Communications Staffing and Employee Retention.  This course is designed to provide guidance and information to public safety communications center employees at every level. 

Earlier in 2009, the Next Generation of APCO Project RETAINS announced that turnover rates for public safety communications centers in the U.S. reached 19 percent.  This increase of three percent since 2005 reflected a higher turnover rate than in the teaching and nursing industries – both highly publicized staffing crises.

“The public safety communications industry has long suffered from an inability to effectively recruit and maintain employees,” APCO International Executive Director George Rice said.  “As a result, communications centers across the country must invest millions of dollars in continuous recruitment, training of new hires and overtime, merely addressing the symptoms of the issue and not the core problem.”

This eight hour course includes over 300 tips, guidelines and effective practices on a variety of subjects ranging from creating effective shift schedules to candidate recruitment and from maintaining staff to employee recognition.

The first three-week course will be held online on December 2 and will be available for a one-day live class on January 15, 2010. 

For more information on the Public Safety Communications Staffing and Employee Retention course visit www.apcoinstitute.org.

Outgoing LAPD Chief Says Federal Immigration Reform Will Make “Every American Neighborhood Much Safer”

Chief Bratton Urges Successor to Continue LAPD’s Policy of Community Engagement

Sacramento, CA — Oct.27,2009. on the eve of his retirement from the Los Angeles Police Department, Chief William J. Bratton took to the pages of the Los Angeles Times to urge that the LAPD continue to “Fight Crime, Not Illegal Immigration.” In the column, which can be read here, he states that “criminals are the biggest benefactors when immigrants fear the police,” concluding that the best way to optimize public safety is to enact comprehensive immigration reform. 

Chief Bratton has served in law enforcement for 39 years, and served as police commissioner in Boston and New York City before coming to Los Angeles.  He oversaw a historic drop in crime during his six years at the helm of the LAPD.

According to Arturo Venegas, former chief of the Sacramento Police Department and Project Director of the Law Enforcement Engagement Initiative, “Chief Bratton has shown tremendous courage in maintaining his policies in the face of political pressure, and the City of Los Angeles is safer as a result. We join Chief Bratton in encouraging his successor to continue his efforts, and we second his call to the federal government to pass comprehensive immigration reform that will improve public safety and police effectiveness.”

For more information about the Law Enforcement Engagement Initiative, please visit http://www.leei.us.

Forensics Source Lightning Powder Now Available in an Aerosol Spray

JACKSONVILLE, Florida Oct.27,2009 – Safariland™, a BAE Systems line of business, announces that its Lightning Powder® is now available in a convenient aerosol spray.  Lightning Spray™ Aerosol Fingerprint Powder is the latest innovation in forensic latent fingerprinting technology, and is offered by Forensics Source™, Safariland’s full range collection of forensics products.

Lightning Spray Powder provides a controlled, consistent application of powder to the suspected print area. There is less waste than the traditional method of using powder and brushes. The spray powder can also be applied to a wide variety of surfaces, including vertical and overhead areas where conventional dusting methods do not work. It is also the cleanest way to apply powder when used in conjunction with Lightning Spray’s proprietary disposable spray tents that limit powder residue to a confined area.

Lightning Spray Aerosol Fingerprint Powder is available in convenient two-ounce cans that contain up to 300 sprays. The MSRP is $21.95. It is also offered in a variety of individual and kit configurations to meet users’ needs. Current powder offerings include the most popular Lightning Powders in black, white, silver/gray and RedWop™.

“Until now, the only method available for fingerprinting was applying powder with a variety of brushes,” said Eric Schellhorn, Director, Category Marketing, Investigation & Examination. “This spray makes it much easier for law enforcement personnel to successfully and economically lift clean prints.”

For more information about the Lightning Spray Power or other products, visit www.forensicssource.com.   

The Lightning Spray™ Aerosol Fingerprint Powder, offered by Forensics Source™, Safariland’s full range collection of forensics products.

Safariland, LLC is a premier provider of law enforcement and security products and services, delivering a full-range of customer-specific solutions. Offering many of the world’s most recognizable branded products in the public safety market, Safariland is committed to saving lives.

For more information about Safariland, please visit www.safariland.com.

For further information, please contact:
Marsha Mathias
Manager, Communications. Safariland
Tel: +1 904 807 4951

APCO-TRAINED COMMUNICATIONS CENTER OPENS IN MIDDLE EAST 

October 7, 2009, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia – APCO Institute celebrated the opening of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) on September 23.  The University includes Security Command and Control’s 911 Communications Center, staffed with APCO Institute-trained personnel and using APCO Institute support software, an all-inclusive program launched in April and administered by APCO Institute Adjunct Instructor Mark Boudreaux, director of Terrebonne 911 District in Louisiana. 

KAUST is an international, graduate-level research university dedicated to inspiring a new age of scientific achievement in the Kingdom that will also benefit the region and the world.  Its core campus occupies more than 36 million square meters on the Red Sea and sits approximately 80 kilometers north of Saudi Arabia's second largest city, Jeddah. 

King Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud hosted the Inauguration Ceremony, which included 3,000 guests from over 64 countries and 20 universities from around the world.  During the ceremony, Security Command and Control’s 911 Communications Center staff performed the duties they learned over the past five months, taking 911 calls, dispatching emergency services and administering emergency medical dispatch (EMD).

“The duties of KAUST’s APCO trained and certified telecommunicators proceeded with perfection,” Boudreaux said.  “The months of APCO telecommunicator structured classroom training, followed by intense scenario simulations, proved to define a world changing moment.”