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Why don't we copy the French Fire Helmet Designs?
One of the coolest things I have ever received in the mail, ever... arrived at my house a couple of days ago. It was from one of the friends I made here on the FFN, and he is from France, where he works as a professional firefighter. Like many firefighters, we both like fire service related things and are involved with trading things back and forth. What amazed me however, was the functional design that I saw first hand.
Up to this point, I have only seen photographs of french firefighters wearing a very unfamiliar fire helmet style. To be honest, I blew off the design because they just did not look like fire helmets. After having the chance to actually wear one, I offer the following insight for those, like myself, who never have had the chance to see what our brothers and sisters across the Atlantic wear for head and face protection.
The world just keeps getting smaller... I invite everyone to take the time to get to know others around the world with the spirit of sharing and providing the most up to date training and response information available. We are not alone, we have each other.
Prenez garde à rester en sécurité, (TCSS)
CBz
The Casque Pompier (Fire Helmet):
Built in Safety Goggles:
Fire Helmet Protective Visor / Heat Shield:
View Through Fire Helmet Protective Visor / Heat Shield:
Fire Helmet Heat Shield:
05-25-2010 Update: I made direct contact today with MSA and spoke with one of two sales reps that have knowledge of the French Gallet F1-SF Firefighter Helmet. Here's what I learned:
• These "French" fire helmets are manufactured by MSA, which is 100% USA owned and is based internationally out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
• MSA bought out the french company Gallet 7-8 years ago, which included this helmet design and manufacturing rights.
• Existing USA style fire helmets are rated to no more than 1500˚F, while this particular style is rated to 1800˚F. Why more? The same technology used by NASA for astronaut helmets visors are incorporated into this design. Both the helmet and face shield reflect the heat, keeping the interior of the helmet cool, with maximum interior helmet temperatures reaching around 95˚F.
• The existing F1-SF helmet does not meet NA standards as mentioned in one of the posts. However, there is such a demand now for this style that MSA is working on providing a NA approved helmet that has the same features but also possesses the necessary impact standards.
• What we are looking at is a glimpse of what the 21st century firefighters are going to be wearing, internationally...
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Sandro Kwestro on
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I've just googled for the version they use for extrication over here. This will be the Gallet F2 version. So it also is a Gallet but not the F1 version.
Like I said the F1 version is in a lot of departments just used for firefighting.
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Permalink Reply by Andrew on
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What about hearing or feeling the environment? I am just an Explorer, but isn't there a lot to be said about actually hearing what is going on around you? And how about feeling the environment. I have read, if you can't feel the heat, your probability of getting in too far is greatly increased? Just some things I have heard older, wiser, more experienced guys say.
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Permalink Reply by Mike Schlags (Captain Busy) Retd on
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As if the built in helmet shroud over the nomex shroud you donn before your turnout jacket doesn't insulate your ears... Owning one of these helmets, I detected no reduction in hearing compared to what we currenty use. The old argument about feeling the heat was used against the nomes or aramid fiber hoods or shrouds. Guys used to say that they needed to be able to feel the heat on your ears. Cartilage melts at relatively low temperatures. Eventually the idiots who wanted their ears exposed to heat either went away or died, just like the ridiculous notions about feeling the heat.
CBz
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Permalink Reply by ffemt19 on
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And then i found this on the net:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNtRJE7sfHM&feature=player_embed...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we3UBsGEBgk
The Se-Wy-Co fire department (www.sewyco-fc.com) uses the European Rosenbauer Heros Extreme helmet. Maybe these guys can give some operationale input about how the helmet is in the real live of "american" firefighting.
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Permalink Reply by Ben Waller on
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What, no more human meat thermometers?
I prefer the earflap/flash hood simply because it's more flexible and more comfortable than the Euro helmets.
The older you get, the more important comfort is, remember? :-)
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HMT's... That's really funny.
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Permalink Reply by Jason Swint on
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I have a hard time with their claim that the internal temperature of the helmet would only be 95˚F, unless the person wearing it was dead. Being that body temperature is 98.6˚F, I would be willing to wager that the inside of the helmet (while actually being worn), would exceed that.
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Permalink Reply by Nenad on
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We used Rosenbauer Heros helmets for 14 years, wildland and urban interventions, without any problem.
From 2008. we use Rosenbauer Heros Extreme model and all I can say from my point of wiev, that some claims that european helmets are less good than american it is just a product of ignorance.
Some US FF who tried our helmets had only good critics.
There are none hearing troubles wearing those helmets. Although new helmets are heavy, 1.86 kg (4.1 lbs) with lamp, they are very comfortable and easy to adjust, easy to take off. The mask for SCBA can be used in conection with helmet or ''normaly'', also there is a possibility to integrate radio com into the helmet.
One feature is that our helmets are fluorescent and very visible in dark and other low visibility conditions. And yes, some EU helmets meets NFPA demands.
http://www.1strespondernews.com/webpages/news/displaynews.aspx?PT=f...
http://www.rosenbauer.com/tools/cms_media.php?USER=61e599dade6e49bd...
http://www.jeffersonfire.com/Rosenbauer_helmet.htm
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One of the questions here is "What does the Euro helmet style protect you from that U.S. style helmets do not?
Impacts from the side are very rare in firefighting, so wearing a more restrictive helmet that protects from something that rarely or never happens is unnecessary.
Considering that the helmet is often worn for activities other than firefighting - particularly for extrication - where venting heat from the heat is important, the U.S. styles seem to be more efficient. Evaporative cooling is an important way to shed heat, and much of that heat loss occurs from the head. The Euro helmet designs block more of that heat loss than the U.S. helmets do.
If you work in a hot, humid climate as I do, the U.S. helmet styles are going to get the nod in the "less heat stress" column every time.
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Permalink Reply by Andy Turnham on
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As fascinating as this subject is, the bottom line is that no one is going to convince the majority of US firefighters to wear the Euro-Style fire helmet.
The critisisms levelled against them are all spurious, there is not a climatic or fire-ground condition in the whole of North America that does not occur elsewhere in the world where the Euro-style helmet is always the helmet of choice. Even Emerging and Third World countries choose them rather than the, much cheaper, "P#ss Pot" style helmets, maybe we should stop calling them Euro-Style and use World-Style instead.
Anyway, the reality is that US firefighters love their leather and none of us Euro-fans will change that any-time soon.
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