Road shows highlight Edwards fire products

FARMINGTON, Conn.—Edwards, a leading fire detection and alarm business with a reputation for quality products and technology innovations, is taking its latest fire and safety products on the road this fall.

The shows are the first big public event for Edwards since UTC Fire & Security earlier this year introduced Edwards, which has more than a century of industry expertise, as the company name for its fire detection and alarm business.

Through the road shows, said Kevin Barley, global director of sales and marketing for Edwards, “the larger fire protection community is now getting to see the Edwards name, the resurrected identity, and all the products and offerings that we have.”

UTCFS, a unit of United Technologies Corp., announced in May that it was bringing back the historic Edwards name, which dates back to 1872. UTCFS said then that it was the right time because it had recently invested a significant amount in developing a broad portfolio of products with the solid engineering and quality design for which Edwards is known.

Now those products are being showcased this fall.

“Our goal with the Road Shows is to educate, engage and inspire,” said Antonio Cintra, Edwards president, in a statement. “This is the first series of seminars we've undertaken since the Vigilant, EST and Edwards product lines became part of UTC Fire & Security. We have a lot to highlight, including an extended product offering of air sampling and signaling products, a new Vigilant panel, and a showcase of our Edwards detection and alarm products.”

Barley said that Edwards products stand out because they're ideal for buildings being renovated, a growing market for fire alarm systems in the economic recession. “Our products are very, very well suited to the retrofit market,” Barley said. “Regardless of what system is currently installed we can actually go in and reuse all the existing wiring and just install a new panel and then new devices.”

Also, he said, many of the products being shown at the road shows “are going to make a dealer's or installer's life much simpler.”

For example, he said, on a new fire alarm platform there are diagnostics that allow installers to go online to troubleshoot. Diagnosing a problem online can eliminate the need for a service call or indicate what parts should be brought along if a truck needs to go out, Barley said.

Also, he said, installers will be able to deal with groundfault issues more effectively. He said the diagnostics on these new fire alarm systems will be able to help them identify and solve problems in minutes or hours instead of days.

The road shows started off in September with events in Orlando and Atlanta, and then moved to Philadelphia for an event running from Oct. 5-7.

Barley said hundreds of people have been attending so far to see the products and take advantage of the education available. He said the second day of each show is geared especially to dealers and installers, with topics discussed including “how to grow their business and what things we're doing to help them be more profitable.”

The shows will also be in the following locations on the following dates: New York, October 12-14; Cincinnati, October 19-21; Chicago, October 26-28; Seattle, November 2-4; Los Angeles, November 9-11; and San Francisco, November 16-18. The road shows will wrap up in Dallas, December 7-9.

To register, go to www.edwardsroadshow.com.