The Oronoco, MN fire department now has a STOP-FYRE™ unit on every truck. They now have a new tool in their arsenal to help people who are experiencing a fire in a hard-to-reach area (i.e. chimney, car engine, oven).
STOP-FYRE™ is quickly gaining ground with those who know the most about fire safety and what works to put out fires. The STOP-FYRE™ unit is being accepted as the highest-quality, hand-held portable fire extinguishing unit around.
Why? STOP-FYRE™ is a heat-attractant gas. As such, it can be sprayed into grates, vents, and other small openings and work successfully with much less fire damage and mess.
This is one of those rare win/win/win/win situations. Who wins?
The fire department wins. They are able to save people and belongings and contain or put out the fire.
The citizen wins. The fire is put out quickly and more cleanly so that they lose fewer valuables in the fire.
The insurance company wins. Because there is less mess to clean up and less damage to repair they pay out less in claims, which keeps consumer insurance rates down.
AKE Safety Equipment wins. The company is able to build their reputation - high quality product and fire safety experts - and help others.
We hope this is the beginning of a new trend as other fire departments see the extreme benefits of carrying STOP-FYRE™ units on their fire trucks. AKE Safety Equipment is well on their way to obtaining their goal of Saving Lives…protecting families from home fires.
On February 5th, Sales Rep Steve made a visit to a potential customer.After witnessing the STOP-FYRE™ demonstration, the customer said “I will buy some of your STOP-FYRE™ if you can get the ex-Fire Chief’s endorsement.”
Steve then made a visit to 8-year veteran Fire Chief Steve.The Fire Chief said, “I’ll make an appointment to see your demonstration, but there isn’t any fire extinguisher worth $500!”.Sales Rep Steve made the appointment for the following week.
On February 8th, AKE President & Founder Allen Kronebusch and Sales Rep Steve show up to do the STOP-FYRE™ demonstration for the Fire Chief.His first response to them was that he didn’t want to give his endorsement to some “Flavor of the Month” business.
After a 45-minute meeting, the Fire Chief said, “Go ahead and tell your customers that I believe in this product.You can use my name and you can tell them to give me a call if they have questions.”.The Fire Chief now has STOP-FYRE™ in his car repair shop.
The moral of the story is, on the outside the price of STOP-FYRE™ looks high, but the cost is worth it.It is the least expensive when you compare side-by-side (see 2/4/10 blog entry).
What an amazing find! During a sales presentation to a farmer in rural MN, Sales Rep Steve was talking to a customer who recognized the look of the STOP-FYRE™ fire extinguisher. He went into his machine shop and came back with an antique precursor unit from 1991. It was scratched, dented, and covered in grease. It had even fought two fires and had some remaining extinguishing agent left in it!
The first fire was in customer Dave’s corn dryer. Dave saw smoke and flames coming from the corn dryer and grabbed the old STOP-FYRE™ unit from his combine. Just two quick bursts put the fire out. All Dave had to do was remove the burned corn and he was back up and running, which means he had NO DOWN TIME! Dave says, “It saved my corn dryer!”. Dave could have been out $30,000 to replace the dryer had he not put out the fire right away.
Dave’s second fire was when he was harvesting in the field and a hot bearing started the surrounding debris on fire. This fire could have cost Dave his $300,000 combine.
Isn’t a $500 investment in STOP-FYRE™ a bargain compared to what could have been the potential loss?
Why should you buy a STOP-FYRE™ unit from AKE Safety Equipment? Because it’s better!
Allen Kronebusch, AKE Safety Equipment President & Founder, was recently given permission by Riverland Community College at his firefighter training to do a side-by-side comparison of the AKE STOP-FYRE™ unit and a dry chemical unit.
In this video you see a 3 lb. STOP-FYRE™ unit and a 10 lb. dry chemical unit being used. You can see in the video that the STOP-FYRE™ unit is quicker to put out the fire. And time is of the essence when there is a fire.
The platforms that were used to house the fires were 3′ X 3′ or 9 square feet. The STOP-FYRE™ unit put out 6 of these fires and had some juice left to spare making it equivalent to a 54 B rating (The effectiveness of Class B extinguishers is based on the approximate area (measured in square feet) of burning fuel they are capable of extinguishing — taken from Fundamentals of Fire Fighter Skills).
AKE Safety Equipment’s President & Founder got his first opportunity to put his new firefighter training into practice. At 2:00 a.m. his pager went off signaling help was needed at the intersection of Highway 52 N and 5th Rd. NW where a truck (milk/tanker size) was on fire.
As a rookie, Allen was responsible for moving water from the tanker to the pumper, refilling the tanker, and bringing it back to the station.
The truck’s tires had caught on fire and the driver used a dry-chemical/powder fire extinguisher to try to put out the fire. Due to the high heat point, the fire reignited multiple times and the driver’s fire extinguisher was unable to put out the fire. If only he had STOP-FYRE™! (see Side-by-Side Comparison story from 2/4)
Significant visual (unknown financial) damage was sustained.
As a result of some STOP-FYRE™ demonstrations, AKE Safety Equipment received a phone call from an insurance agent with a preliminary proposal. A group of insurance companies are thinking about endorsing the STOP-FYRE™ extinguisher. Their customers will receive a discount on their insurance premiums if they own a STOP-FYRE™ unit.
Why would they do this? It is cheaper for the insurance company to replace the STOP-FYRE™ extinguisher than it is for them to replace a $250,000 combine.
Allen Kronebusch (AKE Safety Equipment President & Founder), along with the rest of the Oronoco, MN Firefighters, braved the Minnesota winter cold and jumped into a hole cut in the ice of Lake Shady - all in the effort to become trained in water rescue. They were extreme conditions to train for an extreme issue.
There is a lot to learn as a firefighter for the Oronoco, MN Fire Department. Allen Kronebusch began training today that is a significant commitment for a business owner, husband, and father of two. Training will consist of 6-14 hours/week with extra additional training as necessary. Training will last for four months.
Why is he willing to make this commitment? “For the love of it, really.”, says Allen. “I’ve always had a fascination with fire. Now I can learn about it, teach others how to be safe from its dangers, and help to protect those that experience a fire.”
AKE Safety Equipment President & Founder, Allen Kronebusch, presented himself before the Oronoco, MN City Council for a vote that could make him a city firefighter. The Oronoco Fire Department Fire Chief communicated the department’s recommendation to the City Council and a unanimous vote was made. Allen is now officially a firefighter for the city of Oronoco, MN.
By Janet Kubat Willette, Agri News staff writer, December 17, 2009
Allen Kronebusch
ORONOCO, Minn. — Allen Kronebusch was a college drop-out with a interest in fire safety when he started selling fire extinguishers back in 1989.
“If it wasn’t for farmers I wouldn’t be in business,” said Kronebusch, a Winona native who has grown his fire safety business from southeastern Minnesota across the nation in 20 years.
His first customers were farmers who were willing to listen and purchase.
Kronebusch, who now lives in Oronoco and is a member of the Oronoco Fire Department, owns AKE Safety Equipment. The company sells a variety of fire protection equipment, including the STOP-FYRE fire extinguisher. Click here to view the STOP-FYRE™ demos.
“Whenever you use your STOP-FYRE unit, powder fire extinguisher, or automatic fire suppression unit to put out a residential, family farm, church, or personal vehicle fire, AKE will replace each used unit free of charge,” Kronebusch said.
His cause is protecting families from home fires and saving lives, he said. His units can help people survive home fires and save thousands in machinery damage, he said.
Kronebusch has traveled throughout the nation selling fire safety equipment, but with two young sons at home, he wants to spend more time in southeast Minnesota. He plans to market to homeowners, farmers and churches.
The unit is made in the United States and the company headquarters are in Belton, Mo.
For more information, go to www.ake.com or call (507) 367-4545.
