Florida fire company acquires, adding sprinklers to its mix

POMPANO BEACH, Fla.—Advanced Fire & Security, based here, has purchased Action Fire Sprinklers in nearby Oakland Park.

The acquisition means that Advanced Fire & Security now will be a full-service fire protection company complete with a sprinkler division that can offer customers “everything that falls within the life safety realm,” Eric Rode, Advanced Fire & Security co-owner and president, told Security Systems News.

Rode said he also he expects having a sprinkler division will make a “huge” difference when it comes to doing testing for customers. Sprinklers systems need regularly scheduled testing, just like fire alarms, he noted, and now Advanced Fire & Security can do both at the same time for a customer. Customers, he said, “don't have to worry about two different companies having scheduling conflicts and testing the building twice.”

When it comes to service revenues, he told SSN, "we expect an increase of 40 or more percent over the next year as our customers become aware of our new services."

The new sprinkler division will be called Advanced Fire Sprinklers and work out of Advanced Fire & Security's main office here. Details of the purchase were not disclosed.

The former owners of Action, Patrick Moore and Kevin Benoit, will be co-owners in the new division and actively involved in the day-to-day operations. “We couldn't be happier to be joining Advanced Fire; it's just the right thing for our customers,” Patrick Moore said in a prepared statement.

Advanced Fire & Security, in existence for more than decade, bills itself as southern Florida's largest privately owned fire and security company. With the addition of about 20 employees from Action, Advanced Fire & Security now has a workforce of more than 120 people.

Advanced Fire & Security has more than 7,000 customers, and in addition to fire alarms, offers security, CCTV and access control systems. The company can now add fire sprinkler service, certifications, installations, fire pumps and controller services to its mix of offerings.

Rode said Action Fire Sprinklers also was an established sprinkler company that dates back more than a decade and had more than 1,000 customers, so Advanced Fire & Security is “hitting the road running” with the new division.

“They already have customers and they already have work going on,” Rode said. “Their existing customer base is already calling.”

In addition, he said, now Advanced Fire & Security can offer the services of its new sprinkler division to its own existing customers.

He said customers will appreciate having a “one-stop shop” for their fire and sprinkler needs. “They don't have to worry about going out and finding different vendors. That one single vendor that they've established a relationship with can now provide that service for them,” Rode said.

Laura Rode, Advanced Fire & Security co-owner and VP, said in a prepared statement, “We have been looking to be a complete fire protection company, and with the reputation and experience that Action brings, it's a perfect fit.”