It’s usually never good when your supervisor calls you into the office. And the anxiety level rises when many from the command staff are there as well.
That’s just what happened to Robert Steelman in Palm Beach Gardens Fire and Rescue recently.
“I thought it was serious, very serious,” he said with a laugh, adding that his supervisor recognized his changing demeanor.
But those anxious moments quickly took a 180 when Deputy Chief James Ippolito informed Steelman he’d been selected as the 2022 Emergency Vehicle Technician of the Year by Firehouse Magazine and the Fire Department Safety Officers’ Association (FDSOA).
“It’s very humbling,” he said. “It’s a once in a lifetime experience. I’m honored.”
Steelman said he takes his job working on the fire department’s vehicles very, very seriously. “You have to pay attention to detail.”
If he can’t figure out what’s wrong with one of the rigs in the department’s fleet, Steelman does research to determine not only the cause but how to fix it and prevent it from happening again.
Steelman said his interest in vehicle maintenance started at Cooper City High School in Broward County. He credits two instructors, Dan Sorrentino and Tony Del Sesto for mentoring and encouraging him in the field.
He said Sorrentino allowed him to be part of a crew during an endurance car race, and it was an opportunity of a lifetime. It strengthened his interest.
Steelman and his auto shop class took home honors not only in the state by across the nation. Being among the top 10 percent nationwide helped him land his first job at Chrysler.
But after 10 years, it was time to move along. “I needed stability and steady pay,” he said.
During his initial interview with Palm Beach Gardens, he was told he could be working on anything from a chain saw, a weed eater to an 80,000 pound fire truck or a police cruiser.
“I work closely with management,” he said, adding that the relationship with fire officers has resulted in successes in the maintenance shop.
Steelman holds a Master EVT Certification and Master of Automotive Service Excellency (ASE) Certification in both truck and automotive.
He is an active member of the Emergency Vehicle Technician Certification Commission (EVTCC) and is often consulted as a subject matter expert in the development and validation of certification exam test questions. Steelman has more than 30 years’ experience as a professional technician.
He is very conscious about the fire and rescue vehicles being as safe as possible. They have to be dependable so crews can respond to residents’ emergencies.
That’s why vehicles get new tires, brakes and steering are switched out after 50 percent of their life cycles. “You don’t take chances,” he explained, adding that in the long run it’s cheaper than a lawsuit that may arise.
Nominating Steelman for the award, Ippolito wrote:
“Robert's personal and professional commitment to the department's fleet has transformed our fleet maintenance program. He plays an active role on the department's apparatus design and specification committee and accompanies fire department personnel on all pre-delivery acceptance inspections. He is a highly respected member of the committee and can be relied upon to find the proverbial "needle in the haystack" when performing quality and acceptance inspections.
Robert's mission is clear: do whatever is necessary to adhere to the highest safety standards while ensuring emergency apparatus are in-service and perform impeccably when called to duty. His leadership, ‘make-it-happen’ attitude, and passion for excellence contagiously affect his colleagues for the betterment of the entire fire department and the residents and visitors we serve.”
The deputy chief also explained an invaluable process that Steelman created. “In response to limited parts availability and extended lead times caused by the global supply chain, Robert implemented a program to perform circuit level diagnostics and repairs to non-safety sensitive equipment where sourcing individual electronic components is more efficient than the replacement of an entire module.
“In addition, Robert analyzed data extracted from the department's vehicle maintenance software to predict which parts were more likely to fail and then built an in-house parts warehouse to stock these items for immediate availability, which resulted in less out-of-service time for frontline units.”
Steelman said while the department does have reserve vehicles available, he wants the front line rigs fixed properly and back on the road as soon as possible.
“As I said before, I’m just so honored to have been selected for the award. I’ll be going to the conference to accept it. It’s hard for me to believe…”
