Firehouse has announced the top five finalists in the 2014 Emergency Vehicle Technician (EVT) of the Year Award.
The first place winner is David Cottingham Jr., shop supervisor at the Chesterfield County, Va., Heavy Vehicle Maintenance Shop.
He oversees maintenance and repair for 183 vehicles in the Chesterfield Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department. Among other accomplishments, Cottingham was responsible for implementing several cost-saving programs, reduced out of service time and created a roving field mechanic to address smaller issues in between maintenance cycles bi-annually. In addition, he has worked to improve relationships and maintain safe, reliable apparatus for department personnel and the community served.
The EVT of the Year award will be presented to Cottingham at the Fire Department Safety Officers Association's annual Apparatus Specification & Vehicle Maintenance Symposium on, Jan. 19, in Orlando, Fla. This award is sponsored by C.E. Niehoff & Co., Evanston, Ill.
Robert Corsi, chief mechanic for the Cranston, R.I., Fire Department, came in at second place.
Corsi has 27 years of service with the department and holds 20 EVT certifications and 23 Automotive Service Excellence certifications.
According to Fire Chief William McKenna, "Bob has been a wizard at keeping an aging fleet of equipment functioning and up to the proper NFPA standards."
Third place was given to Chief Fire Mechanic Mark J. Hackney with the City of Greenville, S.C., Fire Department.
With over 30 certifications related to apparatus and equipment, Hackney developed core concepts for fleet replacement, a plan that has been institutionalized and utilized citywide by other fleet managers and budget administrators. He is also working on his bachelor's degree in fire administration to better understand the operational issues firefighters face on a day-to-day basis.
Assistant Supervisor of Public Works in the City of Overland Park, Kan., Robby Malkames, came in fourth.
With over 20 years of experience, Malkames has led many training sessions with firefighters and paramedics to help better understand and identify issues with equipment at the earliest opportunity.
Rounding out the top five is Ryan Lokken, fleet maintenance manager for Rural/Metro Medical Services of Rochester, N.Y.
Among the many accolades, Lokken's suggestion of repairing ERG valves in-house and submitting for reimbursement from the ambulance manufacturers, not only saved time, but thousands of dollars. Lokken also has a plan to expand the internal fleet department to begin servicing municipal and ambulance agencies in the local area and subsidize labor by generating outside business to help with unfunded maintenance mandates.
In its eleventh year, the Emergency Vehicle Technician of the Year Award, was created to raise the awareness of the hard-working, dedicated technicians and mechanics working behind the scenes to keep emergency apparatus and first responders safe across North America. This year, a panel of five judges, including three previous EVT of the Year award winners and representatives from the EVT Certification Commission and the Fire Department Safety Officers Association, reviewed the 26 nominations received.
