In 1925, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Fire Prevention Week a national observance, making it the longest-running public health observance in our country. During Fire Prevention Week, children, adults, and Teachers learn how to stay safe in case of a fire. Firefighters provide lifesaving public education in an effort to drastically decrease casualties caused by fires.

Fire Prevention Week is observed each year during the week of October 9th in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire, which began on October 8, 1871, and caused devastating damage. This horrific conflagration killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures, and burned more than 2,000 acres of land. (from the NFPA information).

FIRENET RADIO, JADE ALARM DISPATCHERS, WALKER TOWEL’S CRITICAL 30-SECONDS.

On April 7th, at 23:39 hours, Jade Alarm Command Center Dispatchers received a fire alarm signal from Walker Towel and Uniform that covered the soiled linen area’s Smoke Beam Sensor. The fire department dispatchers were immediately contacted, fire crews were on the way to the 132-year-old company’s headquarters. Later, while Jade Alarm President Joe Pfefer and several Jade Alarm technicians were in the parking lot having temporarily effected alarm repairs, so the building alarm could be set, the Kansas City Missouri Fire Chief came up to them, turned to Walker Towel Owner, Hal Shapiro and said “Mr. Shapiro, in another 30-seconds I would have had to pull my fire crews off your roof for safety’s sake. If not for the speed of the alarm system and Jade Alarm getting us here as quickly as they did, we could not have saved your building as the sprinklers could not keep up with the fire.”

Jade Alarm’s radio network immediately responds, and the alarm signal shows up on our Command Center’s Computer screens.  Those 30-seconds, that older alarms require to communicate their signal would have, in the case of Walker Towel, would have been 30-seconds too long! Losing their headquarters to the fire would have been at the very least traumatic to the 132-year-old family business- every employee’s job would have been at risk that day.

It is that awesome responsibility each and every Jade Alarm employee understands and appreciates!!

Smoke Beam, also known as Projected Beam Detector, is a specialized, commercial grade smoke detection sensor utilized in warehouse or religious institutions that is of European design. The area of coverage is 330’ x 30’ on either side of the detector’s invisible beam path. Jade Alarm started installing Smoke Beams when House of Lloyd’s Vice President, Saul Kass (of blessed memory) asked us to come up with a system that would meet their insurance company’s requirements of a cross-zone system— as it would take 2-separate fire alarm zones triggering to cause the fire protection sprinkler system to fill the sprinkler pipes. After we had completed the Grandview Warehouse and then Botts Road Warehouse installations, the fire beam US field representative informed me, “Joe, you realize, Jade Alarm Co. has now installed more Smoke Beams for one company than any other alarm company in the world!” What a great honor!

I am honored to announce the following!        

Jade Alarm Co., a company that started as a hobby located in my parents David and Lillian Pfefers’ home, has now celebrated 55 years of service to the Greater Kansas City area! 

What started as a way to defend the home against intruders has grown into the sole independently owned and operated U.L. (Underwriter Laboratories) Certified Central Station Alarm and Installation company in this area. There are over 12,000 alarm companies in the United States of America. According to a recent article by ASI, there are 41 full-service companies such as Jade Alarm Co. in the United States. Of the 41 full-service alarm companies, Jade Alarm Co. is one of two that successfully had their own Central Station Automation System Software go through the latest U.L. and NFPA-72 (National Fire Protection Association) 9^th edition standards. This was over a 3-year process in order to meet the stringent standards for operating our Central Station Monitoring Command Center.

In order to become U.L. Certified, our premises had to meet the current U.L. standard to ensure our premises could withstand an attack and continue to operate despite power outages. We have now installed our 3^rd generator for triple redundancy of backup power to our facility with primary fuel being natural gas and with automatically switching to 2- 1,000 gallon tanks of propane in the event of loss of the primary fuel (such as happened in January of 2023 with the rolling power outages occurring in the Mid-West). . Our personnel meet the U.L. standard for knowledge of how to properly handle and respond to your alarm system’s ‘call for help’. 

In short – Insurance Underwriters will demand of high-risk clients such as Jewelry Stores and Financial Institutions what is known as a U.L. Certificate of Compliance as will many Fire Marshals. 

What does this mean to you? 

You will receive the exact same service as a high-risk Jewelry store, a Financial Institution or a monitored fire alarm system. We do not differentiate! 

For 55-years, this is how I have run the business – having quality people & systems to provide PEACE OF MIND SINCE 1969!