Scott Safety representatives knew they’d get a lot of attention at this year’s FDIC with their new Eagle Attack camera, but they were pleasantly surprised by the response to their redesigned RIT PAK III.
“A lot of departments have built their own bags because there was nothing on the market that addressed their needs,” Jeff Emery, marketing manager at Scott, said. “They saw our new RIT PAK III and said, ‘This is what we need.’ We really feel like we captured the small details.”
The small details are where the RIT PAK III stands out. First, Scott Safety attached a skid plate on the bottom of the bag. Nylon tends to wear, especially through the sort of heavy-duty use that firefighters subject their gear to. The skid plate allows the bag to endure that abuse without tearing the fabric.
Another benefit of the skid plate is that it allows users to find the top of the bag in a low-visibility situation.
Emery explained that through their testing they found that firefighters will often fumble for the openings on their bags — even repeatedly flip the bag 180 degrees — before finding the opening. With the skid plate they can quickly tell the top from the bottom of the bag, even in a smoke-filled room, Emery said.
Another visibility issue arose in testing the products when users had to actually open their bag to check the air cylinder display. Scott Safety simplified that process by putting a display on the outside of the bag. The external gauge is a lighted LED display that matches the Green/Amber/Red design of the Heads Up Display (HUD).
Scott Safety also added the knobs on the low-pressure side of the bag, making it easy to distinguish the low-pressure side from the high-pressure side.
“In terms of visibility, our concern was making the bag intuitive,” Emery said. “All the training in the world can’t fully prepare you for going into an environment where you have a colleague down.”
Scott Safety makes a range of personal protective equipment and safety devices. Visit their website for more information about the Eagle Attack.