Snap-tite Hose welcomes state fire commissioner | News | thecorryjournal.com

Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook, center, toured Snap-Tite Hose in Union City on Wednesday to learn the process for making lay-flat fire hose. From left are Snap-tite Hose CEO James Novinsky; Millcreek Fire Department Chief Michael Cliff; Cook; Snap-tite Hose International Sales Director for the Northeast and U.S. Mike Woods and Millcreek Township Supervisor Dan Ouellet.

James Novinsky, the new chief executive officer of Snap-tite Hose, welcomed Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook to its Union City facility at 217 Titusville Road on Wednesday.

Snap-tite, which also has a facility at 8325 Hessinger Drive in Fairview, is recognized globally for its rigorous test trials and perpetual advancement of innovation. Snap-tite Hose is the industry leader for lay-flat fire hose.

Snap-tite Hose is the only hose manufacturer in North America that has ISO90001:2015 certification for its quality management system.

“We need harsh awareness on the part of the firefighters as to what goes into the products we use,” Cook said about the importance of his visit.

Cook has had almost four decades of experience in emergency services with an extensive background in nonprofit and public administration. He has served at the municipal, county and state levels with a focus on public safety and emergency management. He previously was assistant fire commissioner and administrator of the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy.

Snap-tite Hose appointed Novinsky as its CEO in February. With more than 55 years of providing life-saving products, Snap-tite Hose is poised for a new era of innovation under Novinsky’s leadership, according to a company press release.

“This is a morale booster for our employees who work hard to make world-class hose,” Novinsky said. “It gives us an opportunity to showcase the hose we manufacturer that is unlike any other hose manufactured in North America.”

Snap-tite officials and Cook were joined for the tour by local elected and civic leaders, including, but not limited to, Union City Borough Council President Riley Cross; Erie County Councilwoman Ellen Schauerman; state Rep. Jake Banta, R-4th; Christi Martone, Northwest regional director of the state Department of Community and Economic Development; Jake Rouch, vice president of economic development for the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership; Millcreek Township supervisors and Millcreek Fire Chief Michael Cliff.

Novinsky stressed how the industry is changing and a need to know how to effectively deal with electric vehicle (EV) fires.

“For more than 50 years, we have been pioneering the development of the industry’s most innovative products, like the Warrior hose, and now are laser focused on developing a future technology center to continue driving technological advancements in the industry,” Novinski said.

Since taking on the CEO role, Novinsky has swiftly addressed key challenges, efficiently cleared a backlog of orders and enhanced production capabilities. The company also ramped up production of its latest innovation, the Warrior hose. Known for its durability and heat resistance, the Warrior hose is set to become a staple in fire stations across the nation, the press release stated.

Manufacturing lay-flat hose must start somewhere, and Snap-tite Hose employee John Boardman shows spools of thread used for the fabric of the hose.

Those attending the tour learned how the process of manufacturing lay-flat fire hose begins and ends, from testing the strength of the nylon and polyester threads that make up the fabric of the hose to a demonstration utilizing robotic solutions designed to be equipped with heat resistant hoses like Snap-tite’s Warrior hose to effectively battle EV fires. The fire is suppressed from underneath the vehicle to cool the lithium battery.

Larry Obert of Union City attended the demonstration of how firefighters would suppress an EV fire. He was there in the early days of Snap-tite Hose and is still a member of the Union City Volunteer Fire Co.

“I was with Snap-tite Hose back then, and we started the fire hose division in 1970,” Obert said.

Solutions that effectively battle EV fires are an urgent necessity and require new policies and creative collaborative conversation among leaders in the industry, the according to the press release. In 2023, 3.3 million EVs were registered in the U.S. EV fires burn three times hotter than a standard internal combustion engine vehicle and pose serious risk to property and life.

For more than 50 years, Snap-tite Hose has set the industry standard for quality and safety in lay-flat hose for municipal firefighting, forest firefighting, oil and gas applications, industrial applications and all five branches of the U.S. military and agriculture.

Novinsky said he wants to help the company continue to thrive.

“Snap-tite Hose has a legacy of quality for making the best hose in the world, and I’d like to continue that legacy,” Novinsky said. “What we manufacture saves people’s lives, so we take it very seriously.”

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