A high-caliber industry event on fire protection and occupational safety, featuring ten lectures, two workshops and an accompanying exhibition, will take place on March 20th at the Culture and Congress Centre (KKL) in Lucerne, under the direction of the Swiss Association of Fire Protection and Safety Professionals (VBSF).
Occupational safety and fire protection often address similar concerns – however, they also frequently face conflicting objectives. Therefore, the organizers say it makes sense to exchange information regularly and develop solutions together.
That's exactly how it's supposed to be on March 20, 2025, at the KKL in Lucerne. The conference is divided into two parallel thematic tracks. Participants can choose which of the parallel presentations they wish to attend.
The occupational safety track begins with a workshop on digital tools for occupational safety and health. Requirements for occupational safety and health measures are constantly increasing, particularly regarding documentation. Digital tools offer a way to maintain an overview and legal compliance. Marco Lobsiger (Managing Director of Lobsiger & Partner GmbH) will work through various scenarios with the participants to demonstrate how such tools can support safety officers.
Electric vehicles in halls
The next topics are first aid concepts in the workplace with Bruno Ducceschi, Vice President of the Swiss Association for Occupational Health and Safety, laboratory guidelines, and hazardous substances with safety engineer Thomas Plattner. Andrea Zemp (Swiss Safety Center) addresses carcinogenic, mutagenic, and reprotoxic (CMR) substances, whose effects are often underestimated because affected employees can be exposed to them for extended periods without developing an illness. Safety consultant Felix Gell focuses on solvents and describes when they exceed the threshold of negligible quantities.
Roman Burkart, Managing Director of the Interverband für Rettungswesen IVR and President of the Swiss Resuscitation Council SRC, explains the field of First Responder systems in Switzerland, of which there are more and more cantons serving as models.
Photos: pixabay/Bentomedia
The "Fire Protection" track also includes workshops on fire protection planning and technical evacuation systems, featuring Kurt Girschweiler, Head of Product Line Fire (Siemens Switzerland), on fire protection for electric vehicles in buildings: the reasons for the risk discussion, technical comparisons of the vehicles and their risks, the influence of the load, the location, fire prevention and suppression, and the purpose of simulations, as well as fire protection expert and Sintegral Managing Director Mario Venturini. Jan Bauke (Head of Training FWZS, Deputy Fire Chief, Zurich Fire Department) will address fires involving electric vehicles in halls.
Marion Meinert, Professor of Safety & Hazard Prevention at Furtwangen University, addresses fire risks posed by home energy storage systems – challenges and prevention strategies, given the rapid increase in the number of photovoltaic systems and associated home storage units. This increases the potential fire risk, which is also relevant for businesses. The two tracks, occupational safety and fire protection, converge at the end when Jürg Schär (Head of Building & Security at the KKL Luzern) discusses occupational safety and fire protection at the event venue. An accompanying exhibition will be held during the conference, where, as things stand, 16 exhibitors will present their products and services during the breaks.
