Increase Your Value to Employers with Fire Guard Certification
Looking for ways to earn more, and increase your value to your employer? Obtaining fire guard certification can be worth the effort. Essentially, fire guards help carry out fire safety procedures in buildings where large numbers of people congregate—office buildings, stadiums, theaters, homeless shelters, etc. Certification is administered by the Fire Department of NY (FDNY) which enforces building fire codes in NYC. Building owners who do not have certified fire guards in their buildings risk getting fined by the FDNY.
Common Certifications Pertaining to Security Guards
Where you work will determine what type of fire guard certification you will need. The major types include:
F01 Citywide Fire Guard for Impairment. This certification relates to buildings whose fire protection systems are out of service. Building owners are required to have a watch guard with F01 certification on duty until the system is back up.
F02 Fire Guard for Shelters. This is required for homeless or emergency shelters.
F03 Indoor place of Assembly Safety Personnel. Needed for stadiums, theatres and arenas.
F04 Temporary Indoor/Outdoor Place of Assembly. Required for indoor and outdoor temporary meeting locations (outdoor theatres, parks, public pools, etc.)
S60 Watch guard at construction sites.
Interested? Here’s what you need to Do
Find out from your employer what the exact fire guard certifications are needed where you work. To obtain a particular certification, you first need to pass a test relating to the certification. Tests are administered by the FDNY’s Public Certification Unit located in the first floor at 9 MetroTech Center in Brooklyn. The office is open Monday to Friday from 8 am to 2:30 pm. When taking the exam, you’ll need to complete a CERTIFICATE of FITNESS APPLICATION FORM and have an employer recommendation form (click here for sample employers form). You’ll also need 2 forms of identification, one of which must be government-issued, such as a driver’s license or passport.
The application fee is $25, payable by cash, credit card or money order. If you pass the exam, you’ll receive your Certificate immediately. If you fail, you’ll need to retake the exam and pay the fee again. Certifications must be renewed every 3 years. Renewal fee is $15.
To help our students pass the test the first time, Star Security Training offers 3-hour test prep courses for the major certifications mentioned above. Course fee is $50 and includes a printed FDNY study guide. Click here for more details on our fire guard test prep schedule.
Good luck!