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Alan Cox
Fire-safety consultant
Alan started his fire and safety career with Warwick County Fire Service in 1963 and served as both an Operational and Fire Safety Inspecting Officer. In 1976 he transferred to the West Midlands Fire Service until 1978 when he moved to the NHS as the District Fire Safety Officer for West Birmingham Health Authority where he was also the West Midlands Regional Health Authority Fire Advisor. During his NHS career he worked and studied for six months in the USA looking at different approaches to fire safety. He was also responsible for developing a computerized hospital fire evacuation program that was used in many major hospitals. In 1994 Alan moved to HSBC as its Senior Fire and Safety Officer responsible for the 80 countries in which the bank had a presence. During his career with HSBC he established a global approach to fire safety, organized many international fire and safety conferences, and developed a standardized method of protecting computer areas from fire. In 2005 he set up his own Fire and Safety Consultancy. During his career he has published a number of books on fire safety and made many specialist technical videos on subjects such as hospital evacuation, fire protection of electronic data protection areas, fire doors, and mail room safety. He has been awarded a Brooking NHS Travel Fellowship, Rospa Safety Professional of the Year (twice), FPA Premier Fire Safety Award, and The Prime Minister's Quality Initiative. He also contributes to many fire and safety journals including Fire, IOSH, Fire Surveyor, and Health and Safety Journal. He is a fully qualified Fire Service Inspecting Officer, member of the International Institute of Risk and Safety Managers (MIIRSM), Tech IOSH, and Qualified Fire Investigator.
Alan has advised many large companies including the National Trust, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), Kings College, Cambridge, Briton Hardware, BUPA, British Antarctic Survey Expedition, Chubb, Central Television, BBC, Radisson SAS, and the Falkland Islands Police.
Articles by this author
Exclusive: The Cameron House Hotel Fire – What do we know & what do we still not know?
Is my hotel safe from fire? A guest’s perspective on concerns over hotel fire safety standards
Holiday Inn fire: Should all hotels be fitted with sprinklers?
Ocado warehouse fire: The questions that need answers
The ‘independent’ review of the Royal Clarence Hotel fire will be nothing of the sort
Royal Clarence Hotel fire: The HSE report – like the fire service report – fails to answer the key questions
Why the Grenfell fire door failure came as no surprise to me
FRS report into Royal Clarence Hotel fire is full of holes – this is what’s missing
The Fire Safety Order has failed: Fudged investigations and lessons not learned in 10 years of the landmark legislation
Royal Clarence Hotel fire: the questions that need answers after the destruction of the UK’s oldest hotel
Hotel Fire Safety Case Study: Are the Hotel and Local FRS Doing Enough?
The Clandon Park Fire: Questions from a National Trust Member
Is the Fire Service the Right Enforcement Authority?
Fire Safety Defects in Brand-New
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