2023 AFCA Conference Schedule

May 28-31| Edmonton, AB
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Saturday May 27

7:00am – 7:50am
Golf Registration

Check in enjoy a fun day on the links.

 

The Ranch Golf Course

8:00am – 2:00pm
Golf Tee Off – Shotgun Start

The Ranch Golf Course

2:30pm – 4:00pm
Golf BBQ

The AFCA has a fun BBQ scheduled following the tournament. Please join your AFCA members, trades and sponsors for a delicious BBQ and a great time to reconnect.

Tournament Prizes to be Awarded

 

The Ranch Golf Course

Sunday May 28

8:00am – 5:00pm
Registration

Check in at registration and obtain your event badge and be sure to download the conference App.

 

Foyer – Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

9:00am – 9:30am
Opening Keynote

Service Technology ” From Pump Cans to Drones”

The fire service across the globe is seeing a rapid influx of technology integrated with the workforce. Our equipment is operating on microchips our personnel can be tracked and data is overflowing from platforms trying to make sense of it all, we literally went from Pump Cans to Drones in a matter of a few decades.

This presentation will provide attendees a recap of the past and look at the future of technology and how it can benefit fire departments and personnel. The attendees will see new ideas and Concepts to allow them to consider the future.

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

Brian McAsey, Assistant Deputy Chief, Fire & Rescue Services, City of Calgary

Sponsored By

9:35am – 10:20am
Workshop #1

Innovation to Improve Response

The City of Medicine Hat approached the problem of how to improve response service to residents in a non-traditional way.  Instead of going the typical approach of adding more fire stations, more staff, and more equipment, the decision was made to approach response based on hazards and strategically relocating existing fire stations to provide desired response coverage.  This presentation will cover the innovation and technology used in that analysis and decision making process.”

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

Introduction by Deputy Chief Sponsor:
Kevin Burgemeister, Senior Vice President, Operations, ATCO Electric

 

Chief Brian Stauth
Brian Stauth

Managing Director, Public Services Division

City of Medicine Hat 

Chief Brian Stauth
Jaci Fox

Acting Strategic Manager and Business Analyst, Medicine Hat Fire and Emergency Services

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Natural Gas & Electricity Utilities

10:20am – 11:05am
Workshop #2

NG911 – What’s All the Hype About?

Next Generation 911 has been hyped as the digital transformation of 911 services that will allow 911 to adopt the emerging capabilities of modern communications systems. This session will cut through the hype and cover what NG911 is and what it isn’t. Will explore some of the benefits of the new National Emergency Services IP network {ESInet}, as well as the risks that come with it. Some regulatory timelines are imminent and PSAPs who fail to meet them will be non-compliant with Alberta 911 standards, and soon be unable to receive 911 calls. Are you ready?

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

Andrew Renfree

9-1-1 Manager, Alberta Emergency Management Agency

Sponsored By

11:30Am – 1:30pm
Rural Membership Round Table
An open discussion forum covering topics and challenges facing rural fire services.
Room 103, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

Hosted by: Chief, Drayton Bussiere

Alberta Fire Chiefs Association, Director at Large, Rural Membership

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11:00AM – 2:00pm
Urban Membership Round Table

An open discussion forum covering topics and challenges facing urban fire services.

Room 101, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

Hosted by: Chief Trevor Brice

Alberta Fire Chiefs Association, Director at Large, Urban Membership

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4:30pm – 6:00pm
Opening Ceremonies & Memorial Service

 

Join the AFCA along with Government representatives for the Opening Ceremonies and Memorial Service.

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

6:00pm – 9:00pm
Trade Show & Welcome Reception
Join your fellow members and trades for the welcome reception.
Visit the trades module to view the floor plan and book in person meetings and demos with AFCA Trades.  
Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

 

Sponsored By

Monday May 29

7:30am – 12:00pm
Registration

Check in at registration and obtain your event badge and download the conference app.

 

Foyer – Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

7:30am – 8:30am
Breakfast & Keynote

Bold Ones: How to Innovate and Disrupt Ourselves

The world is getting weirder, wackier and wilder by the minute. It has never been more crucial to adapt and evolve with the times. Yet, when faced with radical change, we tend to double down on what made us successful in the past. 

Bold Ones is an awe-inspiring and provocative keynote on how individuals can apply the innovations and disruptions occurring around them to become more dynamic and valuable. Specific, actionable techniques—from uncovering ‘secrets’ within your field, to designing experiments, to creating an unstoppable personal flywheel—that will help one evolve and excel will be shared.

 

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

Shawn Kanungo

Partner, Queen & Rook

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8:00am – 9:00am

Trade Members Breakfast Meeting

Join your trade members for breakfast and provide feedback on the AFCA Trade Show.

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

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9:00am – 4:30pm
AFCA Trade Show

Trade demos will occur on two alternating stages through out the day. 

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

10:15am – 10:45am
Coffee Break

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

Sponsored By

12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch in the Trade Show  

Join your fellow members and trades for lunch in the trade show.  Schedule your in person demos and earn points on the Leaderboard.

 

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

Sponsored By

1:00pm – 4:30pm
Trade Show Draws

AFCA Trades will announce the prize winners through the conference app. 

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

2:00pm – 2:30pm
Coffee Break

Join us in Hall C for a coffee and a treat!

Schedule your in person meetings with Trades before the show closes.

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

Sponsored By

WFR Wholesale

4:00pm – 4:30pm
TRADE SHOW CLOSES

Hall C, Edmonton Expo Centre

6:00pm – 9:00pm

Monday Trade Show Wrap Up Dinner

Join AFCA for a fun BBQ and social as we wrap up the 2023 trade show.

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

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Tuesday May 30

7:30am – 11:00am
Registration

 Check in and download the conference app to earn points on the Leaderboard.

Foyer – Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

7:30am – 9:30am
Breakfast and AGM CALL TO ORDER 

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

8:30AM
AGM CALL TO ORDER – AFCA Director and Committee Chair Updates

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

8:30am – 11:00am
AFCA Business Session

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

10:30am – 10:45am
Coffee Break

Foyer, Edmonton Expo Centre

Sponsored By

11:00am – 12:00pm
Concurrent Conference Stream # 1

Compensation and Loss Time Accident Claims for Volunteer and Paid on Call Firefighters 

  • Discuss the differences between full time employment claims vs. volunteer claims
  • What can a department/member expect for coverage?
  • WCB rebate incentives for organizations that employ volunteers
  • Benefits for Volunteers

 

Room 107, Edmonton Expo Centre

Michelle Whyte

City of St. Albert

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11:00am – 12:00pm
Concurrent Conference Stream #2

Radio Communication – New in the Fire Service (AFRRCS)

For over 6 years, AFRRCS continues to provide best-in-class voice service for Alberta’s first responders. The constantly evolving system introduces new features that supplement the P25 radio experience. The Virtual User feature which aims to enhance consistency of transmissions to pagers, and the BeOn PTT over LTE feature are two upcoming offerings to AFRRCS, and we are excited to share more details at this year’s AFCA conference.

Ballroom Edmonton Expo Centre

AFRRCS Panel Members:

Whitney Benoit, Business Relationship Coordinator, AFRRCS Operations, Public Safety and Emergency Services

Brian Saunders, Business Relationship Coordinator AFRRCS Operations, Public Safety and Emergency Services

Ali Rakie, AFRRCS Migration Technician, AFRRCS Operations, Public Safety and Emergency Services

Marcel Maure, Regional Fire Chief, Director of Emergency Management, Director of Protective Services, MD Smoky River No. 130

Mark VanWerkhoven, Deputy Chief, Communications, Grande Prairie Fire Department

Sponsored By

11:00am – 12:00pm
Concurrent Conference Stream#3

The 21st Century Fire Service

How are we currently using data and what are the possibilities of moving forward with information? Dan Haight will being his experiences in helping organizations build robust and resilient organizations into new realms with a different understanding of data.

Room 107A, Edmonton Expo Centre

Dan Haight
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12:00PM – 1:00PM
Lunch and Keynote Presentation

Join the AFCA in the Ballroom for lunch and the Keynote with Alex Benay.

The Future is Here

Look back at the last 50 years of technological innovation, and what the next 50 years look like as well as how this will impact the fire service for years to come. From robots, , to Ai and even human cyborgs, the future will be a very different place.

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

Alex Benay

Project Manager, Microsoft

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1:15pm – 2:30pm
Concurrent Conference Stream #1

Drone Technology

Many still feel that drone technology and the use of drones in emergency response is ‘just around the corner’, but we have turned that corner! The two themes of this workshop include (1) examples and tips for integrating drones into emergency response and (2) using data collected from drones in modeling and mapping.

The first half of the workshop focuses on discussing drone technology improvements, examples of how drones can improve operations, drone selection, and available tools. We will explore urban and rural uses including search and rescue, wildland fire perimeter/hotspot mapping, preplanning, roof reports, and situational awareness.

The second half of the workshop focuses on the use of the data collected from drones; we discuss fuel mapping, current research, automated structural triage, hazard assessment, and real time mapping.

Room 107 Edmonton Expo Centre

Jeff Boisvert

Associate Professor, University of Alberta

Liam Bennett

Masters Student, University of Alberta

Sponsored By

1:15pm – 2:30pm
Concurrent Conference Stream #2

NG911 – Is Your PSAP Ready?

Join for an interactive workshop on NG911 readiness. We will discuss tactical considerations including operational impacts, cybersecurity, business continuity & disaster recovery, and Technical considerations including the Readiness of your CAD and logging systems to accommodate real-time text (RRT) and new file types. The scope of NG911 transitions are likely much bigger than you think. Participants will be provided with a high-level checklist to assess the readiness of their PASPs.

Room 107A, Edmonton Expo Centre

Andrew Renfree

9-1-1 Manager, Alberta Emergency Management Agency

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1:15pm – 2:30pm
Concurrent Conference Stream#3

Operational Innovation – Where are we headed?

In today’s world of limited budgets and scrutiny of business operations, fire departments are increasingly being asked to produce data and analytics to answer questions, justify purchases, and build business cases. There are expensive business intelligence tools on the market that are financially out of reach for many departments. Many leaders are faced with limited time to compile statistics and reports in order to demonstrate performance.

This Workshop is intended to provide attendees with an introduction into how Parkland County has used Microsoft Office 365 tools such as Excel and PowerBI to quickly develop interactive dashboards and reports to better understand their operations. Attendees will walk through the steps and creating a basic dashboard showing activity, Heat Maps, and interact with data in real time in order to answer questions that might normally take hours to complete.

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

Chad Moore

Parkland County Fire Service

Sponsored By

2:30pm – 2:45pm
Coffee Break 

Ballroom Foyer, Edmonton Expo Centre

Sponsored By

2:45pm – 4:00pm
Concurrent Stream #1

NFPA 1010 Update

Presentation on the NFPA Standards Consolidation Project and specifically changes to NFPA 1010 Firefighter Personnel Qualifications; which includes firefighter, driver operator, airport firefighter and marine firefighting for land-based firefighters. The presentation will cover the changes to the upcoming Edition as well as the standards development process and how to get involved with it

 

Ballroom, Edmonton Expo Centre

John Cunningham

Nova Scotia Firefighters School

Sponsored By

2:45pm – 4:00pm
Concurrent Stream #2

Workers Compensation Urban Focus

“WCB-AB trends from a Disability Management perspective in an integrated fire-EMS Service”

Session summary:

  • Overview of relevant current trends and areas of focus with respect to WCB claims in an integrated service
  • Overview of structure and scope of Disability Management team in Strathcona County; focus on collaborative relationship between Disability Management (a group within Human Resources), SCES Management, SCES union members and relevant third parties (e.g., WCB-AB, LTD insurance carrier, external subject matter experts, etc).

Room 107, Edmonton Expo Centre

Denise Annicchhiarico

Strathcona County

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2:45pm – 4:00pm
Concurrent Stream #3

Introduction to the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs (CAFC) Executive Chief Officer program (ECFO) and Aspire program

 

Session summary:

  • Representing the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs to inform Chief Officers about the Executive Chief Fire Officers (ECFO) designation and the Aspire (Company Officers) designation.

    Explanation of the designations and the process for obtaining this Competency based awared.

Room 107A, Edmonton Expo Centre

Trevor Brice

Fire Chief / DEM

Okotoks Fire & Rescue

 

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6:00pm – 6:30pm
AFCA Annual Banquet Reception

Join your AFCA members for refreshments and networking before the annual banquet.

 

Ballroom Foyer and Ballroom, Sandman Hotel 

6:30pm – 10:00pm
AFCA Annual Banquet & Entertainment with the Dueling Pianos

The Grand Dueling Piano Show presents you with a world-class performance you won’t forget.   It’s all about fun when they hit the stage 

 

Ballroom, Sandman Hotel

Sponsored By

 

Wednesday May 31

7:30am – 9:00am
Breakfast & Keynote

Join us in the Ballroom for breakfast and Keynote Speaker Carlos Tobar.

Future of Public Safety Technologies

Fire services and public safety in general is currently going through major technological transformation. With the evolution to NG911, 5G, and other enabling technologies, this trend continues into 2023 and beyond. In this session, Carlos will walk through the current state of technologies and innovations as well as how future technologies are driving change. We’ll walk through guidelines and tips in order to be successful in adopting and influencing evolving technologies and innovations.

In this session, will explore technologies to a systems thinking approach, and rethink our approach to innovation.

                                                              Ballroom, Sandman Hotel

 

Carlos Tobar

Telus

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9:15am – 10:30am
Concurrent Conference Stream #1

Technology – Yes Go Forward

The two concurrent sessions of “Yes, Go Forward!” and “No, Hold On a Second” will be facilitated conversations where attendees will be assigned to a room and discuss the concepts of innovation and technology to build an argument for the final bear pit session where a “debate” of what critical thinking tools do decision makers need as they are faced with new technologies and innovations.

Ballroom, Sandman Hotel

Carlos Tobar

Telus

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9:15am – 10:30am
Concurrent Conference Stream#2

 

Technology – No, Hold On a Second

Rutherford Room, Sandman Hotel

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Laura King

NFPA’s Regional Director of Canada

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10:30am – 10:45am
Coffee Break

Meet your AFCA members for a coffee before we close the day with the Bear Pit Session.

Ballroom Foyer, Sandman Hotel 

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10:45am – 12:00pm
Closing Bear Bit Session

Yes Go Forward vs. Hold On!

Panel members Carlos Tobar and Laura King share view points from previous concurrent sessions “Yes Go Forward” and “No Hold On” to discuss and debate Technology in the Fire Service. 

Ballroom, Sandman Hotel 

Vern Elliott

Facilitator

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Seeking Sponsorship 

Printable PDF – AFCA 2023 Conference Schedule

2023 AFCA Conference Schedule

Sponsors

Thank you to our Fire Chief Sponsors

Thank you to our Deputy Fire Chief Sponsors

Thank you to our Captain Sponsors

Thank you to our Lanyard Sponsor

 

Thank you to our Badge Sponsor

Associated Fire Safety Group Logo

Thank you to our Lieutenant Sponsors

Associated Fire Safety Group Logo

Thank you to our Leaderboard Gamification Sponsor

Thank you to our Fire Fighter Sponsors

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