5 Performance Objectives in Hotel

A STUDY TOWARDS THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A FIRE SERVICE OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE IN THE EDEN DISTRICT MUNICIPAL AREA

By

Zanda van Rooyen

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of

Magister in Business Administration

at the NMMU Business School

Research supervisor: Prof JJ Pieterse

November 2005

ii

DECLARATION

“I, Zanda van Rooyen, ID No 6503190043080 hereby declare that:

- the work in this research paper is my own original work;

- all sources used or referred to have been documented and recognised;

- and this research paper has not been previously submitted in full or

partial fulfilment of the requirements for an equivalent of higher

qualification at any other recognised education institution.”

Signed ………………………

Date:………………………

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ABSTRACT

The Eden District Municipality (EDM) is a local authority whose area of

responsibility covers the Garden Route and also includes the Klein Karoo. The

boundaries are from Storms River in the east, to Swellendam in the west and

the Swartberg Mountains in the north. The EDM covers a very big area with

seven big municipalities to consider and work with. Five of the municipalities,

Langeberg, Mossel Bay, Knysna, George and Oudtshoorn have their own fire

fighting services.

The EDM fire fighting serves mainly the rural area. This is very costly due to the

large distance required to travel to a fire, whereas the local municipalities are

operating in their own towns. The new municipal boundaries include the rural

areas, but the municipalities cannot service the rural areas because they do not

as yet charge rates in the rural areas and therefore there is no revenue for the

fire fighting service. They operate on the basis of verbal working agreements

that make coordination of fire fighting very difficult.

The fire fighting functions of the EDM as a category C municipality and the local

municipalities as category B municipalities have been specified in the Municipal

Structure Act. The allocation (division) of functions and powers relating to fire

fighting service between the district municipality and local municipalities as

determined by the Municipal Structure Act (Act 117 of 1998) has not been done.

Due to the lack of invested capital, the resources are in a bad state. Some of

the services have no capacity to attend to chemical fires or hazardous

substance emergencies.

Internationally, private fire fighting services can be contracted by government

departments. These private fire fighting services are very large and the areas

that they serve are extensive. These services have their own personnel

structures functioning in an organisational structure that serves them well.

These private services are very cost-effective and can therefore offer

reasonable rates.

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Bases on an investigation of various fire fighting services and different

structures, the proposed structure for fire fighting in the EDM area will be a

combination of structures. The diverse nature of the area will make the location

of a sectoral structure and extension of its capacity difficult, and several factors

that will impact on an new structure must be kept in mind. If all works well it will

be relatively easy to achieve the five operations performance objectives

envisaged for restructuring namely quality, speed, dependability, flexibility and

cost.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I hereby wish to express my gratitude to the following individuals who

contributed to the successful and timeous completion of this dissertation

- To Peet van Rooyen for his support;

- To the George study group, namely

Marius Neser

Trix Holtzhausen

For their support during our years of studying;

- To fire fighters Andrè Tomlinson and Deon van Wyk who shared with me

their passion for fire fighting;

- Eden District Municipality, for making information available.

- To God, my pillar.

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DEDICATION

This dissertation is dedicated to my family: Tom, Ina, Glenda, Peet, Elzaan,

Thomas and Diane.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION ii

ABSTRACT iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii

DEDICATION vi

CHAPTER 1 1

INTRODUCTION, PROBLEM STATEMENT AND OUTLINE OF RESEARCH

PROJECT 1

1.1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.2 MAIN PROBLEM 2

1.3 SUB-PROBLEMS 2

1.4 DELIMITATION OF THE RESEARCH 3

1.4.1 Demarcation of Organisations to be researched 3

1.4.2 Geographic demarcation 3

1.5 DEFINITIONS OF KEY TERMS 3

1.5.1 The Fire Fighting Service 3

1.5.2 Demarcation 4

1.5.3 Benchmarking 4

1.5.4 Unique features of an organisation 4

1.5.5 Efficiency 4

1.5.6 Configuration 5

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1.5.7 Stakeholders 5

1.5.8 The five performance objectives 5

1.6 IMPORTANCE OF THE RESEARCH 6

1.7 RESEARCH DESIGN 7

1.7.1 Literature Study 7

1.7.2 Empirical study 7

1.7.2.1 Measuring Instruments 7

1.7.2.2 Sample 8

1.7.2.3 Statistical analysis of data 8

1.8 DATABASES 8

1.9 LITERATURE OVERVIEW 8

1.10 OUTLINE OF CHAPTERS 10

CHAPTER 2 11

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURES AND LOCATION OF CAPACITY 11

2.1 INTRODUCTION 11

2.2 ORGANISATION CHARTS 13

2.3 DIFFERENT TYPES OF ORGANISATIONS 15

2.3.1 BUREAUCRATIC ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE 16

2.3.2 Flat Organization Structure 17

2.3.3 Network Organisation 18

2.3.4 The Virtual Organisation 20

2.3.5 Geographic Organisation 22

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2.4 THE LOCATION OF CAPACITY 24

2.5 THE FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES 28

2.5.1 The Quality Objective 30

2.5.2. The Speed Objective 31

2.5.3. The Dependability Objective 32

2.5.4 The Flexibility Objective 32

2.5.5 The Cost Objective 33

2.6 SUMMARY 34

CHAPTER 3 35

BENCHMARKING 35

3.1 INTRODUCTION 35

3.2 RURAL/METRO CORPORATION 36

3.3 ZULULAND FIRE PROTECTION SERVICES 39

3.4 SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE DISTRICT (METRO FIRE) 46

3.5 METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT 51

3.6 SUMMARY 60

CHAPTER 4 61

DESIGN OF THE EMPIRICAL STUDY 61

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4.1 INTRODUCTION 61

4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN 61

4.3 DESIGN AND STRUCTURE OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE 62

4.3.1 Administration of the questionnaire 65

4.3.2 Variables in questionnaire 66

4.4 SUMMARY 67

CHAPTER 5 68

RESULTS AND ANALYSIS OF THE EMPIRICAL STUDY 68

5.1 INTRODUCTION 68

5.2 ANALYSIS OF EMERGENCY CALLS ATTENDED 68

5.3 ANALYSIS OF QUANTITY OF FIRE STATIONS, SUB-STATIONS

AND CONTROL CENTRES 71

5.4 ANALYSIS OF FIRE SERVICES EXPENDITURE 72

5.5 ANALYSIS OF MANPOWER 73

5.6 CONCLUSION 75

CHAPTER 6 76

RISK PROFILE AND CAPACITY ANALYSIS 76

6.1 INTRODUCTION 76

6.2 CLIMATE 77

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6.3 GEOPHYSICAL PROFILE 78

6.3.1 Coastal Platform 78

6.3.2 Upper Plateaux 78

6.3.3 Mountains 79

6.3.4 Vegetation 79

6.4 INFRASTRUCTURE 81

6.5 ROADS AND TRANSPORTATION 84

6.6 RAIL TRANSPORT 86

6.7 AIRPORTS 86

6.8 FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF THE FIRE SERVICES AND

GEOGRAPHICAL SERVICE PROFILE 87

6.9 CONCLUSION 92

CHAPTER 7 94

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 94

7.1 INTRODUCTION 94

7.2 ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE 95

7.3 THE LOCATION OF CAPACITY 101

7.4 THE FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES 103

7.4.1 Is the fire fighting service doing things right? 104

7.4.2 Is the fire fighting service first on a scene? 107

7.4.3 Is the fire fighting service doing things on time? 107

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7.4.4 Is the fire fighting service making changes where necessary? 107

7.4.5 Is the fire fighting service doing their jobs cost effectively? 108

7.5 SUMMARY 110

REFERENCES 112

ANNEXURE A - QUESTIONNAIRE 117

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TABLE OF FIGURES AND TABLES

FIGURE 2.1 - EDM FIRE DEPARTMENT ........................................................12

FIGURE 2.2 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STRATEGIC CHOICE AND THE

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE ...................................................................14

FIGURE 2.3 BUREAUCRATIC ORGANISATION STRUCTURE......................17

FIGURE 2.4 FLAT ORGANISATION ................................................................18

FIGURE 2.5 A DYNAMIC NETWORK ..............................................................19

FIGURE 2.6: NEST OF VIRTUALNESS ...........................................................21

FIGURE 2.7 THE GEOGRAPHIC ORGANISATION STRUCTURE..................23

FIGURE 2.8 - THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF A

GEOGRAPHIC STRUCTURE...........................................................................24

FIGURE 2.9 - SUPPLY AND DEMAND: SIDE-FACTORS FOR LOCATION

DECISIONS. .....................................................................................................26

FIGURE 2.10 - PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES ..............................................30

FIGURE 2.11 – QUALITY MEANS DIFFERENT THINGS IN DIFFERENT

OPERATIONS. .................................................................................................31

FIGURE 3.1 - CORPORATE ORGANISATIONAL CHART ..............................38

FIGURE 3.2 - REGIONAL ORGANISATIONAL CHART...................................39

TABLE 3.1 - ZULULAND COASTAL FIRES AND LOSSES .........................42

TABLE 3.2 - ZULULAND INLAND FIRES AND LOSSES ..............................43

FIGURE 3.3 - ELEMENTS OF THE FIREHAWK SYSTEM ..............................45

TABLE 3.3 - FACTS ABOUT SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE

DISTRICTS.......................................................................................................48

FIGURE 3.4 - SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE DISTRICT ..................51

FIGURE 3.5 – PROPOSED NEW STRUCTURE OF METROPOLITAN POLICE

DEPARTMENT .................................................................................................54

FIGURE 3.6 – PROPOSED ROLE STRUCTURE OF METROPOLITAN

POLICE DEPARTMENT ...................................................................................57

TABLE 4.1: An Extract from the Questionnaire................................................64

TABLE 4.2: An Extract from the Questionnaire (continued).............................64



TABLE 5.1 – EMERGENCY CALLS ATTENDED ANNUALLY .........................69

TABLE 5.2 – FIRE STATIONS, SUB-STATIONS AND CONTROL ROOMS....71

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TABLE 5.3 – MUNICIPAL TOTAL OPERATING EXPENDITURE AND FIRE

SERVICES OPERATING EXPENDITURE .......................................................72

TABLE 5.4 – EDM OPERATIONAL MANPOWER PROFILE ...........................74

TABLE 6.1 – REGIONAL VEGETATION FEATURES. .....................................80

TABLE 6.2 – THE EDM DEMOGRAPHICS ......................................................81

FIGURE 6.1 - MAP OF THE EDM AREA………………………………………….83

TABLE 6.3 - MAIN URBAN CENTRES AND SETTLEMENTS IN THE EDM....84

TABLE 6.4 - TOWN DISTRIBUTION AND TRAVEL DISTANCES IN THE EDM

..........................................................................................................................85

TABLE 6.5 – ASSESSMENT OF FUNCTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS................87

TABLE 6.6 – RESOURCE ASSESSMENT FOR STRUCTURE FIRES............88

TABLE 6.7 – MAIN FIRE FIGHTING RESOURCES IN THE EDM ...................90

TABLE 7.1 - TOTAL MANPOWER STATISTICS..............................................96

TABLE 7.2 - IDENTIFICATION OF THE THREE GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS ...96

TABLE 7.3 - DEMOGRAPHICS OF EDM DIVIDED INTO THE THREE AREAS

..........................................................................................................................97

FIGURE 7.1 - GEOGRAPHIC ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF EDM

AREA ................................................................................................................98

FIGURE 7.2 – REGIONAL COMMANDER COASTAL PLATEAUX A ..............98

TABLE 7.4 – SUPPLY-SIDE FACTORS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS ..........102

TABLE 7.5 – DEMAND-SIDE FACTORS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS .........103

TABLE 7.6 – MAIN FIRE FIGHTING RESOURCES IN THE EDM .................105

1

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION, PROBLEM STATEMENT AND OUTLINE OF RESEARCH PROJECT

1.1 INTRODUCTION

Perhaps the greatest change evident in the way that public services will look

from a perspective of twenty years hence is that there is likely to be a much

more logical and end-user focused approach to the way in which organisations

operate. The current model, which typically sees a split of provision and

responsibility across national, regional and sometimes local boundaries, is

going to be challenged, possibly to the point of extinction (Milner, 2000:177).

Efficient and effective public services are an essential part of a healthy

democratic society. Many local authorities recognise this and successfully

achieve high standards, often in difficult circumstances. A fire service forms part

of all the public services that a local authority can provide. The importance of a

fire service is realised when disaster strikes. That is when a municipality must

demonstrate what resources are available to the fire services and what can be

achieved within the resources that are available (Johnson & Scholes; 2002:31).

Obeng (1997:198) states that you can find new ways of delivering old needs, as

one already knows who the customers are, where they are and what colour

underpants they wear. It is all out there for the taking, but the real barrier is in

your imagination. To be able to go virtual you will need to redraw your mental

maps. The opportunity is there but to convince people to redraw their mental

maps will be a large task.

Management formulates strategic goals and objectives which the total

organisation will seek to obtain. Swanepoel, Erasmus, Van Wyk and Schenk

(2000:87) define three different possible strategies, namely Corporate strategy

determines what types or areas of business it would be best to get involved in.

Business strategy on the other hand, is the decisions and practices concerned

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with how to complete and achieve success in these particular industries or

sectors. Functional strategy refers to the strategies relating to the various

functional areas such as marketing, public relations, operations and human

resources.

Structuring the flow of work also involves decisions about how the organisation

as a whole is to be structured. There are many ways to structure an

organisation. Typically, the pyramid-shaped structure (bureaucratic) consists of

a hierarchy of many different levels. Variables that influence design of a

structure are as follows: configuration, formalisation, standardisation,

specialisation and centralisation. The explosive growth in computing power and

networks, including the Internet, is turning organisations into networked

enterprises. Information can be distributed within and beyond the organisation.

This capability can be used to redesign and reshape organisations,

transforming their structure, scope of operations, reporting and control

mechanisms, work practices, works flows, products and services. Information

systems can reduce the number of levels in an organisation, giving a flatter

organisational structure that will provide managers with information to supervise

large numbers of workers and giving lower-level employees more decision-

making authority.

Every person’s knowledge is relatively unique.

1.2 MAIN PROBLEM The main problem that was researched in this project is as follows:

How can an effective fire service operational structure be implemented in the Eden District Municipality Area?

1.3 SUB-PROBLEMS The main problem was resolved by addressing the following sub-problems:

• How do regional fire fighting services ideally operate?

• What viewpoints do knowledgeable people have about an operational

structure for a fire fighting service does it operate and how?

• How can the current fire fighting services be improved?

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• What is the risk profile and capacity of current fire fighting services in the

Eden District Municipality (EDM) area? 1.4 DELIMITATION OF THE RESEARCH 1.4 .1 Demarcation of Organisations to be researched The scope of the research was limited to the Southern Cape and Klein Karoo

region.

1.4.2 Geographic demarcation The Eden District Municipality (EDM) covers the Garden Route area and also

includes the Klein Karoo. The boundaries are from Storms River in the east to

Swellendam in the west and the Swartberg Mountains in the north. The EDM

covers a very big area with seven big municipalities to consider and work with.

Communication is primarily conducted via a multitude of meetings.

1.5 DEFINITIONS OF KEY TERMS To ensure common understanding, certain key terms used throughout the study

are defined below.

1.5.1 The Fire Fighting Service Each of the seven municipalities has a fire department. The organisational

structures of each fire department differ from one another.

Apart from the municipalities there are other groups that also maintain some

kind of fire fighting service. They are:

• Working For Fire,

• Nature conservation,

• Forestry,

• Farmers,

• PetroSA..

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1.5.2 Demarcation During July 1998 wall-to-wall municipalities were created with the demarcation

of the municipalities as per Local Government Municipal Demarcation Act [No.

27 of 1998]. Rural areas were thereby included in greater municipal boundary.

Previously the rural areas had been serviced by the District Councils.

1.5.3 Benchmarking Laudon and Laudon (2002:315) define benchmarking as measuring

performance against external industry standards, i.e. standards set by other

companies, or internally developed high standards, or some combination of the

two.

1.5.4 Unique features of an organisation No two organisations are identical, although all organisations have common

characteristics. Organisations differ in structure or shape, goals, constituencies,

leadership styles, tasks and surrounding environments. Organisations are open

to and dependent on the social and physical environment that surrounds them,

and they have a reciprocal relationship with the environment. Organisations

must respond to legislative and other requirements imposed by the government

and they can form alliances with others to influence the political process. New

government regulations put pressure on any organisation’s culture, politics and

people. Most organisations do not cope with large environmental shifts and fail

to adapt to a rapidly changing environment and a lack of resources (Laudon &

Laudon; 2002:72).

1.5.5 Efficiency According to Robbins (1998:23), efficiency is the ratio of effective output to the

input required to achieve it. When a hospital for example meets the needs of its

clientele successfully, it is effective, but it is efficient when the hospital can do

so at a low cost.

Inputs can be identified as labour, land and capital. Efficiency is achieved by

minimizing input and maximizing productive outputs (Hellriegel, Jackson,

Slocum, Staude & Associates; 2001:130).

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1.5.6 Configuration An organisation’s configuration consists of the structures, processes,

relationships and boundaries through which the organisation operates (Johnson

& Scholes; 2002:398).

1.5.7 Stakeholders Useful classifications of the performance objectives which any operation might

pursue can be gained by identifying the operation stakeholders. Slack,

Chambers and Johnston (2001:43) state that stakeholders are the people and

groups of people who have an interest in the operation and who may be

influenced or can influence the operation’s activities.

Stakeholders can also be identified as internal or external. Internal stakeholders

are identified as the operation’s employees and the external stakeholders are

the society or community groups and the company’s shareholders. External

stakeholders can have a direct commercial relationship with the company by

means of the company’s value chain.

In government departments, who are non-profit organisations, stakeholders can

overlap; they can be “shareholders” of a public service agency as well as their

main customer.

1.5.8 The five performance objectives In order to be more competitive, there are objectives that will contribute to

achieve the goals. The five basic performance objectives can be applied to all

types of operations. The following five objectives can be applied to achieve

greater competitiveness:

• To do things right → quality objective,

• To do things first → speed objective,

• To do things on time → dependability,

• To make changes where necessary → flexibility,

• To do things cheaply → cost objective (Slack et al., 2001:49).

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1.6 IMPORTANCE OF THE RESEARCH The production of goods and the delivery of services at market-related costs,

while still allowing for a return to the organisation or a non-for-profit

organisation, give good value for money to the taxpayers or whoever is funding

the operation. Cost is the major operation objective. The lower the cost of

producing services or goods, the lower the price to customers.

An operation will spend its money on staff, facilities, technology, equipment cost

and material costs. Comparing the cost structure of different operations is not

always straightforward and depends on how costs are categorized. Costs can

be categorized as fixed costs and variable costs. Cost is affected by the other

performance objectives:

• High-quality operations do not waste time or effort having to re-do things,

• Fast operations reduce the level of in-process inventory between micro

operations.

• Organised operations reduce administrative overheads.

• Dependable operations do not spring any unwelcome surprises on their

internal customers.

• Flexible operations adapt to changing circumstances quickly and without

disrupting the rest of the operation. Flexible micro operations can also

change over between tasks quickly and without wasting time and capacity.

The cost factor is only one of the reasons why it was important to do this

research. The current situation in the EDM is that the seven big municipalities

have a fully functional fire fighting service that only services areas within the old

municipal boundaries, while the District Council is still responsible for the rural

areas. This situation is due to the functions relating to the Municipal Structures

Amendment Act (Act 33 of 2000) that are not clearly divided between the

municipalities and the District Councils. In the meantime the taxpayers are

paying for a very expensive fire fighting service, or getting no service at all.

The geography and climate in the region require various fire fighting

management strategies. Each area has to cope with a different fire hazard in

the various seasons. There are forests, mountains, the Karoo and the south

7

western districts. Resources must be managed in such a way that all the

different situations are catered for, and managed as cost effectively as possible.

1.7 RESEARCH DESIGN In this section the methodology followed in the research project is described. In

conducting the research the subsequent procedure was espoused to solve the

main problem as well as the sub-problems.

1.7.1 Literature Study A literature study was conducted to identify key factors leading to successes in

strategic fire fighting decisions. It was also necessary to determine which would

be more viable: the larger, regional fire fighting service, or whether it would be

more beneficial to retain the status quo. These key factors were compared to

the current situation as well as the creation of a regional fire fighting service.

Literature was obtained from the libraries of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan

University, Municipalities in Eden District Municipal area and the Internet.

1.7.2 Empirical study The empirical study consists of:

1.7.2.1 Measuring Instruments a.) Case study – Data from case studies on the functioning of different

existing fire fighting services were collected and analysed. The aim of

investigating these case studies, as well as the subsequent interviews,

was to quantify what knowledgeable people believed are the

requirements or strategies for a regional fire fighting service, and to

obtain an inventory of equipment and skills.

b.) Interviews - Personal as well as telephonic interviews were conducted

with selected employees of stakeholders. The main objective of the

interviews was to obtain information regarding the status of the fire

fighting services in the EDM area. A questionnaire was completed by the

interviewees.

8

1.7.2.2 Sample The sample was restricted to the seven big municipalities in the Eden District

municipal area. These seven municipalities are:

• Langeberg,

• Mosselbay,

• George,

• Knysna,

• Bitou,

• Demarcation Area (DMA),

• Oudtshoorn.

1.7.2.3 Statistical analysis of data Analysis of the data was done by following the following steps:

• Organisation of detail about the case,

• Categorisation of data,

• Interpretation of single instances,

• Identification of patterns, and

• Synthesis and generalization (Leedy, Ormrod; 2001:150).

1.8 DATABASES Research publications and relevant statistical data of governmental agencies,

municipals and other stakeholders were accessed to obtain information on

trends in fire fighting structures. These trends were used as a guideline for the

strategic development process.

1.9 LITERATURE OVERVIEW In an attempt to resolve the main and sub-problems, a literature study was

undertaken. The sub-problems were matched to some literature, although sub-

sections of the sub-problems had to be researched as well.

What method(s) could be used to analyse the ideal fire fighting service?

To address this sub-problem, the current situation was analysed by means of a

case study and interviews. Kreitner, Kinicki and Buelens (2002:24) define a

case study as an in-depth study of a single person, group or organisation. The

9

methods of data collection of case studies are observations, interviews and

appropriate written documents and/or audiovisual material (Leedy; 2001:157)

Clark (1998:28) defines knowledge as the understanding of why and how

something works, for example, how and why the customer reaches a decision

to purchase a product or to hire a service. Knowledge is generally related to the

level of education of a person. Although it is something that has to be taught, it

does not necessarily have to be taught in schools or universities, it can also be

acquired by field training. It is important to note that knowledge does not have to

be of an academic nature.

Brewster, Dowling, Grobler, Holland and Wärnich (2000:136) classify business

knowledge into various categories:

• Advantaged knowledge is knowledge that does or can provide competitive

advantage for the company.

• Base knowledge forms an integral part of the business, e.g. best practices.

This provides only a short-term advantage.

• Trivial knowledge has no major impact on the company.

The dilemma for organisations is how to turn individual knowledge into a

corporate resource and asset. Knowledge creates the capacity to act and is an

individual human activity. It is created at the moment of interpretation and

resides in the heads of individuals, staff, customers, suppliers and competitors.

Every person’s knowledge is relatively unique.

How to improve the current situation?

Strategic management is the process of examining both the present and future

environments, formulating the organisation’s objectives and making,

implementing and controlling decisions focused on achieving these objectives in

the present and future environments (Swanepoel, Erasmus, Van Wyk &

Schenk; 2000:202).

Perhaps the greatest change evident in the way that public services will look

from a perspective of twenty years hence, is that there is likely to be a much


10



going to be challenged, possibly to the point of extinction (Milner; 2000:177).

What influence does the geographic demarcation have on the fire fighting

service?

Historic data such as rainfall patterns, temperatures during different seasons

and link to a fire call out, the number of call outs and the kind of call outs as well

as the duration of the service rendering and the location of the call out are

important. This survey was done in both municipal and rural areas.

1.10 OUTLINE OF CHAPTERS The study is presented as follows:

• Chapter 1 - The introduction to and overview of the research thesis.

• Chapter 2 - Organisational structure and location of capacity.

• Chapter 3 - Benchmarking

• Chapter 4 - Design of the empirical study

• Chapter 5 - Results and analysis of the empirical study

• Chapter 6 - Risk profile and capacity analysis

• Chapter 7 - Summary and conclusion.

• References - List of references

• Annexure - Questionnaire

11

CHAPTER 2

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURES AND LOCATION OF CAPACITY

2.1 INTRODUCTION

“Come and visit the Garden Route, it is a taste of Eden and we all are crazy

about Eden.” These words of former Mayor, Mr. A Lamont, best describe the

area. The Eden District Municipality (EDM), situated on the Garden Route,

includes the Klein Karoo. The boundaries are from Storms River in the east to

Swellendam in the west and the Swartberg Mountains in the north.

The EDM is a local authority. The corporate strategy is to maximise income and

the business strategy is to take up all the functions being given the authority to

by law for example, to supply water, sewerage and fire fighting, tourism and

health services.

The organisational structure of EDM is the typical pyramid-shape. Management

comprises the top three levels of the organisational structure and the number of

levels downward depends on the function of the different departments. Even the

merge with Klein Karoo District Municipality did not alter the structure.

Specialisation is the only factor that distinguishes one department from the

other, for example Finance and the Fire Department.

The EDM consists of five departments, namely Finance, Corporative Services,

Community Services, Roads and Economic Development and Tourism. The

Fire Department is part of the Community Services Department. The fire

department is a necessity, but unfortunately this service is expensive. A current

organisational structure of the EDM fire department is presented in figure 2.1.

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FIGURE 2.1 - EDM FIRE DEPARTMENT

Source: F.Goosen, Acting Human Resources Manager, EDM, George,

(personal communication, November 2003).

This chapter addresses the following sub-problem: How does a regional fire fighting service ideally operate? This problem will be addressed by looking

at the strategic advantages and disadvantages of different organisational

structures and also matching organisational structure to strategy. The question

is where to locate the fire fighting service to operate efficiently and what the

specific performance objectives are against which its success can be

measured. Thomson stated that the strategy-implementing challenge is to

create a series of tight fits between strategy and the organisation’s

competencies, capabilities and structure (Thomson & Strickland; 1999:307).

The three major organisation-building actions are as follows:

• Filling key positions with able people,

• Building the core competencies, resource strengths and organisational

capabilities needed to perform its value chain activities proficiently,

• Structuring the internal work effort and melding it with the collaborative

efforts of strategic allies (Thomson & Strickland; 1999:307).

All organisation structures have strategic advantages and disadvantages. New

strategic priorities like short design-to-market cycles, multi version production

and personalised customer services are promoting a revolution in organisation

FIRE CHIEF

STATION OFFICER ADMINISTRATION

CLERK

SHIFT A

• Shift Leader • Fireman • Fireman

SHIFT B


SHIFT C


13

building featuring lean, flat, horizontal structures that are responsive and

innovative (Thomson & Strickland;1999:309).

Advances in information technology have made it possible for organisations to

focus on their core competencies. However traditional hierarchical design with

its top-down command structure is not totally obsolete. It is still necessary to

cope with routine functions, although it cannot be expected to deal with strategic

issues (Schultz, Bagraim, Potgieter, Viedge & Werner, 2003:236).

2.2 ORGANISATION CHARTS

Organisation theorists have many definitions for an organisation structure, but

the four common factors in all organisations are:

• Co-ordination of effort,

• A common goal,

• Division of labour,

• Hierarchy of authority (Kreitner et al., 2002:508).

The co-ordination of effort is achieved through formulation and enforcement of

policies, rules and regulations. Division of labour occurs where individuals

perform different tasks but want to achieve the same goal (common goal).

Making sure that the right people do the right things at the right time is called

the hierarchy of authority or chain of command. Keeping al these factors in

mind, an organisation chart can be defined as a graphic illustration showing

chain of formal authority and division of labour (Kreitner et al., 2002:509).

John Child proposed a strategic choice model that was based on behavioural

rather than on rational economic principles. This model resulted from a political

process involving organisational power holders. This model, as a model of

organisational structure, is determined largely by a dominant coalition of top

management strategists (Kreitner et al., 2002:528).

14

FIGURE 2.2 THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STRATEGIC CHOICE AND THE ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Source: Kreitner et al. (2002:528).

Figure 2.2 illustrates that specific strategic choices or decisions reflect how the

dominant coalition perceives environmental constraints and the organisation’s

objectives. The personal beliefs, attitudes, values and ethics of decision makers

are used to temper strategic choices. This theory directs our attention that an

organisation is structured to accommodate its mix of strategies. Therefore

corrective action must be taken if the organisation effectiveness criteria are not

met. The strategic choice theory and research teach managers two practical

lessons;

• The environment is just one of many determinants of structure;

• The design is subject to the interplays of personal power and politics,

(Kreitner et al., 2002:529).

Different organisations have different problems: an organisation that provides

goods or services in an environment with slow technological innovation and

relatively few competitors differs from an organisation in a growing, changing

and highly competitive market where there is a lot of uncertainty. Relative

Organisational

Objectives

Strategic

decisions

made by

dominant

Decision

makers’

personal

beliefs

Environmental

constraints Organisational

structure

Organisational

effectiveness

Organisational

strategies

Corrective action

• Target markets • Capital

sources/uses • Human

resources • Technology

• Total quality management

15

stability in an organisation’s environment has major implications for its strategy

and structure. Firms operate in stable and changing environments and therefore

some functions may undergo little structural changes and others may change

considerably (Hellriegel et al., 2001:223).

2.3 DIFFERENT TYPES OF ORGANISATIONS The movement towards tighter and leaner organisations has drawn attention to

the importance of alternative forms of structure and has placed increased

emphasis on the demand for flexibility. Due to the revolutionary changes in

organisations, the need is great for new and flexible structures. The age of the

Internet and e-commerce demands adaptations of new organisational

architectures.

Hellriegel et al. (2001:202) conclude that organisational structures help

employees work together effectively by:

o Assigning human and other resources to tasks,

o Clarifying the responsibilities of employees and how their efforts should

mesh through job description, organisational charts and line of authority,

o Informing employees about the rules, operating procedures and

performance standards,

o Establishing procedures for collecting and evaluating information to help

management to make decisions and solve problems.

To be able to create an organisational structure for the EDM fire-fighting

service, it is important to investigate what the different structures in the

organisation are.

The following structures will be discussed:

• Bureaucratic organisation,

• Flat organisation,

• Network organisation,

• Virtual organisation,

• Geographic structure.

16

2.3.1 Bureaucratic Organisational Structure

Swanepoel et al. (2000:244) define the bureaucratic organisational structure as

a structure that results from what is known as the mechanistic approach to

organisation design. Robbins (1989:489) states that the primary strength of the

bureaucracy lies in its ability to perform standardised activities in a highly

efficient manner. There is little need for innovative and experienced decision

makers below the level of senior executives. The peak of a bureaucracy’s

popularity was probably in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Firms such as IBM and

General Electric were organised as a bureaucracy. Although this structure is

currently out of fashion, the majority of large organisations still take on basic

bureaucratic characteristics, particularly specialisation and high formalisation

organisations.

The span of control has generally been widened, authority has become more

decentralised and the functional departments have been supplemented with an

increased use of teams (Robbins; 1989:490).

Characteristics of a bureaucratic organisation are:

• Emphasising the importance of achieving high levels of production,

• Efficiency through extensive use of rules and procedures,

• Centralised authority,

• High specialisation of labour,

• Tall pyramid-shape structure with a hierarchy of many levels,

• Top-down, “command-and-control”, military-like structure,

• Emphasis is placed on departmentalisation,

• Work is often structure in rigid functional work units, with definite boundaries

between different jobs, sections, departments, divisions and other word units

(Swanepoel et al., 2000:244).

Figure 2.3 is an example of a bureaucratic organisation structure.

17

FIGURE 2.3 BUREAUCRATIC ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Source: Swanepoel et al. (2000:245).

2.3.2 Flat Organisation Structure Swanepoel et al. (2000:244) state that a flat structure is essentially the result of

following the organic model or approach to organisation design. Characteristics

of a flat organisation structure are:

• Importance of high levels of adaptiveness, responsiveness and development

through limiting the use of rules, regulations and procedures,

• Decentralisation of authority,

• Lower degrees of specialisation,

• Wide spans of control,

• Jobs are more broadly defined with greater overlaps and flexible boundaries

between different word units,

• Teams are part of flat structures (Swanepoel et al., 2000:245).

Figure 2.4 is a graphic illustration of a flat organisational structure.

18

FIGURE 2.4 FLAT ORGANISATION

Source: Swanepoel et al. (2000:245)

2.3.3 Network Organisation

The network structure blends traditional management concepts by the

exchange of agreements. The structure relies heavily on outsourcing and

contracting out. This gives companies the opportunity to downsize to their core

areas of competence and establish alliances with independent suppliers and

distributors. This structure is based on cooperative, multidisciplinary teams and

business networks across the enterprise with a modular or virtual organisation

structure (Swanepoel et al., 2000:246).

Bateman and Snell (1999:322) define a network organisation not as one

organisation, but as a web of interrelationships among many firms with flexible

arrangements among designers, suppliers, producers, distributors and

customers. Each firm is able to pursue their own distinctive competence. The

role of managers shifts in a network from that of command and control to more

like broker. The broker assembles and coordinates participants in a network

and plays a designer, process engineering and nurturing role to make certain

the relationships are healthy and mutually beneficial. Schultz, Bagraim,

Potgieter, Viedge and Werner (2003:238) are of the opinion that to create

successful external relationships, the six “I’s” can be effective in creating

alliances of flexible partnerships:

• Importance of relationships is stressed,

• Investment in the form of financial resources, management attention and

sponsorship,

• Interdependence of participants helps maintain the balance of power,

19

• Integration of participants takes place in order to maintain essential points of

contract and communication,

• Information is disseminated to each partner,

• Institutionalisation bolsters a framework of supporting mechanisms, from

legal requirements to shared values.

FIGURE 2.5 A DYNAMIC NETWORK

Source: Bateman and Snell (1999:323)

Schultz et al. (2003:238) state that the network design emphasises horizontal

structures and processes needed to manage complex sequential and reciprocal

interdependencies among individuals, teams, departments and divisions. This

design, as per figure 2.5, also draws on the revolution in information

technologies that enables formation of convenient and low-cost networks, and

changes as needs and goals change. Hellriegel et al. (2001:235) reiterate that

organisations cannot operate effectively unless they can communicate quickly,

accurately and over great distance. When these capabilities exist, managers of

network organisations can:

• Search globally for opportunities and resources,

• Maximise the use of resources,

• Look only at core competencies,

• Outsource activities that can be better done by someone else at less cost.

Advantages of the network structure is that of a very lean structure with very

few employees on the payroll because most production and services are

Designer Producer

Distributors

Brokers

Supplier

20

contracted for and coordinated by means of vertical information processing

systems. Workforce is flexible and challenges are because employees are

contractors who respond to changing tasks and new demands. Some networks

organisations preserve highly specialised teams (Hellriegel et al., 2001:236).

Successful networks potentially offer flexibility, innovation, quick responses to

threats and opportunities, and reduced cost and risk. But for these

arrangements to be successful, several things must occur:

• The firm must choose the right specialty,

• The firm must choose collaborators that are also excellent at what they do

and that provide complementary strengths,

• The firm must make certain that all parties fully understand the strategic

goals of the partnership,

• Each party must be able to trust the others with strategic information and

also trust that each collaborator will deliver quality products (Bateman and

Snell; 1999:323).

The most prominent disadvantages of a network structure are that the

managers have very little control, operations are not under one roof and

managers must rely on independent contractors and subcontractors to do the

work. Contractors can make mistakes and not report them, which results in

mistrust. Defining the organisation is very difficult due to the continuous

changes that are taking place. The frequent change of contractors has the

effect that new relationships must be built every time a contractor changes. The

relationship building takes time and is a money consumer due to the frequency.

Commitment to the organisation is low because employees tend to be

committed to the contractor that employs them (Hellriegel et al., 2001:236).

2.3.4 The Virtual Organisation

A key effect of information and communications technologies such as the

Internet is an increase of virtualisation in business activities and ways of

working. Virtualisation overcomes constraints of time and distance.

Skyrme (1999:20) defines the virtual corporation as “a temporary network of

independent companies that co-ordinates activities to meet a common

21

objective, such as a new product development or to meet a common objective,

such as a new product development or to meet a customer’s needs”

Virtual organisations can range from a stable supply network that works as a

single organisation, to a loose federation of independent firms that come

together temporarily for specific activities.

Virtualness can also operate at several levels, from individual to inter-

organisational. These variations give rise to many types of virtuality, ranging

from workers communicating with colleagues globally via phone or e-mail, or

the creation of consortia to work on a specific project. Figure 2.6 illustrates

some of these types in the form of a nested hierarchy where there is a large

degree of inclusivity between the levels.

FIGURE 2.6: NEST OF VIRTUALNESS

Source: www.skyrme.com [Accessed November 2003]

A virtual organisation is not just outsourcing. Virtual organisations are more

about sharing of strengths and not about people coming in to do a particular

task. Outsourcing and virtual organisations should not be confused. The

following are common features that distinguish virtualisation from traditional

organisations:

• Information and communications technology allows operations to be

dispersed,

• The barriers of time and space are reduced,

22

• Organisational structures are network-like and more dynamic,

• The interface with customers and markets is different,

• Employees and associates (business partners, suppliers, customers) adopt

new patterns of work,

• The locus of knowledge is diffused. It is not necessary in a specific place,

• Relationships not as bureaucratic,

• Company can be virtual and real, http://www.emporia.edu/ (2002).

The virtual organisation holds a number of important challenges for the future.

Brewster, Dowling, Grobler, Holland and Wärnich (2000:211) say that issues

such as effective communication and planning will need attention, as the face-

to-face approaches which have worked well over the years will disappear. In

addition, to capitalise on the flexibility and speed that are possible through these

networks, managers and team members will have to form clear agreements

from the outset regarding issues such as performance expectations, team

priorities, communication links and resource allocation.

Robbins (1989:493) states that the virtual organisation is highly centralised with

little or no departmentalisation. The only primary drawback to this structure is

that it reduces management’s control over key parts of its business.

“Commitment, trust and loyalty could erode badly if managers do not heed this caution by Charles Handy, the British management expert quoted earlier.” According to Handy: “A shared commitment still requires contact to make the commitment feel real’” (Kreitner et al., 2002:533).

2.3.5 Geographic Organisation

Thomson and Strickland (1999:291) define a geographic organisation as a

structure that suits firms well and that pursues different strategies in different

geographic regions. This organisation, which is organised on the basis of

geographic areas or territories, is a common structural form for enterprises

operating in diverse geographic markets or serving an expansive geographic

area. The main reason for its popularity is that it promotes improved

performance. In the public sector, such organisations as the U.S. Postal Service

and the Red Cross have adopted territorial structures in order to be directly

accessible to geographically dispersed clienteles.

23

“The primary advantage of both the product and customer/regional approaches to departmentalisation is the ability to focus on customer needs and to provide faster, better service. But again, duplication of activities across many customer groups and geographic areas is expensive” (Bateman & Snell; 1999:292).

Hill (2004) has designed a geographical structure for a geographic organisation:

FIGURE 2.7 THE GEOGRAPHIC ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Source:http://courses.bus.msu.edu/materials/1022/ch11a.ppt

Individual Stores

24

FIGURE 2.8 - THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF A GEOGRAPHIC STRUCTURE

STRATEGIC ADVANTAGES STRATEGIC DISADVANTAGES

Allows tailoring of strategy to

needs of each geographical

market

Poses a problem of how much

geographic uniformity headquarters

should impose versus how much

geographic diversity should be

allowed

Delegates profit/loss

responsibility to lowest

strategic level

Greater difficulty in maintaining

consistent company image/reputation

from area to area when geographic

managers exercise much strategic

freedom

Improves functional

coordination within the target

market

Adds another layer of management to

run the geographic units

Takes advantage of economies

of local operations

Can result in duplication of staff

services at headquarters and

geographic levels, creating a cost

disadvantage

Regional units make an

excellent training ground for

higher level general managers

Source: Thomson and Strickland (1999:293)

2.4 THE LOCATION OF CAPACITY

Slack, Chambers and Johnston (2001:159) define location as the geographical

positioning of an operation relative to the input resources, other operations or

customers with which it interacts. Sometimes operations cannot logically justify

their location, as some are where they are for historical reasons. The decision

not to move is made on an assumption that the cost and disruption involved in

changing location would outweigh any potential benefits of a new location.

The retail industry knows what it means not to be at the right location. If the

location is wrong it can have a significant impact on profit. The location decision

25

is also important in other types of operations. If a fire service station is

incorrectly located, it can slow down the average journey time of the fire crew in

getting to the fire. Therefore the location decision will usually have an effect on

an operation’s cost as well as on its ability to serve its customers. The decision

to relocate is very important due to the fact that moving an operation from one

site to another can be very expensive and the risks of inconveniencing

customers is very high and it is very difficult to undo or reverse.

There are two reasons for an organisation to make location decisions. Firstly,

these changes may occur in response to a demand for goods and services that

can increase or decrease according to the aggregated volume of demand. For

example, the increase in call outs for fires in a certain region due to the lack of

rain and changing weather patterns can suggest that a fire station could open a

new station. Secondly, the changes in supply and availability of inputs to the

operation and the changes in cost are reasons for making the location decision,

for example the cost of fuel when travelling long distances to fire call outs

(Slack et al., 2001;159).

It is very important to achieve an appropriate balance between three related

objectives to make a location decision. These objectives are as follows:

• The spatially variable cost of the operation due to the variables that change

with the geographical location,

• The service the operation is able to provide to its customers,

• The revenue potential of the operation (Slack et al., 2001:161).

For organisations that are profit driven, the last two objectives are related. In

non-profit organisations like the public service, revenue potential might not be a

relevant objective and so cost and customer service are often taken as the twin

objectives of location. The decisions made about where to locate an operation

are concerned with minimizing spatially variable costs and maximizing revenue

and/or customer service. All types of organisation are affected by both variables

but not always equally for all organisations. For example, customers may not

care very much where the products are made and location is unlikely to affect

the operation’s revenues significantly. The cost of the operation will be greatly

26

affected by the location. Services are both cost and revenue affected by

location (Slack et al., 2001:161).

Slack et al. (2001:161) also state that the location decision for any operation is

determined by the relative strength of supply-side and demand-side factors as

shown in figure 2.9.

FIGURE 2.9 - SUPPLY AND DEMAND: SIDE-FACTORS FOR LOCATION DECISIONS.

Source: Slack et al. (2001:161).

According to figure 2.9, the supply-side influences vary in such a way as to

influence cost as location varies. The following supply-side factors influence

location;

• Labour costs,

• Land costs,

• Energy costs,

• Transportation costs,

• Community factors.

Supply–side factors

Which can vary

in such ways as

to influence cost

The

Operation

Demand–side factors

Which can vary in

such ways as to

influence customer

• Labour Skills • Suitability of Site • Image • Convenience for

Customers (e.g. speed and dependability)

• Labour Costs • Land Costs • Energy Costs • Transportation Costs • Community Costs

27

Labour costs are the costs of employing people with particular skills. Labour

cost can differ from area to area and also between different countries. These

costs include both direct wage costs and non-wage costs. Labour costs exert a

major influence on the location decision (Slack et al., 2001:161).

Land costs are the costs to acquire the site itself or to rent the site. If the site is

in a main street, the rent will be much higher than that for a site in a rural area

(Slack et al., 2001:162).

Energy costs are important for an operation that uses large amounts of energy,

such as aluminium melting which is directly dependent on the availability of

hydroelectric generation of energy in an area. This factor can influence a

location decision directly (Slack et al., 2001:162).

Transportation costs can be considered in two parts. One is the cost of

transporting inputs for their source to the site of operation. The other part of

transportation cost is the transporting of goods from the site to customers (Slack

et al., 2001:162).

Community factors are those that derive operation costs from the social,

political and economic environment of its site. Community factors can have a

direct influence on the profitability of an organisation, for example the taxes are

very high. These factors are as follows:

• Local tax rates,

• Capital movement restrictions,

• Government financial assistance,

• Government planning assistance,

• Political stability,

• Local attitudes to inward investments,

• Language,

• Local amenities (for example schools, theatres, shops),

• Availability of support services,

• History of labour relations and behaviour,

• Environmental restrictions and waste disposal,

• Planning procedures and restrictions (Slack et al., 2001:163).

28

Demand-side factors can vary in such a way as to influence customer

service/revenue as location varies. The demand-side factor areas are as

follows;

• Labour skills,

• Suitability of site,

• Image,

• Convenience for customers (speed and dependability).

Labour skills are important as the ability of the local labour force can have an

effect on customer’s reaction to the products or services which the operation

produces (Slack et al., 2001:165).

The suitability of the site itself can affect an operation’s ability to serve

customers’ and generate revenue. For example, if a luxury hotel moves away

from a lovely beach with palm trees to an industrial estate, it will rapidly lose its

attraction and revenue collection will decrease (Slack et al., 2001:165).

The image of location is important due to the fact that some locations are firmly

associated in customers’ minds, for example the different images of a hospital

and a bank

Convenience for customers is the most important demand-side factor for many

operations. Hospitals are therefore located close to centres of demand.

Similarly with other public services, location has a significant effect on the ability

of an organisation to serve its customers effectively (Slack et al., 2001:165).

To assist managers in making a good judgement in a location decision, there

are two more techniques to help make this decision. These are the weight-score

method and the centre-of-gravity method.

2.5 THE FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES

Useful classifications of the performance objectives are used to identify the

operation stakeholders. Slack et al. (2001:43) stated that stakeholders are the

29

people and groups of people who have an interest in the operation and who

may be influenced or can influence the operation’s activities.

Stakeholders can also be identified as internal or external. Internal stakeholders

are identified as the operation’s employees and the external stakeholders are

the society or community groups and the company’s shareholders. External

stakeholders can have a direct commercial relationship with the company by

means of the company’s value chain. In government departments, who are a

non-profit organisations, stakeholders can overlap; they can be “shareholders”

of a public service agency as well as their main customer.

In order to be more competitive, there are objectives that will contribute to

achieve the goals. The five basic performance objectives can be applied to all

types of operations. These five objectives that will assist you to be more

competitive are:

• You want to do things right → quality objective,

• You want to do things first → speed objective,

• You want to do things on time → dependability,

• You want to make changes where necessary → flexibility,

• You want to do things cheaply → cost objective.

A graphic display of these objectives is given in figure 2.10.

30

FIGURE 2.10 - PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES

Source: Slack et al. (2001:57)

2.5.1 The Quality Objective Everyone strives for error-free or mistake-free services or goods that are “fit for

their purpose”. Quality means doing things right. Each operation has it own set

of tasks or procedures that needs to be done right. In some ways quality is the

most visible part of what an operation does. Good quality products and services

mean high customer satisfaction and therefore the likelihood that the customer

will return or use the service again. An example of what quality can be is given

in figure 2.11.

FLEXIBILITY

Frequent new products

Maximum choice

Ability to Change

COST

Minimum Price,

Highest Value

Minimum cost

Maximum value

DEPENDABILITY

Dependable

Delivery

Reliable

Operation

QUALITY

Error -free products

and services

Error-Free

Processes

SPEED

Quick

Delivery

Fast

Throughput

31

FIGURE 2.11 – QUALITY MEANS DIFFERENT THINGS IN DIFFERENT OPERATIONS.

Quality could mean….

Source: Adapted from Slack et al. (2001:45).

Another way of qualifying quality is as follows:

• Quality inside the operation.

• Quality reduces cost. Fewer mistakes in micro operations will use less time

for corrections.

• Quality increases dependability. A supermarket cannot afford to run out of

stock, it will lose customers and also income due to the fact that the

customers will go and buy from the opposition.

2.5.2. The Speed Objective The time between a customer asking for goods or services and the time the

customer receives the goods or services must be kept to a minimum. Thus

increase the availability of goods or services. The faster a customer can receive

the goods or services, the more likely he or she will be to purchase them or use

it.

Speed can also be inside the operation if fast response to external customers is

made possible by fast decision-making and speedy movement of materials and

information inside the organisation. Speed also reduces the turn around time of

inventory, especially in manufacturing plants where the increase in demand

requires the increase in production. The effect thereof is that the shelf life of

HOSPITAL

• Patients receive the most appropriate treatment

• Treatment is carried out in the correct manner.

• Patients are consulted and kept informed.

AUTOMOBILE PLANT

• All parts are made to specification. • All assembly is to specification. • The product is reliable.

32

inventory is kept to a minimum. Speed reduces risks. Forecasting tomorrow’s

events is far less of a risk than forecasting next year’s (Slack et al., 2001:49).

2.5.3. The Dependability Objective Giving the dependability advantage to the customer means that you are doing

things on time so as to keep the delivery promise you have given your

customers. Customers may judge the dependability of an operation after the

product or service has been delivered (Slack et al., 2001:50). No matter how

inexpensive the service is or the goods are or how fast it is advertised as being

available, if the service is always late or for example the buses are always full,

then the potential customer will seek service elsewhere.

An operation’s internal dependability is governed by the micro operations. The

elimination of dead time is a good example of increasing dependability. A

decrease in process cycle time can be achieved by means of excellent

scheduling of tasks and ensuring sufficient supply of the required resources

(Slack et al., 2001:50).

Ineffective use of time will translate into extra cost. Spare parts might cost more

to be delivered at short notice. Dependability gives stability. If everything in an

operation is perfectly dependable, a level of trust will have been built up

between the different sections/departments of the operation. Everything will be

more predictable and each section of the operation can concentrate on

improving its own area of responsibility without having its attention diverted to

other sections (Slack et al., 2001:51)

2.5.4 The Flexibility Objective Melnyk and Denzler (1996:206) state that flexibility of a process should be

evaluated by measuring the number of steps, since many steps usually inhibit

flexibility. Automation increases flexibility. Physical links move work-in-process

quickly from one activity to the next, but they also increase changeover time

between runs for different products.

33

Flexibility is also able to change far enough and fast enough to meet customer

requirements. Customers will need the operation to change so that it can

provide four types of requirement:

• Product/service flexibility → different products and services,

• Mix flexibility → a wide range or mix of products and services,

• Volume flexibility → different quantities or volumes of products and

services,

• Delivery flexibility → different delivery times (Slack et al., 2001:51).

Developing a flexible operation can also have advantages to the organisation

itself. Flexibility speeds up response time due to the fact that operations can be

changed to handle special circumstances. Flexibility can also save time where

people are multi skilled and can adapt quickly from one task to another.

Flexibility maintains dependability. Operations can take place on schedule when

unexpected events disrupt the normal events (Slack et al., 2001:54).

2.5.5 The Cost Objective The production of goods and services at a cost which enables them to be priced

appropriately for the market while still allowing for a return to the organisation or

a non-for-profit organisation gives good value to the taxpayers or whoever is

funding the operation. Cost is the major operation objective. The lower the cost

of producing their services or goods, the lower is the price to their customers

(Slack et al., 2001:55).

An operation will spend its money on staff, facilities, technology, equipment cost

and material costs. Comparing the cost structure of different operations is not

always straightforward, and depends on how costs are categorised. Cost can

be categorised as fixed costs and variable costs. Cost is affected by the other

performance objectives:

• High-quality operations do not waste time or effort having to re-do things,

• Fast operations reduce the level of in-process inventory between micro

operations,

• Organised operations reduce administrative overheads,

• Dependable operations do not spring any unwelcome surprises on their

internal customers,

34

• Flexible operations adapt to changing circumstances quickly and without

disrupting the rest of the operation. Flexible micro operations can also

change over between tasks quickly and without wasting time and capacity

(Slack et al., 2001:56).

2.6 SUMMARY

In creating the working operational structure for the EDM fire fighting service

and in obtaining enough funds to upgrade the resources to an effective and

efficient service, the EDM fire fighting service will be the number one fire

fighting service in South Africa. This can only be achieved if the localisation

decision is made correctly and the five performance objectives have been met.

The organisational structure and location may not be the factors that influence

the performance of a fire fighting service. Chapter 3 will determine those factors

by addressing the following sub-problem: What viewpoints do knowledgeable

people have about an operational structure for a fire fighting service and how

should this service operate?

35

CHAPTER 3

BENCHMARKING

3.1 INTRODUCTION “Being a paramedic is the most fulfilling profession I’ve ever experienced it is full of challenges, variety, and the opportunity to help someone in need. At the end of each day, I smile to myself because I know that I made a difference. It's an honour to be a paramedic” (Casey O’Brien, Rural/Metro paramedic; http:www.ruralmetrotn.com/htm/careers_frameset.htm).

Due to the fact that paramedics, and that include fire fighters, are very

passionate about their jobs, is it important to create organisational structures for

them to do their work. To be able to create a workable organisational structure

it is important to benchmark what knowledgeable people‘s viewpoints are about

a fire fighting service.

This chapter addresses the following sub-problem: What viewpoints do knowledgeable people have about an operational structure for a fire fighting service and how should it operate? Each fire fighting service is

unique in how it operates and who are funding the service. For the purpose of

this study the following will be investigated:

• Public fire fighting service,

• Private fire fighting service.

Public fire fighting service is still very common in South Africa. The problems

are that they are understaffed, under funded and management seems to be

unaccountable. Most of the fire brigades in South Africa form part of a

municipality which is situated in big towns.

Private fire fighting services are still in the embryo state as most of these

services are owned by private companies like PetroSA and Sappi. The

Zululand Fire Protection Service is an example of one semi-private fire fighting

service in South Africa. It is part of Working For Fire. The Rural/Metro

Corporation in the US is a private fire fighting service that operates in

36

Scottsdale, Arizona, Tennessee, Oregon. It operates in 50 communities in five

states in America (hhtp:/blog.lewrockhwell.com/ 2004).

Rural/Metro has created a concept of providing a service to areas that may

have no service at all, or otherwise may have difficulty in obtaining such a

service. This service is funded by an annual subscription basis

(www.ruralmetrotn.com/ 2004).

Poole (2004), a free-lance writer based in Scottsdale, Arizona, states that fire

fighting services don’t need to be provided by government (www.fee.org/ 1 Nov,

2004).

In the light of the above statements, it may be beneficial to investigate public as

well as private fire fighting services. Therefore the following fire fighting and

public services were investigated:

• Rural/Metro Corporation,

• Zululand Fire Protection Services,

• Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District (METRO FIRE),

• Metropolitan Police Department.

3.2 RURAL/METRO CORPORATION

The Rural/Metro Corporation is a private emergency-services company

specialising in ambulance and fire protection services. The ambulance services

include emergency medical services (EMS), non-emergency transports and

other support services. Fire services include municipal, industrial,

airport/rescue, emergency response training for cruise lines, wildland and

hazardous materials response ( www.ruralmetrotn.com/ 2004).

Rural/Metro Corporation started its first fire service in 1948. An ambulance

service was added in 1975. The company now employs more than 11 000

people, answering 2 million emergency calls a year in 400 communities in the

United States. Corporate headquarters are located in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Rural/Metro stock is traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange

(www.ruralmetrotn.com/ 2004).

37

Rural/Metro has several operations in Tennessee, including Shelby County

(Memphis), Nashville, Knox, Blount, Loudon and Franklin counties. In addition

to ambulance and fire protection, Rural/Metro’s Tennessee operations include

an airport rescue fire fighting contract with FedEx in Memphis, a plant safety

and security agreement with ALCOA, and industrial and maritime emergency

response training (www.ruralmetrotn.com/ 2004).

The Rural/Metro Fire Department provides a high-quality, cost-effective fire

service. Funding is by three methods. Some areas are funded by a volunteer

subscription method where the home owner pays an annual fee based on

square footage. Another method is a licensing agreement, where the town has

an ordinance (law) that demands of all residents in the community to pay a

subscription. The third is by contract, where the town collects a tax and in turn

pays for the services under contract. (Morris, 2004).

Non-members are billed for service at the rate of $800 per hour, per apparatus,

for all fire calls. Non-member fees for a typical house fire can cost as much as

10 years’ worth of membership costs. Homeowner’s insurance usually pays

only a fraction of the bill, leaving the property owner responsible for the

difference. The Rural/Metro Corporation provides the following services:

• Fire response,

• First Responder medical service,

• Applicable discounts on a homeowner’s insurance premiums,

• Free home fire and safety inspections, checks of smoke detectors and fire

extinguishers, and home escape plans that can save a family in the event of

a fire,

• Rural/Metro’s life-saving fire prevention and safety programs at schools,

churches, civic groups, neighbourhood meetings or workplaces,

• Services involving hazardous materials (www.ruralmetrotn.com/ 2004).

Rural/Metro’s employees are at the heart of everything they do. They are an

organisation of people serving people in their hour of need. Every member of

the Rural/Metro team is a partner in the organisation’s success, and they work

hard to provide a work environment that is stimulating, engaging and rewarding.

38

Rural/Metro Corporation believes in searching for excellence in the employment

process and it seeks to employ only those individuals with innovative ideas, a

willingness to work as a team and a deep sense of community partnership and

support (www.ruralmetrotn.com/;2004).

The Rural/Metro organisation structure is as follows;

FIGURE 3.1 - CORPORATE ORGANISATIONAL CHART

Corporate Organizational Chart

Jack BruckerPresident & CEO

Board of DirectorsCor J. Clement Sr., Chairman

Barry Landon*SVP

Billing & Collection

Kurt KrumpermanVP

Strategic Initiatives & Federal Affairs

Board Compensation Committee

Board Governance Committee

Michael ZarrielloSVP & CFO

Christine WilsonExecutive Assistant

Board Audit Committee

Donna BerlinskiDirector of Corporate

Governance & Compliance

SW Ambulance& Arizona FireBarry Landon

President

Southern Emergency Group

Susan BrownGroup President

Mid-Atlantic/N.E.Emergency Service

GroupTodd Walker

Group President

Western U.S./CentralFlorida Emergency

Service GroupBoo Heffner

Group President*Also Group President

October 26, 2004

Source: www.ruralmetrotn.com/ (2004).

Figure 3.1 is an example of the corporate organisation structure. The fire

services are divided into three fire “regions” in Arizona. They are in the Phoenix,

Tucson and Yuma areas. They are all of similar size with their own fire chief.

The Fire Chief reports to the Vice President (Morris, 2005). The organisational

structure as per region is illustrated in Figure 3.2.

39

FIGURE 3.2 - REGIONAL ORGANISATIONAL CHART

Source: R Hightower (2004).

3.3 ZULULAND FIRE PROTECTION SERVICES Jake Oosthuizen formed Zululand Fire Protection Services cc after 16 years of

aerial spraying and aerial fire fighting, with the object of providing a service to

the Zululand timber industry. Initially the operation was started by taking over

the control centre of the Zululand Fire Protection Association (ZFPA) which co-

ordinated all fire fighting operations in the Zululand Coastal Area (ZCA) which

covered approximately 80,000 hectares of timber. The operation control room

was not very sophisticated and only provided a basic communication service to

the timber growers in the area (http:/www.zpfs.co.za; 2004).

Today the control room is manned 24 hours a day, 12 months a year. Weather

information is collected via the internet from approximately eight weather

stations twice a day and fire danger index (FDI) is calculated. The internet is

used for weather predictions, satellite images and communication with the

forestry industry world wide.

Fire PreventionDistrict ChiefMike Norton

Queen Creek Westside

Cave Creek / Carefree Assist

W/ F H & P V

FleetManager

C. Lawson

Shop

Warehouse

East Cty.Batt. ChiefD. CaudleB. Grubb

Sta # 841

Sta # 854

Sta # 855

Sta # 857

Sta # 859

West Cty.Acting Batt. Chief

M. Norling

Sta # 821

Sta # 837

Central Cty.District ChiefC. Fitzgerald

Sta # 828

Ftn. HillsDistrict Chief

M. Zimmerman

Sta # 822

Sta # 823 Prevention

Maricopa/Pinal Fire Ops.Exec. Asst. Chief

B. Hansen

Fire ChiefGary Morris

Training/Special ProjectsAssistant Chief

K. Redden

Bus. Dev./Pub. RelationsRanda Hightower

Human ResourcesC. Ojile

Regional Training OfficerTBN

Scheduling/FinanceM. Brewer/T. Mulder

Pima Fire OperationsC. Pendleton

Chief of Operations

Yuma Fire OperationsD. Rathbun

Chief of Operations

Programmer/System AnalystCharles Landon

CommunicationsManager

E. Anderson

Comm Center

40

The services of the Zululand Fire Protection Services (ZFPS) are contracted to

the majority of the timber growers in KwaZulu-Natal and the North East Cape to

co-ordinate aerial fire fighting operations. During the dry winter months, ZFPSD

co-ordinates the aerial operations of the four fire associations which cover the

KwaZulu-Natal area, for example KZNFPA, ZFPA, Zululand Inland Fire

Protection Association (ZIFPA) and Maputoland. The total timber area of these

associations is approximately 550 000 hectares. As ZFPS’s core competency is

aerial fire fighting they have the following aircraft that are used by the three

Zululand Associations:

• ZFPA - 1 x Turbine, 400 gallon bomber and 1 x C182 spotter,

• ZIFPA - 2 x Turbine, 400 gallon bombers and 1 x C182 spotter,

• MAPUTALAND - 1 x C182 spotter (http:/www.zpfs.co.za; 2004).

Fast reliable bomber aircraft are indispensable. During severe fire weather

conditions, bomber aircraft are placed on standby throughout the timber area to

decrease the reaction time from call out to first drop. A fully laden Air Tractor

802 (3000lts) can travel across any terrain at 6.16 kilometers per minute. Once

at the fire the aircraft can dump a large load of foam or retardant or several

smaller loads, depending on the fire situation. With sufficient bombers available,

a load could be dropped on the fire every 3 minutes. This aerial attack can

prevent a fire from climbing into the crowns, as the area is wetted, which slows

down the spread. All this is happening while the ground crew are still on their

way (http:/www.zpfs.co.za; 2004).

During the dry winter months which last from July to October, ZFPA, Zululand

Inland Fire Protection Association and the Department of Water Affairs and

Forestry contract in bomber and spotter aircraft from private aircraft operators.

ZFPS co-ordinates all the aircraft operations on behalf of all the stakeholders

and the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry in the Maputaland area. Two

turbo Thrushes and one C182 are based in Melmoth, covering the Zululand

Inland Area. One AT402, one turbo Thrush and one C182 are based

in Kwambonambi covering the Zululand Coastal area. One turbo Thrush and

one C182 cover the Maputaland area of Mbazwana and Manzingwenya.

41

In October 1999 Zululand Fire Protection Services secured a contract with a

major timber company and provided a complete ground fire detection and

control service. When fire fighters are not fighting fires or training, they do

silviculture operations. Silviculture services are the following;

• Fire break preparation, including burning,

• Pre- plant preparation, including full cover sprays and burning,

• Chemical and manual weed control,

• Maintenance of conservation areas,

• Planting (http:/www.zpfs.co.za; 2004).

The staff of ZFPS is highly motivated and each is a specialist in his field. During

the dry winter months the aircrafts are the first line of attack. Aircraft cannot

operate efficiently without adequate ground support. This support must be in the

form of trained ground crews equipped with quality equipment.

During the remainder of the year, ZFPS utilizes fast attack vehicles with the

capacity of 700 liters of water and three fire fighters that operate as the first line

of attack. These vehicles are backed up by other tankers that carry 2500 liters

of water and five fire fighters, one tanker with 5000 liters of water and eight fire

fighters and a bulk tanker with 13 000 liters of water.

These vehicles and fire fighters are strategically placed with regard to current

fire danger weather and remain in contact with the operation center at all times

(http:/www.zpfs.co.za; 2004).

The Zululand Inland Area is covered by the Zululand Inland Fire Protection

Association (ZIFPA). ZIFPA is made up of 25 members, covering approximately

44 000ha, working towards the common goal of preventing fires, detecting fires,

utilizing initial attack fire fighting principles to minimize agricultural and forestry

losses through fire (http:/www.zifpa.co.za; 2004).

The Zululand interior is relatively mountainous with a fairly even mix of Pine,

Wattle and Eucalyptus plantations that are harvested in an average of 12 years.

The area has the unfortunate notoriety of having the fastest, most devastating

fires. In Zululand history, 6 000ha has been destroyed in 6 hours! Extreme fire

42

weather conditions, aspect and terrain make this area a nightmare to fight fires

in (http:/www.zifpa.co.za; 2004).

The Zululand Coastal Area is covered by the Zululand Fire Protection

Association (ZFPA). The ZFPA is made up of 20 members, covering

approximately 80 000ha, working towards the common goal of preventing fires,

detecting fires, and utilizing initial fire fighting attack principles to minimize

agricultural and forestry losses through fire.

Zululand Coastal is one of the very few areas in South Africa that has a twelve

month fire season due to the unique weather conditions. It is a relatively flat

area with predominantly colonial Eucalyptus plantations that are harvested in an

average of seven years. High temperatures, coupled with high humidities and

the average rainfall of approximately 1100mm per year, make Zululand Coastal

the 'Forestry Pantry' of South Africa. The trees grow straight and fast -

unfortunately so do the fire fuels! The following are aircraft and fire statistics

updated 09/10/2004

TABLE 3.1 - ZULULAND COASTAL FIRES AND LOSSES

Year Total Fires

A/c Fires

Timber Burnt

Ha/FireAve A/c costs

per Fire

1995 299 45 310 1.04 R 1,827.25

1996 240 36 365 1.52 R 2,173.15

1997 196 23 149 0.76 R1.227.88

1998 416 47 2380 5.72 R 7,778.43

1999 457 30 282 0.62 R 3,144.47

2000 154 21 109 0.72 R 6,148.10

2001 260 48 187 0.7 R 5,933.26

2002 565 101 481 1.02 R 3,804.28

2003 557 188 1284 2.31 R 4,315.80

2004 195 22 198 1.52 R 22,186.23

Average 334 56 575 1.59 R 6,367.89

Source: http://www.zfps.co.za (2004).

43

TABLE 3.2 - ZULULAND INLAND FIRES AND LOSSES

Year Total Fires

A/c Fires

Timber Burnt

Ha/FireAve A/c costs

per Fire

1995 170 41 5789 33.75 R 2,212.93

1996 69 12 360 5.24 R 1,720.52

1997 79 17 112 1.01 R 2,004.79

1998 110 35 2254 20.65 R 16,577.23

1999 141 56 981 6.96 R 11,875.43

2000 102 36 456 5.14 R 11,000.93

2001 178 46 416 2.33 R 8,264.11

2002 140 28 443 3.17 R 9,080.75

2003 113 32 927.5 8.21 R 14,883.19

2004 44 16 360 6.99 R 13,331.29

Average 115 32 1210 9.35 R 9,095.12

Source: http://www.zfps.co.za (2004).

Forest fires are one of nature’s most destructive forces, yet nothing has ever

been done to improve detection methods which have remained the same for

hundreds of years. Technology plays a vital role in all spheres of forestry today.

In order to help preventing great damage caused by a fire, the ZFPS have 11

electronic fire detection cameras. These cameras send live video images from

seventy two meter towers up to thirty five kilometres away. This camera system

is called the Firehawk. The Firehawk is a computerised fire detection system

whereby rotating digital cameras covering large forestry areas transmit

information to a base station where the Firehawk software differentiates

between fire, smoke and glow and automatically raises an alarm. Firehawk is a

computer aided forest risk management system that is controlled by a human

operator.

The Firehawk has replaced the manned lookout towers that are as old as

forestry itself. The human element associated with these lookout towers is the

problem. More often lookout towers are late in reporting fires. Guards have to

work long hours under difficult circumstances with only short breaks in

concentration. It is also very difficult for these staff members to pinpoint the

44

actual location of any fire and to provide the best access details to the forester.

Yet this antiquated method is still used in many parts of the world. Millions of

dollars are spent annually in the combating fires, but nothing is done about their

early detection. Firehawk’s capabilities are as follows:

• Multi-tower capabilities. Up to eight (8) remote camera installations

can be connected to a single Firehawk processor. A base station

can have many processors,

• Cameras scan a full 360 degrees in less than four minutes,

• Detection of smoke, fire and glow 24 hours a day,

• Manual manipulation of any camera in the system without affecting

any other camera in the system,

• Multiple alarm reporting capabilities. Alarms are reported by the

system without affecting any camera scanning its designated area,

• Geographical information on any camera and sector position by a

simple touch of a button operation. This provides valuable

information to forestry personnel, such as fire location and best

access details,

• User friendly software, using the latest software platforms and

operating systems,

• Multiple time zones setup capabilities.(day night and twilight),

• Unwanted image alarms are filtered out,

• The system can be used for Management check-ups and controlling

of fire fighting operations (http://wwwfirehawk.co.za; 2004).

Firehawk has been designed to be installed in remote areas where cameras

can cover a radius of 6 to 8 km from the point of installation. Although the

capability of cameras is far beyond the 6 to 8 km radius, weather conditions do

not always allow detection of fires beyond this safe margin. Real-time video

images can be transmitted up to 30 km. without repetition being required. These

video images are fed to a central command base where they are processed.

Unwanted image alarms are filtered out and only those required are reported.

45

During the past six years the system has been installed and tested in various

forestry areas throughout South Africa. The first installation was in the

Richmond area of KwaZulu-Natal. This area was chosen because of the

mountains, extreme temperature changes that occur, hot summers and very

cold winters with snow on high ground. This ensured that the system was tested

and developed to not only work under severe weather conditions, but also to be

accurate enough to guide foresters to the source of a fire in the shortest

possible time once detected.

FIGURE 3.3 - ELEMENTS OF THE FIREHAWK SYSTEM

Source www.zfps.co.za/firehawk_detection (2004).

Presently Firehawk is installed in two regions of South Africa, and is

continuously being expanded. Forestry companies Mondi, Sappi, NCT, SQF

and Masonite, private growers and Government agencies have committed

themselves to the Firehawk system as being the preferred system for the

detection of forest fires.

46

The results of using the Firehawk are as follows:

• In 2000 during the fire season of Northern Kwa-Zulu Natal a total of 153 fires

were detected. Of these 87 fires were detected at night. Results at the end

of the season showed a burnt area rate of less than one hectare per fire

(0.7 ha per fire),

• In the 1998 fire season, before the Firehawk system was installed the

burnt area rate was 5.68 ha per fire (http://wwwfirehawk.co.za; 2004).

This proved that by having the capability to detect fires more rapidly, ground

crews and aerial support are able to get to the source of fires much faster,

thereby limiting damage and costs drastically.

3.4 SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE DISTRICT (METRO FIRE) The Board of Directors of the American River Fire District adopted an

application for reorganisation with the Sacramento County Fire Protection

District on 25 September 1999. The new organisation was named the

Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District or Metro Fire. The administration and

membership of the District recognise the contribution and rich history of its

processor departments. There are 16 prior fire departments represented in the

Metro Fire organisation. The Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District is the

largest district in the County of Sacramento and the seventh largest local fire

agency in the State of California. The combined District will consist of

approximately six hundred and ninety employees with an area encompassing

417 square miles that include Sacramento and Placer counties

(http:www.smfd.ca.gov; 2004).

The name fire district implies that the primary responsibility is to suppress fires

and that is why the district was created in the first place. The Fire District Law

contained within the State of California Health and Safety code authorises a fire

district to provide much more than only fire fighting. The following additional

services are also provided;

• Rescue services,

• Emergency medical response,

47

• Hazardous materials emergency response,

• Ambulance services,

• Any other services related to protecting life and property

(www.smfd.ca.gov/ADMIN.htm; 2004).

The US Census Bureau defined a special district as independent, special

purpose governmental units other than school districts that exist as separate

entities with substantial administrative and fiscal independence from general-

purpose governments (www.smfd.ca.gov/specialdistrict.htm; 2004).

The local constituency determines the needed function that the special districts

must fulfil. The following types of special districts are identified;

• Airport districts,

• Municipal districts,

• Hospital districts,

• Levee districts,

• Public utility districts,

• Recreation and park districts,

• Utility districts,

• Sanitary districts,

• Water districts,

• Resource conservation districts,

• Water storage districts.

Special districts are also formed to provide mosquito abatement, library

services, road maintenance, drainage function and fire services. The fire

protection service forms part of the non-enterprise districts that generally do not

charge for their services. In the multipurpose district, at least two services are

rendered for example fire suppression and prevention and arson investigation

(www.smfd.ca.gov/specialdistrict.htm; 2004).

48

TABLE 3.3 - FACTS ABOUT SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE DISTRICTS

These statistics are from 2004-2005 Budget

Demographics

Area served (sq. mi.) 417

Population 599,257

ISO Rating 3 in hydranted /8 in un-watered areas

Counties served Sacramento and Placer

Cities served City of Citrus Heights

Geography Mostly level. Two rivers, American &

Consumnes

Airports Mather Field, McClellan Field, Rancho

Murrieta, and Rio Linda

General Budget $120,819,311

49

Source: http:// www.smfd.ca.gov (2004)

The Operations Division provides a multitude of emergency and non-emergency

services to the public. More than 500 firefighters working out of 42 stations are

directly responsible to mitigate a wide variety of emergency incidents 24/7. In

2002 the fire district responded to over 54,000 alarms. The following equipment

is operated by the fire district;

• 10 transporting Advanced Life Support medics,

• 7 reserve transporting medics,

• 38 engine companies,

• truck companies,

• 24 grass engines,

• 2 crash rescue rigs,

Incidents

2003 56 700

Authorized Personnel

Management 17

Fire Suppression 534

Support Staff 122

Total Paid Personnel 673

Reserve fire fighters 19

Physical Resources

Fire Stations (Full Time) 38

Fire Stations (Volunteer) 2

Fire Stations (Part Time) 2

Engine Companies 39

Truck Companies 5

Reserve Firefighter Engine Companies 14

Transporting Medic Units 10

Transporting Medic Units (Part Time) 2

Personal Watercraft Response Units 2

Inflatable Rubber Boat Response Units 2

ARFF Units 3

Historical Fire Apparatus 8

50

• 6 water tenders,

• swift water rescue bikes,

• swift water rescue inflatable rubber boats,

• air units,

• 3 reserve fire fighter engine companies,

• 2 reserve fire fighter grass engines (http:// www.smfd.ca.gov; 2004).

Many of the District's engines are paramedic staffed and all responding units

provide EMT coverage. In addition to emergency medical alarms and structural

or wildland fire responses, the District's personnel are trained and equipped to

deal with swift water emergencies, confined space incidents, technical rescues,

hazardous materials incidents and crash fire rescue. In the 2000 wildland fire

season the District sent engine companies to Arizona, Wyoming and Nevada to

battle record size fires. Some of the District's personnel are trained and

experienced as overhead team staff and served on major complex fires in

Wyoming, Arizona, Colorado and Montana. Additionally, many of their members

hold critical roles. In addition to emergency medical alarms and structural or

wildland fire responses, the District's personnel are trained and equipped to

deal with swift water emergencies, confined space incidents, technical rescues,

hazardous materials incidents and crash fire rescue. Many of their members

hold critical roles on the urban search and rescue “Task Force 7 Team”. This

Team responds to large-scale disasters, both natural and manmade (http://

www.smfd.ca.gov; 2004)

51

FIGURE 3.4 - SACRAMENTO METROPOLITAN FIRE DISTRICT

Source: www.smfd.ca.go/org_chart.htm (2004).

3.5 METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT

The Metropolitan Police Department is not only a fire fighting service but they

are also a public service working in the community. Members of the

Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) have been serving the District of

Columbia (DC) for well over 100 years. During that time, the MPD has grown in

diversity as well as size. In 1802, when the original charter of Washington was

approved, police authority was centralised and power was granted to the city

itself to establish patrols, impose fines and establish inspection and licensing

procedures. Until the creation of the Metropolitan Police Department in 1861,

the city had only an auxiliary watch with one captain and 15 policemen. Today,

the Metropolitan Police Department includes more than 4,200 members that

consist of 3,600 sworn police officers and more than 600 civilian employees.

Their leader is Chief Charles H. Ramsey (www.mpdc.gov.am; 2004).

The mission of the MPD is: “ to prevent crime and the fear of crime, as we work

with others to build safe and healthy communities throughout the District of

Columbia” (www.mpdc.gov/mission; 2004). While serving and protecting the

community remains central to the MPD mission, the department is also

committed to building safer neighbourhoods in partnership with the community.

52

The mission of the MPD is in line with reasons why police departments do exist:

• To respond to and solve criminal incidents,

• To respond to and resolve non-criminal incidents,

• To identify and solve broader crime and disorder problems.

These three functions are the unique responsibility of the police (http:/

www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

On May 2, 2004, the Metropolitan Police Department implemented a major

restructuring of its Police Service Areas (PSA), a basic building block of

community policing in the DC. The goal of the restructuring is to ensure better

police services for DC neighborhoods by providing greater flexibility in

neighborhood patrols and by aligning PSA more closely with natural

neighborhood boundaries. The restructuring plan reduces the number of PSA

from 83 to 45, thus creating new boundaries for all of the PSA, as well as new

boundaries for some police districts (www.mpdc.gov/psadistricts; 2004).

The new structure gave teams of PSA officers and supervisors greater

responsibility for fighting crime and established new ways for police and

community to work together to solve all the communities’ problems (http:


The PSA model represented a good start. The resources devoted to it were

inadequate and a major problem was that the rest of the Police Department

remained locked in a rigid bureaucratic structure that not only failed to embrace

the new operating model; but actually got in the way of how basic police work

gets done.

The Metropolitan Police Department took the decision to make the police

service more effective. The managers decided to restructure the entire

department for three main reasons;

• Place more resources in the community,

• Focus resources on reducing crime and solving problems in the city's 83

PSA,

53

• Hold managers at every level of the organisation accountable for the quality

of policing services within their geographic commands (http:/


This actually means that they are putting the Police Department in a much

stronger position to take back the city’s neighbourhoods, block by block,

community by community and in partnership with residents and other agencies.

The managers were of the opinion that the new organisational structure would

enhance their ability to fight crime by:

• Increasing police resources in the community. Additional sworn personnel

like detectives, investigators and uniformed officers are being moved out of

centralised units to assignments in the community,

• Eliminating bureaus and cutting bureaucracy. The existing bureau structure

created excessive bureaucracy and made coordination across units

cumbersome and inefficient. Those four bureaus are being eliminated,

replaced by a more logical and streamlined command system which

promotes team work, communication and geographic accountability for

fighting crime,

• Strengthening the PSA. More officers and supervisors are being assigned

directly to the PSA. More field resources are being assigned in direct

support of the PSA, and PSA managers are being given greater authority

and responsibility to build partnerships and solve problems,

• Creating full-service police districts. Key operational services such as

patrols, investigations, focused missions; traffic and prevention are being

placed in the districts and at the district level. These crime-fighting services

will be more accessible to the community and of greater support to the PSA,

• Establishing geographic accountability throughout the organisation. The new

structure organises the districts into three Regional Operations Commands,

located in the community and led by a Regional Assistant Chief who is

accountable for managing resources and coordinating efforts throughout the

region. This creates a complete system of geographic accountability for

fighting crime in each PSA, districts and regions, all the way up to the chief

of police.

54

• Streamlining the business side of the organisation. Administrative and

technical functions are being consolidated under a unified command that

can more efficiently provide the tools, training and technology that are

critically important to field personnel.

• Creating the capacity to continuously improve the Department. A new focus

on strategic planning will identify opportunities to improve the organisation

and develop innovative strategies and programs that meet the needs of

Department personnel. A new quality assurance team will follow up on this

work, ensuring compliance with new programs and standards and identifying

areas in need of further improvement. (http:/


FIGURE 3.5 – PROPOSED NEW STRUCTURE OF METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT

Source: http://www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm (2004)

The new structure as presented in, figure 3.5, eliminates the four bureaus and

creates a more streamlined organisation that promotes teamwork,

communication and accountability. The new organisational structure is a

significant departure from the way police departments as in Washington D.C.,

CHIEF of POLICE

Executive Assistant

Chief in Charge of

Assistant Chief in Charge

of Corporate Support

Regional Operations

Command

Special Services

Group

55

and across the country have been organised. The new structure represents

nothing short of the wholesale transformation of the MPDC, from a bureaucratic,

incident-driven agency to a streamlined, customer-driven service organisation

and one that is focused on forging alliances to more effectively fight crime and

solve problems.

The reorganising of the new structure is not simple, and it will not happen

overnight. The new structure will not become effective immediately. The

transformation will take place in phases over the next few months and each

phase will be carefully planned and implemented. The new structure will have

the following advantages:

• It will bring the MPDC in line with the way police work gets done,

• It will promote a team orientation in fighting crime,

• All operational units, all the way up the chain of command, will be organised

by geographic area,

• All the units will share the same goals and be held accountable for achieving

the same results,

• The structure will support the MPDC commitment to community policing,

• It will bring a wider range of police services closer to the customer, thus

encouraging partnerships and problem solving that are key factors to

effective community policing,

• The new structure will put the MPDC in a position to regain their place as the

nation's leading police agency (http:/ www.dcwatch.com/ police/ 980909;

2004).

Community policing does not provide the organisational structure needed to

effectively carry out their work. Community policing simply provides the

principles or values that guide their efforts and principles such as listening to the

community, establishing partnerships, involving other government agencies,

etc. In recent years, police departments across the country (including the

MPDC) have struggled with trying to implement the philosophy of community

policing with the same organisational structures they had used for years. The

result is that the MPDC has become fundamentally out of sync with the way

work gets done in the organisation (http:/ www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm;

2004).

56

The MPDC (like most other police departments) has long relied on a very

traditional, vertical organisational structure, with separate bureaus organised

around specific functions (patrol services, support investigative services,

etcetera). In reality, however, most police work takes place laterally, with work

passing across different organisational units. A call to 911 was received by one

bureau, dispatched to a unit in another bureau for initial response, assigned to a

third bureau for investigation, and then given to a combination of still other units

for follow-up, problem solving and prevention. This was time constraining and

this structure provided little or no accountability for the end result, and that is to

solve the incident or addressing the problem in the quickest time possible (http:/


The PSA and the MPDC both operate as an individual unit and each bureau

tends to follow its own goals and performance measures, which may or may not

reflect the goals and performance measures of the Department as a whole of

the community. The communication across bureaus is often haphazard, overly

bureaucratic or nonexistent and this is the reason that the traditional police

organisation has become incompatible with the way police work needs to get

done, especially under the philosophy of community policing (http:/

www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004)

The MPDC needs a new organisational structure that addresses the

shortcomings of the traditional model and will replace isolated operational

bureaus based on function with more unified operational commands based on

geography and geographic accountability. The new structure will promote

common goals, objectives and performance measures throughout the

organisation, and will establish new levels of managerial accountability based

on geography. The new structure will streamline internal communications, and

will enable the smooth transition of work from one unit to another (http:/


57

FIGURE 3.6 – PROPOSED ROLE STRUCTURE OF METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT

Source: http://www/dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm (2004).

The key elements of the MPDC's new structure as presented in figure 3.6, are

as follows:

Enhanced PSA. The PSA will be enhanced by the addition of resources

(both officers and supervisors) and the expansion of the PSA management

team.

Each PSA will be led by a manager who is clearly accountable, 24 hours a

day, for the results and behaviour of the members of the PSA team.

The PSA manager will report directly to the District Commander, thus

ensuring that other district resources are supporting crime fighting and

problem solving in the PSA.

The PSA manager will be assisted by a team of first-line PSA supervisors,

who will oversee the work on each shift, assist the PSA manager with

special projects and be accessible to the community and responsive to their

needs around the clock (http://www/dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

Full-Service Police Districts - The role of the police district is being dramatically

expanded, from a narrow focus on patrol to the full range of police services

58

needed to solve crimes and address neighbourhood problems. Each district will

include:

Violent Crimes Investigators,

Property Crimes Investigators,

Focused Mission Teams,

Operational Support Team,

Customer Service (http://www/dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

Regional Operations Commands - The seven service police districts are being

restructured into three Regional Operations Commands (ROC). They will be

identified as follows:

Northern (Districts 2 and 4),

Central (Districts 1, 3 and 5),

Eastern (Districts 6 and 7) (http://www/dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm;

2004).

Each ROC is commanded by a Regional Assistant Chief whose office is located

in the community and who has the authority and who is free of the traditional

bureaucracy to make decisions and allocate resources to support crime fighting

and problem solving throughout the region. To supplement district and PSA

efforts, each ROC includes a youth investigations unit, a crime analysis

capability and an executive officer who serves as the liaison to the rest of the

organisation, including the 911 center.

Special Services. Highly specialised operational units that are citywide in

scope are being organised under a new Special Services Group. This group

includes those functions, such as emergency response, special events and

major narcotics that have unique training, resource and operational needs.

Like the Regional Operations Commands, the Special Services Group

reports to the Executive Assistant Chief in charge of operations. This

ensures coordination between these specialised units and PSA, district and

regional operations.

Operations Command. That is to ensure a 24-hour-a-day, department-wide

command presence. A new citywide operations command is being

established within the Office of the Executive Assistant Chief. Command-

59

level personnel will be available to respond to and oversee major incidents

that require their presence at any location in the city, at any hour of the day.

Corporate Support. The Department's critical business functions are unified

under a new corporate support structure. Led by an Assistant Chief, this

structure streamlines the delivery of services in four key areas: human

services, business services, training services and operational support

services. Organising these corporate services under a single command

helps to ensure greater coordination within these functions and more

effective delivery of services to the operational side of the organisation

(http:/ www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

The role of the police district is being expanded, from a narrow focus on patrol

to the broad range of services needed to fight crime and solve problems. Many

of these functions will be staffed by personnel reassigned from centralised units.

The result is seven full service police districts in which the primary crime-

fighting resources of the Department are more accessible to the community

through the PSA structure (http:/ www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

Most operational services are being organised under three regional commands.

This creates geographic accountability for fighting crime throughout the

organisation as from the PSA up to the Chief of Police.

A lot of work remains to be done in implementing the new organisational

structure. This process will involve identifying new leadership in some areas;

defining and re-defining relationships between units; putting in place the

physical infrastructure; moving personnel to their new assignments in the

community; establishing policies and procedures; training, and more (http:/

www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004)

The new organisational structure goes a long way toward accomplishing all

three reasons mentioned to restructure. By itself, however, the new structure

does not guarantee success. That will continue to depend on the hard work,

dedication and service of members. This new structure is designed to provide

the personnel, the front-line officers and supervisors with the tools, the access

to resources and the management support they need to do their jobs. Creating

60

an organisation that is more efficient and more responsive to its members’

needs puts the MPDC in a position to fulfil their commitment to make

Washington D.C., the safest major city in America, block by block, community

by community (http:/ www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

3.6 SUMMARY

The different fire fighting services make the point that the EDM Fire Fighting

Service is not unique in the way of operating over a large area. By obtaining the

geographical organisational structure, a much better and more cost effective

service can be provided. The reason why companies lost control over their

structure and their bureaucratic costs are escalating, is because they

experience problems with the clarity of their structure. The challenge for a

company is to manage its structure and control systems so that it can

economise on bureaucratic costs and ensure that they match the potential gains

from its strategy. The decrease of management cost will also result in a

decrease in cost charged to the public for a fire fighting service and it will make

the idea of a private fire fighting service or a tax charge for the service real.

To complete the picture, chapter four will analyse the EDM as well as the fire

fighting service of all its seven municipalities.

61

Chapter 4

DESIGN OF THE EMPIRICAL STUDY

4.1 INTRODUCTION The previous chapter has focused on how a regional fire fighting service ideally

operates. It was of the utmost importance to determine the risk profile and to do

a capacity analysis of the EDM area in order to determine what knowledgeable

people believe the requirements for effective fire fighting management are.

This chapter addresses the following sub-problems: What viewpoints do

knowledgeable people have about an operational structure for a fire fighting

service and how does this system operate; and the second sub-problem: Risk

profile and capacity assessment analysis of the current fire fighting services in

the Eden District Municipality (EDM) area.

To address these two sub-problems, the current situation was analysed by

means of questionnaires and by doing research using the internet. Kotler

(2000:110) is of the opinion that market researchers have a choice of two main

research instruments in collecting data: questionnaires and mechanical devices.

In certain sections in this literature study there are adequate guidelines on how

to prepare a questionnaire and to analyse the data that have been collected.

Laudon and Laudon (2002:284) are of the opinion that rapid access to

knowledge is critical to the success of many companies and that the internet will

help with this problem. This information is available with blinding speed and the

system provides mountains of data from all over the world, which would

otherwise be too expensive and too difficult to tap.

4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN The empirical study was utilised to solve the sub-problem: What is the risk

profile and capacity analysis of the EDM area? As well as: What viewpoints do


service and how does this system operate?

62

The first sub-problems was addressed by administering a questionnaire and the

second sub-problem by using the internet as a research tool for benchmarking

the different fire services. The information available from the ODS Consultant cc

was used to assist in creating a risk assessment as comprehensively as

possible.

Johnson and Scholes (2002:174) used the abovementioned method and some

others to determine what organisations should be concerned with when

improving their performance over time. They argued that, if they did not, they

were likely to lose their competitive advantage or even drop out of the market as

customer expectations and the performance of competitors were rising. This

can be done by looking at the performance of organisations in the same

industry or sector against a set of agreed performance indicators.

4.3 DESIGN AND STRUCTURE OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE The aim of any data collection effort is to obtain good quality information. This

information must be timely, accurate and relevant (Wegner, 2001:2). Kotler

(2000:110) states that a questionnaire is, because of its flexibility, by far the

most common used instrument for collecting primary data. A questionnaire

needs to be carefully developed, tested and debugged. The design of a

questionnaire is of utmost importance to ensure that the correct research

questions are addressed (Wegner, 2001:17). This collected data must then be

analysed to make a meaningful decision.

Due to the nature of the business for this research a structured interview was

used. According to Leedy and Ormrod (2001:196), a structured interview is

where a researcher asks a standard set of questions and no more. An

additional requirement for this study was to ease the operation of data

collection, thus the questionnaire was used in a telephone interview after

forwarding the said questionnaire to the respondent.

A questionnaire should consist of three sections:

• The administrative section – used to record the identity and details of the

respondent and also where the interview took place.

63

• The demographic section – describes the respondent by a number of

demographic characteristics such as gender, company size or market

sector.

• The information sought – this makes up the major part of the questionnaire

and consists of all the questions which will extract data from respondents to

address the research objective (Wegner, 2001:19).

Part of the empirical study and the subsequent questionnaire is a sampling

plan. Such a sampling plan calls for three decisions:

• Sampling unit – who is to be surveyed? Clearly identify the target population

that will be sampled.

• Sample size – how many people should be surveyed? Large samples give

more reliable results than small samples.

• Sampling procedure – how should the respondents be chosen? A sample is

selected on a probability or a non-probability basis (Kotler, 2000:112).

Because of the limited size of the sample used in this study the non-probability

sampling method was used and consisted of the following three methods:

• Convenience sample – the researcher selected the most accessible

population members.

• Judgment sample – the researcher selected population members who were

good prospects for accurate information.

• Quota sample – the researcher found and interviewed a prescribed number

of people in each of several categories (Kotler, 2000:112).

The structure of the questionnaire for this study was based on the following

requirements for data collection:

• The emergency calls attended to annually by the different local authorities.

• The number of fire stations, sub-stations and control rooms in the EDM area.

• The total municipal operating expenditure and the total fire fighting

expenditure of each municipality.

• Manpower profile.

An extract of the questions in the questionnaire is presented in Table 3.2. A

copy of the questionnaire is presented in Annexure A to C. The purpose of the

64

questionnaire and the type of questions asked with specific reference to the

different Municipalities were to determine specific information in creating a

holistic picture of each fire fighting service in the EDM area.

TABLE 4.1: An Extract from the Questionnaire

Date

Authority

Official

FIRES Number of

Formal/informal dwellings/ &field fires

Storage

Industry

Transport

Other

RESCUE

Transport accident

Environmental (mountains) not sea rescues

HAZMAT(chemical fires or emergencies)

The information in Table 4.1 determined where the “hot spots” were and what

type of service was required: a fire fighting service or a rescue service. This

information also indicates the number of fire fighters required.

TABLE 4.2: An Extract from the Questionnaire (continued)

Detail Number of

How many fire stations

How many sub-stations

How many satellite stations

How many control centers

The data in Table 4.2 would provide information on where all the fire stations

are located in the different areas.

65


DETAIL / DESCRIPTION Amount

Municipal Total Operating Expenditure -

2002/2003

Fire Fighting Operating Expenditure -

2002/2003

Municipal Total Operating Expenditure -

2003/2004

Fire Fighting Operating Expenditure -

2003/2004

Source:

Table 4.3: The data would reveal the total operating expenditure of a

municipality compared with the fire fighting expenditure of the same

municipality.


Table 4.4: Data would determine the skills of and the number of fire fighters in

the EDM area.

4.3.1 Administration of the questionnaire The questionnaire was taken to the seven Municipalities in the EDM area. At

certain Municipalities the financial department could provide the researcher with

all the answers. The questions were asked by telephone interviewing.

Full time Staff Quantity

Qualified/Trained leadership

Unqualified and untrained leadership

Qualified/ trained fire-fighters

Unqualified/untrained fire-fighters

Part time Staff, Reservists and Volunteers

Qualified/trained leadership


Qualified/trained fire-fighters


66

According to Kotler (2001:112), telephone interviewing is the best method for

gathering information quickly, and the interviewer is also able to clarify the

questions and therefore the response rate is higher than when mailing the

questionnaires.

The researcher assisted in all of these interviews. The aim of these interviews

was to obtain information as accurate as possible that was about the fire

fighting services in the EDM area. After interviewing all seven municipalities, the

researcher processed the completed questionnaires.

4.3.2 Variables in questionnaire Wegner (2001:3) states that a variable is any characteristic that is being

measured or observed and that such a variable can take on different (random)

values at each observation or measurement and is called a random variable.

The aim of this questionnaire was to determine: What is the risk profile and

capacity analysis of the EDM area? As well as: What viewpoints do


service and how does this structure operate?

In this questionnaire there were a number of random variables such as:

• Emergency calls attended annually

o Fires

o Rescue

o Hazmat

• The number of fire stations, sub-stations and control rooms

• Manpower profile

o Qualified full time staff

o Unqualified full time staff

o Part time staff, reservists and volunteers

• Total Municipal operating expenditure

• Total Municipal fire fighting operating expenditure

67

Data on these above mentioned variables assisted the researcher in

determining the assessment analysis of the fire fighting services in the EDM

area.

4.4 SUMMARY The questionnaire was the selected tool to determine: What is the risk profile

and capacity analysis of the EDM area?

As well as: What viewpoints do knowledgeable people have about an

operational structure for a fire fighting service and how does this service

operate?

Data obtained also assisted in determining in which organisational structure

would fit the fire services for the EDM area the best. The benchmarking against

other fire fighting service would help in designing the best operational structure

using all the possible resources.

Chapter 5 will reflect on the results obtained from the questionnaire.

68

CHAPTER 5

RESULTS AND ANALYSIS OF THE EMPIRICAL STUDY

5.1 INTRODUCTION Slack, Chambers and Johnston (2001:601) state that benchmarking is one

approach that some companies can use to compare their operations with those

of other companies. Benchmarking is no longer restricted to only manufacturing

operations but also confined to services such as hospital and banks (Slack et

al., 2001:602).

The practice of benchmarking, where a comparison is made between an

organisation’s operation practices, and their way of doing things and those

adopted by other operations, was discussed in chapter three. The objective was

to see whether anything could be learnt from practices adopted by other

organisations, (Slack et al., (2001:604).

Slack et al. (2001:604) state that a prerequisite for benchmarking success is to

understand thoroughly your own processes and also to look at what is already

available. Therefore it is very important to know what the area looks like, how

many people are staying in the EDM area, what resources they have and what

the total expenditure of it operation is.

5.2 ANALYSIS OF EMERGENCY CALLS ATTENDED The completion of the questionnaire presented an opportunity to determine

where the high risk areas are. Table 5.1 presents data about all the call outs in

a year in the three major fire fighting services as well as in the EDM area. This

information was obtained by a telephonic questionnaire. A copy of the

questionnaire is presented in Annexure A.

69

TABLE 5.1 – EMERGENCY CALLS ATTENDED ANNUALLY

EMERGENCY CALLS ATTENDED ANNUALLY

Mossel Bay

George Oudtshoorn

EDM

FIRES

Formal/informal

dwellings and field fires 473 360 86 35

Storage 2

Industry 1

Transport 19 22 8

Other 3 3

RESCUE

Transport accident 150 - 17 7

Environmental 30 - 1

HAZMAT

TOTAL CALLS 678 395 111 42

Source (Personal interviews)

H. Botha C. Marais H..Krapohl A. Van

Rensburg

Incidents in the rural areas are not always reported; therefore the statistics may

generally be understated. The statistics of the fire fighting services of Knysna

and Plettenberg Bay (Bitou) are not shown in Table 5.1, but it is expected that

their statistics are nearly the same as those in Table 5.1.

Langeberg Municipality has numerous towns and coastal settlements that are

widely fragmented by distance and topography. Risks are predominantly small

and the municipality performs a rudimentary, ad hoc structural fire fighting

function but only has the capacity to mitigate small to medium sized veld fires.

Table 5.1 shows that Mossel Bay attended more emergency calls than George,

that has a larger population. As shown per Table 6.3, Mossel Bay includes a

large quantity of towns with high risk areas. The climate of Mossel Bay, which is

“wet”, is also drier than the climate of George. The following are high risk area

identified in EDM, George and Mossel Bay:

70

EDM (including Kannaland and the DMA) o plantations (Haarlem),

o filling stations,

o LPG gas supply establishments,

o high buildings,

o motor vehicle accidents,

o hazardous substance emergencies involving motor transport and

large structure fires.

i. Mossel Bay o major hazardous installations represented by PetroSA and the

Voorbaai tank farm,

o environmental pollution of the sea and rivers,

o Wolwedans Dam,

o accidents and hazardous substances associated with commercial

transport,

o veld and forest fires,

o the sawmill at Great Brak River,

o passengers and hazardous substances associated with rail transport,

o aircraft accidents,

o swift water and cliff rescues,

o structural and informal settlement fires and rescues,

o rescues after heavy and light motor vehicle accidents,

o Mossel Bay harbour.

ii. George o George airport and aircraft accidents,

o shopping centres,

o filling stations and LPG gas outlets,

o hotels, guest lodges and holiday resorts,

o thatched dwellings (Wilderness),

o wooden houses (Victoria Bay),

o sawmills (Dieprivier),

o squatter camp (Wilderness Heights), informal dwellings

(Touwsranten, Kleinkrantz)

o electrical transformer stations,

71

o institutional buildings and schools.

5.3 ANALYSIS OF QUANTITY OF FIRE STATIONS, SUB-STATIONS AND CONTROL CENTRES

The purpose of these questions was to determine where in the EDM area the

stations, sub-stations and control centres are situated and the quantity of each.

In designing a new operational structure it is important to know the number of

stations and where they are situated due to the cost factor in creating new

stations. Some of the stations are already situated on the main routes of the

area.

Table 5.2 shows the quantity of fire stations, sub-stations and control centres in

the EDM area:

TABLE 5.2 – FIRE STATIONS, SUB-STATIONS AND CONTROL ROOMS

Lang

eber

g

Mos

sel B

ay

Geo

rge

Oud

tsho

orn

Kny

sna

Bito

u

EDM

Fire Stations 0 1 1 1 1 1 1

Sub-stations 0 1 0 0 1 1 2

Satellite 0 0 0 0 2 1 6

Control Centres 0 1 1 1 1 1 1

Source: Otto: 2004

Due to the responsibility of the EDM to provide a full range of fire fighting

services in the DMA and in the Kannaland Municipality as well as for combating

veld and mountain fires in all local municipalities, they have satellite stations in

the area. Control centers with call-taking facilities are located in all centres,

except in Langeberg, and are manned on a 24-hour basis by full time staff. The

Oudtshoorn centre does not appear to be manned at all times. Fire stations are

mainly situated in the different main towns.

72

5.4 ANALYSIS OF FIRE SERVICES EXPENDITURE The fire fighting services are the “poor man” of the municipalities due to the fact

that very little capital expenditure has been channelled to the fire services for

several years. Table 5.3 shows the total operating expenditure of a municipality

with the fire fighting expenditure of the same municipality.

TABLE 5.3 – MUNICIPAL TOTAL OPERATING EXPENDITURE AND FIRE SERVICES OPERATING EXPENDITURE

Code Municipality

Municipal Total

Operating

Expenditure

2002/2003

Fire Fighting

Operating

Expenditure

2002/2003

Municipal

Total

Operating

Expenditure

2003/2004

Fire Fighting

Operating

Expenditure

2003/2004

WC041 Kannaland - - - -

WC042 Langeberg - 100 000 - 108 000

WC043 Mossel Bay 156 154 822 3 798 757 169 147 557 3 954 929

WC044 George 257 800 000 2 600 000 312 000 000 2 960 000

WC045 Oudtshoorn 87 446 135 264 454 101 748 206 277 913

WC047 Bitou 76 173 826 1 394 165 86 440 859 2 508 240

WC048 Knysna 137 862 750 2 366 130 158 692 280 2 649 100

DC4 Eden District 38 601 693 3 873 578 44 579 933 4 299 673

Source: WC042 (Maddison:2004)

WC043 (Botha:2004)

WC044 (Marais:2004)

WC045 (Krapohl:2004)

WC047 (Burger:2004)

WC048 (Nortier:2004)

DC4 (Zeelie:2004)

Table 5.3 indicates that the EDM fire fighting service covers 10% of the total

expenditure in 2003/2004. The EDM is also responsible for fire fighting services

in the rural areas, Kannaland and Langeberg.

The fire service is labour intensive and as may be expected, staff costs that

include allowances for part-time staff, uniforms and protective clothing,

generally account for between 60% and 85% (average 75%) of the total

operating budget of the service. As the fire services are subsidised services,

73

any improvements or expansion of these services will have important

implications for municipal operating budgets and will directly impact on rates.

It will be equally significant to note the impact that future capital charges will

have on operating budgets due to the need for capitalisation and

recapitalisation of fire services inventory.

By using the tables above an estimation on conversion costs for existing

municipal premises into sub-stations or satellite stations may be in the order of

R250 000 to R300 000 each. The general operating costs, excluding staff costs

per station, may be in the order of between R90 000 and R100 000 per annum.

With raising external costs many operating expenditures may have been

effectively reduced. The fire fighting services are mainly funded by revenue in

the form of taxes or the services are charged by tariffs and accounts have been

sent out to clients. The payment of these accounts is very slow due to the fact

that some accounts must be paid by insurance companies and others by the

person himself. The public are not educated or mind shifted to acknowledge

that they should pay for a fire fighting service.

5.5 ANALYSIS OF MANPOWER The manpower of a fire fighting service of a municipality differs from other

municipal departments and is most often overlooked by decision makers. The

fire services are provided at full operational capacity, 24 hours per day and

seven days per week. Depending on the particular shift system employed and

when leave and illness is taken into account, this therefore translates into an

available or on-duty complement of (less than) 25 percent or 33 percent of the

total manpower reflected on the staff establishment of the municipality.

The purpose of these questions asked in the questionnaire was to emphasize

the factors relating to fire fighting effectiveness. It was necessary to know if

there is suitable leadership and what the levels of knowledge and skills in

management are. The main indicators in this regard are qualifications and the

amount and level(s) of training received. If levels of training provide the criterion

for manpower effectiveness, there should be no distinction between full-time

74

staff, part-time staff and volunteers. The reliability of volunteers/reservists

reporting for duty is generally recognised to be a planning and organisational

problem.

TABLE 5.4 – EDM OPERATIONAL MANPOWER PROFILE

EDM Operational Manpower Profile

(excl CFO)

(training relates to formal training only)

Lang

eber

g M

unic

ipal

ity

Mos

sel B

ay M

unic

ipal

ity

Geo

rge

Mun

icip

ality

Oud

tsho

orn

Mun

icip

ality

Kny

sna

Mun

icip

ality

Bito

u M

unic

ipal

ity

ED

M

Full time Staff

Qualified/Trained leadership 0 3 2 0 0 2 4

Unqualified and untrained leadership 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Qualified/ trained fire fighters 0 22 4 0 3 5 6

Unqualified/untrained fire fighters 0 1 6 1 13 0 0


Qualified/trained leadership 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Unqualified and untrained leadership 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Qualified/trained fire fighters 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Unqualified/untrained fire fighters 9 11 0 10 28 15 12

Source: Otto:2004

Table 5.4 indicates that the majority of full-time fire fighters in the district only

have skills-based training. Operational safety and effectiveness require that

officers are also equipped with knowledge-based qualifications. The EDM area

does not have any dedicated fire prevention officers and no operational capacity

to assist in this function (Otto, personal communication, 2004).

The standard number of crew members for all structural fire fighting vehicles is

four. Due to manpower constraints, there may be significant differences in

crewing configurations of fire fighting vehicles that may generally vary between

two and four members per vehicle. Table 5.4 indicates that there are a total of

seventy two full-time fire fighters and 29 percent are not qualified or trained.

75

Plettenberg Bay, Knysna, George and Mossel Bay and the District Municipality

each has a small core of full-time fire staff with the remainder of the

complement being made up of part-time staff. Langeberg, Kannaland and

Oudtshoorn Municipalities have very basic part-time staffing arrangements. Due

to the fact that some of the Municipalities are not providing fire cover to all risks

located within their boundaries, the very limited District Municipality resources

must often respond over excessive distances to deal with emergencies. All the

part-time or volunteer workers are untrained.

5.6 CONCLUSION The fire services in the rural areas are generally under resourced and the man-

power levels are very low. The shortage in resources may result in reduced

effectiveness in all level risks of fires. Local municipalities are extremely

fragmented by both geography and distance that will limit the utility and

effectiveness of operation agreements. Due to all the facts, it is very important

that all functions are standardised and the service standards determined.

Chapter 6 addresses the risk profile and capacity assessment analysis of the

current fire services in the EDM area.

76

CHAPTER 6

RISK PROFILE AND CAPACITY ANALYSIS

6.1 INTRODUCTION Hellriegel et al. (2001:150) define risk as the condition under which individuals

can define a problem, specify the probability of certain events, identify

alternative solutions and state the probability of each solution leading to the

desired result.

The definition of risk points out that risk includes the concept of acceptable risk,

usually based on low probability evaluations and even sacrificial policy. When

decisions are taken on such a basis, albeit rational, it would be important that

such decisions are communicated to the affected parties or communities. In

these terms it would appear reasonable for a municipality to provide emergency

services that would reflect the general risks within a specified area.

Extraordinary risks would therefore be treated in terms of “the polluter pays”-

principle by which special measures may be imposed by the relevant parties

(ODS Consultants; 2004:29).

Risk is therefore pervasive and cannot be avoided. The nature and the cause of

the risk may change over time, as the extent of the damage or reward that may

result may also change (ODS Consultants; 2004:9).

This chapter addresses the following sub-problem: Risk profile and capacity assessment analysis of the current fire services in the EDM area. Part of

this investigation included a risk profile and risk analysis. This analysis was

done by:

• Interviews with fire services management officials,

• Personal site and area inspection and observations,

• Local information bureaus and publications,

• Department of Surveys and local maps,

• Internet research.

77

Slack et al. (2001:604) state that a prerequisite for benchmarking success in an

organisation is to understand thoroughly that organisation’s processes and also

to look at what is already available. Therefore it is very important to know what

the area looks like, how many people are staying in the EDM area, what

resources they have and what the climate and the infrastructure are.

6.2 CLIMATE The EDM area has a moderate climate with rainfall occurring throughout the

year. The Little Karoo experiences the least rainfall in the EDM area with annual

rainfall of less than 400mm per year. The average rainfall of the Outeniqua

region is between 700mm and 1200mm per year. The average temperature for

coastal areas is between 14.6°C and 20.7°C. The Karoo is the warmest region

experiencing temperature variances of between 15°C and 17°C. Winds are

predominantly south-east and south-west

(www.routes.co.za/nature/ecoregions/fynbosmountains; 2005)

The western area experiences more wind than the central and eastern regions.

The influence of the sea results in moderate temperature ranges along the

coastal zone and coastal platform. Summer berg winds result in very hot

periods which, in the absence of rainfall, increase the risk and occurrence of

mountain and field fires throughout the region. Lower temperatures are

experienced at increased altitude in the mountains (Van Wyk, personal

communication, 2004).

The risk of flash floods occurs in the valleys that cut deeply through the coastal

plains throughout the region. There is also a risk of general flooding throughout

the district; however, the low-lying eastern regions and especially the lake area

around Sedgefield are especially susceptible. Flooding generally contributes to

various forms of environmental degradation (Van Wyk, personal

communication, 2004).

Coastal and low lying areas in the central and eastern regions experience

dense fog and mist during late autumn and early winter (May/June), posing a

high risk of road accidents from the vicinity of Mossel Bay to Plettenberg Bay

(Van Wyk, personal communication, 2004).

78

In terms of the disaster management plan, it is very important to do climate

monitoring and the provision of early warnings to relevant sectors and/or

population groupings (Otto, personal Communications, 2004).

6.3 GEOPHYSICAL PROFILE

The geophysical profile of the EDM area has three characteristics namely the

coastal platform, upper plateaux and mountains.

6.3.1 Coastal Platform The coastal platform varies from flat to undulating with a width of about 40km in

the west in the Langeberg region to about five kilometres in the central and

eastern areas of the district. The coastal platform terminates at the foothills of

the mountain ranges and averages 230m in altitude. The main rivers and their

tributaries and deeply incised valleys partition and compartmentalise this

platform limiting road access across the plain and to coastal settlements. Most

valleys are densely vegetated in contrast to the plateau.

The entire length of the southern boundary of the Eden District comprises

coastline and the river mouths, estuaries and lagoons support an established

and growing marine culture industry comprising mussel, oyster, abalone and

seaweed production.

Maritime accidents and disasters fall outside the jurisdiction of the local

Municipalities; local authorities are nonetheless often exposed to the

consequences of such events. The National Sea Rescue Institute is responsible

for all maritime accidents.

6.3.2 Upper Plateaux These plateaux, averaging an altitude of about 400m, form the Klein Karoo and

occur inland between the Outeniqua and Swartberg mountains. The Kannaland

plateau in the west represents a sub-region of the Klein Karoo and is separated

from the Oudhtshoorn region by the Rooiberge.

79

6.3.3 Mountains Foothills and mountain ranges that traverse the area from west to east

characterise the EDM and account for the greatest percentage of the total land

area. The Langeberg and Outeniqua Mountain ranges form a natural barrier,

separating the coastal region from the Little Karoo, with the Klein Swartberg,

Groot Swartberg and Kouga Mountains generally forming the northern boundary

of the district. The Langkloof Mountains in the east separate the narrow coastal

plain from the mountainous interior.

The Rooiberge in the west form an intermediate mountain range while the

Kammanassie and Kouga Mountains east of Oudtshoorn define the eastern

geophysical boundary of the Klein Karoo. The lower reaches of mountains are

variously wooded or populated by fynbos.

6.3.4 Vegetation Invasive alien vegetation of various exotic types is found throughout the district,

occurring with indigenous plant types and species. Indigenous vegetation

includes fynbos species, Karoo shrub and Afro-montane forest. Fynbos includes

mountain fynbos, coastal fynbos and renosterveld that occur from mountainous

regions through coastal plains to the marine interface

(www.plantzaafrica.com/vegetation; 2005)

Various types of thicket are found where there is fire protection and specifically

in disturbed ground, dry river valleys and interspersed with fynbos in dune

sands along the coast. The regional biosphere is variously described as being

threatened and endangered.

The EDM area has several important conservation areas and National Parks

occur throughout and including all local municipal areas; the main ones being:

• Gamka Mountain Nature Reserve 10 428 ha

• Goukamma Nature and Marine Reserve 2 500 ha

• Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve 250 ha

• Boosmansbos Wilderness Area 15 202 ha

• Baviaanskloof Wilderness Area 15 321 ha

• Kammanassie Nature Reserve 49 430 ha

80

• Keurbooms River Nature Reserve 740 ha

• Outeniqua Nature Reserve 38 000 ha

• Robberg Nature and Marine Reserve 1 897 ha

• Swartberg Nature Reserve 121 000 ha

• Gamkapoort Nature Reserve 8 000 ha

• Doring Rivier Wilderness Area 12 519 ha

• Rooiberg Nature Reserve 12 839 ha

• Knysna National Lake Area 15 000 ha

• Wilderness National Park 2 500 ha

• Tsitsikamma National Park 10 600 ha

(www.capenature.org.za; 2005).

Afro-montane forests occur in the south-eastern coastal part of the district from

George to Bitou (Plettenberg Bay) and cover about 60 500ha, with the greatest

consolidation occurring near Knysna. The forests with their high humidity, along

with their herbaceous plant layers and fire tolerant fringes, rarely burn, except in

very hot and windy conditions (www.plantzaafrica.com/vegetation; 2005). Table

6.1 shows the predominant regional vegetation features.

TABLE 6.1 – REGIONAL VEGETATION FEATURES.

Region Vegetation features

Langeberg Plantations, grassland, thicket and bush land, shrub land, low

fynbos and farmland.

Mossel Bay Shrub land, low fynbos and farmland

George Forest,plantation and farmland

Knysna Forest, plantation and farmland

Bitou Forest, plantation and farmland

Oudtshoorn Shrub land and low fynbos, grassland and farmland

Kannaland Grassland, shrub land and low fynbos and farmland

DMA Grassland, shrub land and low fynbos, plantation and farmland

Source: ODS Consultants (2004:17).

Seasonal fires in natural vegetation and open grazing land are predictable with

a high percentage being attributed to the human element. The high percentage

81

of exotic species has a tendency of achieving higher than normal combustion

temperatures, greater flame heights and the rapid propagation of fires even in

otherwise resistant plant species (Van Wyk, personal interview, 2004).

Forestry and timber plantations are the predominant coverage in the area from

George to Knysna. Plantations in the Outeniqua region cover about 80 000ha

with substantial coverage occurring around Uniondale and in the foothills of the

Langeberg Mountains. The weeding out of alien vegetation through the

“Working for Water” programme has resulted in the dense accumulation of dead

combustible vegetation in many mountain catchments areas, adding to the

localised intensity of many fires (Van Wyk, personal interview, 2004).

6.4 INFRASTRUCTURE The Eden District Municipality covers a vast area with seven large municipalities

to consider and to work with. Links are created not via networks, but still in the

old way through hundreds of meetings. The opportunity is there, but to convince

people to redraw their mental maps will be a mammoth task.

Table 6.2 presents the demographics of the EDM area.

TABLE 6.2 – THE EDM DEMOGRAPHICS

Population % of

Population Total

Households

Total Formal

Dwellings

% Formal Dwellings of

Total Households

Total Informal

Dwellings

% Informal Dwellings of

Total Households

Bitou 29 184 6,42 8 759 7 156 81,7 1 604 18,31

DMA 14 597 3,21 3 528 3 454 97,9 71 2,01

George 135 415 29,77 35 525 29 247 82,3 6 245 17,58

Kannaland 23 970 5,27 6 062 5 877 97,2 188 3,10

Knysna 51 472 11,31 14 731 10 931 74,2 3 792 25,74

Langeberg 44 104 9,69 12 510 11 891 98,4 618 4,94

Mossel Bay 71 494 15,72 20 059 17 204 85,7 2 851 14,21

Oudtshoorn 84 685 18,62 18 123 16 538 91,2 1 585 8,75

TOTAL 454 921 100 119 307 102 298 85,7 16 954 14,21

Source: www.statssa.gov.za/census01 (2005).

The following are important points relating to district demographics:

82

• Almost 57% of the total population and about 66% of all dwellings (12% of

which are informal) are found within a ten-kilometre belt from the coast on a

narrow coastal plateau, stretching from Mossel Bay to Bitou,

• The vast majority of the population is urbanised.

• Over 85% of all informal dwellings in the EDM area is found in the Mossel

Bay to Bitou areas.

• The region experiences a high average of in-migration and growth rates.

• George also represents the industrial, commercial and institutional hub of

the district.

• The region from Mossel Bay to Bitou also provides a similar percentage of

essential services and infrastructure including roads, bridges, energy

distribution, communications, water reticulation, sewage treatment and state,

municipal and private institutions.

• The municipalities of George (29,7%) and Mossel Bay (15,7%) have more

than 45% of the district population and possess the majority and greatest

diversity of commercial, industrial and manufacturing industries in the

district.

• Only 27% (Oudtshoorn 18,6%) of the total EDM population may be found

north of the Langeberg and Outeniqua Mountains.

• The Langeberg Municipality, only accommodates about 9,7% of the total

population.

• Rural population densities are generally low with the majority of the rural

population and rural settlements being directly associated with farming and

forestry activities in the region.

• The rural population in Bitou, however, makes up approximately 20% of the

total population.

• Within the ten-kilometre belt from the coast are numerous coastal resorts

which primarily provide tourist accommodation and recreational facilities.

The towns provide smaller scale institutional, commercial, retail, educational

and social structures, infrastructure and services.

• The urban distribution within local municipalities and within the EDM is very

fragmented.

• Infrastructure in terms of fire risk analysis primarily includes, but is not

limited, to all built structures, and includes built structures that accommodate

83

the population as well as those that support and propagate human

endeavour, e.g. industries.

• Building structures are centred in towns. It is important to note that all coastal municipalities experience a substantial

influx of tourists and visitors during peak season. Figures generally describe this

population category in terms of total seasonal turnover (for example Mossel

Bay, 400 000). It would be difficult to assess actual daily or weekly averages for

each town or resort; however, this would be significant and in many instances

could more than double the resident population. Similarly, seasonal and out-of-

season promotional events provide exceptional influxes that inflate local

populations by similar proportions. Most notably, these include golfing

competitions in Bitou and George, the Knysna Oyster Festival, the Diaz Festival

and “Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees” (KKNK).

The probability of fires and other emergencies in certain areas in the EDM

district is high. The lack of capacity to efficiently and effectively deal with such

emergencies presents a problem.

FIGURE 6.1 – MAP OF THE EDM AREA

Map source – www.demarcation.org.za

84

The City of George and all main towns and rural settlements in the Eden District

are listed hereunder.

TABLE 6.3 - MAIN URBAN CENTRES AND SETTLEMENTS IN THE EDM Municipality Cities, Towns and Settlements

Kannaland Ladismith, Calitzdorp, Droëvlei, Van Wyksdorp, Zoar

Langeberg Albertinia, Gouritzmond, Heidelberg, Riversdal, Slang River, Still Bay,

Witsand/Fort Beaufort

Mossel Bay Friemersheim, Herbertsdale, Great Brak River, Mossel Bay - coastal

resorts: Vlees Bay, Boggoms Bay, Dana Bay, Hartenbos, Little Brak

River

George George, Glentana, Herold's Bay, Victoria Bay, Herold, Wilderness

Oudtshoorn De Rust/Blomnek, Dysseldorp, Oudtshoorn

Knysna Knysna, Sedgefield – coastal resorts – Brenton-on-Sea, Brenton-on-

Lake, Buffelo Bay, Noetzie

Bitou Keurboomstrand, Natures Valley, Plettenberg Bay

DMA Uniondale, Haarlem, Noll

Source: www.demarcation.org.za/ward_delimitation/FINAL/wc/munic(2005)

The listings in Table 6.3 with the map in Figure 6.1 are used as a point of

reference in future discussions. The name of the municipality will be used as the

main reference.

6.5 ROADS AND TRANSPORTATION The roads network that dissects the EDM area is dictated and limited by

mountains and deep river valleys. The roads network inland to Kannaland,

Oudtshoorn and the Demarcation Area (DMA) is restricted to a few passes

through mountain ranges. The normal road distances between major population

centres and between municipalities vary between forty kilometres to over ninety

kilometres. The roads network in the rural are is poorly connected to main roads

and other minor roads. The municipalities in the area are extremely fragmented

with numerous isolated and potentially vulnerable rural and coastal

communities.

85

The N2-highway is the main link between municipalities along the cost and

coastal plateau. The N2 is also the important transit routé to the Eastern Cape

and to the Cape Town Metropolitan area. Other important routes are the N12

from George to Beaufort West via Oudtshoorn, the N9 through Uniondale to

Graaff-Reinet and the R62 from Oudtshoorn to Montagu. Table 6.4 indicates the

distances between the various towns. TABLE 6.4 - TOWN DISTRIBUTION AND TRAVEL DISTANCES IN THE EDM

Town Nearest Town Kilometres

Witsand 38km Heidelberg

Riversdal 29km

Stilbaai 40 – 42km

Vermaaklikheid 44km

Albertinia 39km

Slang River 64km

Gouritzmond 76km

Riversdal

Ladismith 99km

Gouritzmond 40km Albertinia

Mossel Bay 46km

Mossel Bay Hartenbos 10km

Groot Brak River 24km

Vleesbaai 43km

George 45km

Oudtshoorn 96km

Herold's Bay 15km

Pacaltsdorp 12km

Herold 30km

Wilderness 15km

Sedgefield 38km

Knysna 60km

George

Oudtshoorn 61km

Dysseldorp 24km

De Rust 35km

Calitzdorp 53km

Oudtshoorn

Ladismith 99km

Zoar 19km Ladismith

Calitzdorp 46km

Sedgefield 22km – Karatara 18km Knysna

Karatara 28km

86

Plettenberg Bay 39km

Wittedrift 10km

The Crags 11km

Plettenberg Bay

Knysna 39km

Source: www.routes.co.za/wc (2005)

Road distances between the towns of adjoining municipalities along the coastal

zone average over 40km and between adjoining municipalities exceed 53km.

Distances from coastal towns to inland urban centres average 82km (including

the negotiation of mountain passes). All roads carry private vehicles, public

passenger transport and commercial vehicles. Cargos may include raw

industrial materials, household and commercial goods, agricultural produce,

livestock and processed and manufactured products and goods. Hazardous

materials are also transported. The proximity of mountains, mountain passes

and limited bypass alternatives make the limited transportation arteries

extremely vulnerable when disruption occurs in any emergency situation.

6.6 RAIL TRANSPORT There is a single route that enters the district out of Worcester via Swellendam

and continues along the coastal plateau through all the main towns to George

and Knysna. A line passes from George over the Outeniqua Mountains to

Oudtshoorn where it branches westwards to Calitzdorp and eastwards to the

Eastern Cape Province. The coastal line between George and Knysna includes

special tourist train services. A steam train service is alleged to be the primary

cause of veld fires along the coast during the dry season (ODS Consultants;

2004:26).

6.7 AIRPORTS The George Airport is the largest commercial airport in the region and handles

both passengers and freight. There is also a commercial airport in Plettenberg

Bay and airstrips in Oudtshoorn and Riversdal (ODS Consultants; 2004:26).

Airports pose variable accident risks to populations in their immediate surrounds

and by aircraft overflights. Commercial aircraft pass over the entire district.

Accidents pose life and injury risks to passengers and the local community as

87

well as the possibility of damage to building structures and infrastructure with

secondary environmental pollution risks. Hazardous freight and aircraft fuel

poses serious risks of fire and environmental pollution. Airport risks include

tanker vehicles with aviation fuel and the possibility of quantities of pesticides

during seasonally determined crop spraying (ODS Consultants; 2004:26).

The transportation of aviation fuels by road is very risky and can cause serious

emergencies.

6.8 FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF THE FIRE SERVICES AND GEOGRAPHICAL SERVICE PROFILE

The evaluation of the capacity of a fire service is very important due to the fact

that it provides an overview of the functions performed by the fire services in the

district. This investigation evaluated their actual ability to effectively perform the

relevant functions to acceptable standards. Capacity in this instance relates to

the required manpower, training, skills, vehicles, machinery, equipment, tools

and infrastructural capacity to efficiently and effectively prevent, mitigate, control

and deal with all emergencies (ODS Consultants; 2004:32). The following table

identifies only the primary activities done by a fire service.

TABLE 6.5 – ASSESSMENT OF FUNCTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS

ASSESSMENT OF FUNCTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS FOR

THE MAIN URBAN AREA ONLY

Lang

eber

g M

unic

ipal

ity

Mos

sel B

ay M

unic

ipal

ity

Geo

rge

Mun

icip

ality

Oud

tsho

orn

Mun

icip

ality

Kny

sna

Mun

icip

ality

Bito

u M

unic

ipal

ity

Kan

nala

nd M

unic

ipal

ity

DM

A

Fire Risk Categories (fire fighting)

Category A – Extensive CBDs commercial and industrial

areas X 2 2 1 X X X X

Category B – Limited CBDs commercial and industrial

areas 1 2 2 1 2 2 1 2

Category C – Conventional residential areas 1 3 3 2 3 3 2 3

Category D – Remote rural areas of limited buildings 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 2

Category E – Special risks (over and above predominant 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1

88

risks)

Veld and mountain fires 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 3

Fire safety

Building plans scrutiny 0 3 3 0 3 3 0 0

Building construction inspections 0 3 2 0 2 3 0 0

Rational design appraisal 0 3 2 0 2 2 0 0

Fire prevention inspections 0 2 2 1 2 2 0 0

Major hazard assessments and approvals 0 3 3 0 3 3 0 0

Rescue

Fire-related rescue 0 3 3 2 3 3 3 3

Automotive and industrial extrication 0 3 0 2 2 2 2 2

High angle rescue 0 3 0 0 1 1 1 1

Environmental rescue 0 2 0 0 2 2 2 2

Confined space and collapse rescue 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0

TABLE 6.6 – RESOURCE ASSESSMENT FOR STRUCTURE FIRES

RESOURCE ASSESSMENT FOR STRUCTURE FIRES IN

THE MAIN URBAN AREA ONLY

Due to inadequate resources throughout, all other urban

centres and rural areas in local municipalities were not

scored

Lang

eber

g M

unic

ipal

ity

Mos

sel B

ay M

unic

ipal

ity

Geo

rge

Mun

icip

ality

Oud

tsho

orn

Mun

icip

ality

Kny

sna

Mun

icip

ality

Bito

u M

unic

ipal

ity

Kan

nala

nd M

unic

ipal

ity

DM

A

Structural fire-fighting vehicles 1 2 3 2 2 2 1 3

Veld fire-fighting vehicles 1 2 2 1 2 3 3 3

General fire-fighting equipment 0 3 3 2 3 3 1 2

Flammable liquid fire-fighting equipment 0 4 1 1 4 3 0 1

Rescue vehicles 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 0

Accident rescue equipment 0 3 0 1 3 3 1 3

Environmental rescue equipment 0 2 0 0 2 2 0 1

HAZMAT equipment 0 3 1 0 3 3 0 2

Protective clothing and safety equipment 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Breathing apparatus 1 3 3 3 4 3 3 3

Trained leadership 0 3 2 0 2 2 1 2

Trained manpower 0 3 2 0 2 2 2 2

Structural/specialist fire fighting average 1 3 3 1 3 3 2 2

Accident/environmental rescue average 0 3 0 2 3 3 2 2

Hazardous substances average 0 3 3 0 3 3 2 2

Note: The legend

89

X - not applicable

0 - <10% effectiveness

1 - 10 – 25% effectiveness



4 - >75% effectiveness

Source: ODS Consultants (2004:33)

With reference to Tables 6.5 and 6.6 Langeberg municipality will be discussed:

• Langeberg municipality performs a rudimentary, ad hoc structural fire

fighting function but only has the capacity to mitigate small to medium-

sized veld fires. Other fires may be mitigated by chance and if attended

during the very early stages of their development.

• Vehicles and equipment are basic and no formal training of staff is

evident.

• The maintenance profile of resources is low and there is no dedicated

call-taking centre or fire administration.

• The municipality has no trained leadership as in a Chief Fire Officer

appointed in terms of the Fire Brigade Services Act, 1987.

• The municipality has no training and little practical capacity for fire

fighting other than for small to medium-ized veld fires.

• It has no capacity to attend chemical fires or hazardous substance

emergencies.

• There is no fire safety (fire prevention) capacity. Planned scrutiny, fire

inspections and enforcement occur via the building control department

without fire service input or recommendations.

• The municipality does not have the resources or training and does not

perform rescues of any type.

90

TABLE 6.7 – MAIN FIRE FIGHTING RESOURCES IN THE EDM

Kan

nala

nd

Lang

eber

g

Mos

sel B

ay

Geo

rge

Oud

tsho

orn

Bito

u

Kny

sna

DM

A

EDM

(Geo

rge)

Major/Heavy Pumps (3850 ℓ/min) 1

Medium Pumps (2250 ℓ/min) 2 1 1 2

Light Pumps (<2250 ℓ/min) 1 2 1 1 1

2 x 4 Bush Fire Unit 2 1 4

4 x 4 Bush Fire Unit 1 2 1 3 3 10

Rescue Vehicle 1 1

HAZMAT Vehicle

Water Tanker 2 1 1 2 2

Aerial Appliance

Control Vehicle 1 1

Trailer (specify) 3f 1c 1c 1c 3c

B/A Compressor 1 1 1 1

Power Generator 2 4 1 2 2 2

Portable Pump 2

Floating Pump 2 2 1 2 2

Power Cutting Tools 1 1 5

Fire Hose 2 57 60 10 60 41

Branches 11 12 1 16 7 8

Ropes and Lines 4 1 1set

Ladders 2 4 3 1 6 2

Breathing Apparatus 2 10 12 6 10 21 12

Foam-Making Equipment 13 1 3 4 2

Power Rescue Tools 3 1 1 2

Pneumatic Rescue Equipment 3 2 3

First Aid/Life Support Equipment 1

Fire Station 2 1 1 1 4 1

Lecture Hall 1 1 1

Training Facilities

Chief Fire Officer 1 1 1

Deputising Officer

Fire Prevention Officer

Training Officer

Control Room Operator 1 4 1 4 3 5

Administration/Clerk 1

Operational Officer 3 2 2 4

Fire fighter 23 10 1 5 16 6

Reservist/Volunteer 9 11 10 15 28 12

91

Note : Legend

denotes combination pumper/tanker

denotes vehicles in George and EDM rural area

f denotes fire trailers

c denotes HAZMAT trailer

Source: ODS Consultants (2004:43).

The following are interesting facts from Table 6.7:

• All the conventional pumpers in the district are older than 15 years with an

average age of over 20 years.

• The conventional pumpers are maintained at constant gross weight, that is

fully laden with equipment, water and materials from the date of commission.

• Pumpers are expected to perform at peak engine revolutions in all seasons

and weather conditions without the benefit of “warming up”.

• The chief fire officers and operational officers of the individual municipal fire

services are presently performing fire prevention functions. With the

increase of the area and complexity of all municipalities and the increase in

the numbers of emergencies attended, fire prevention functions have

generally been neglected. This function should have dedicated, specialist

staff and resources and should perform the full range of fire prevention

activities in terms of those described in SANS 10090:2003.

• The fire services do not generally operate on independent and secure

communications, but radio coverage is reasonably extensive except in

mountainous areas.

• Each Municipality has its own shift systems resulting in differing fire station

configurations.

• Accommodation for on-duty staff is provided in Mossel Bay, George, Knysna

and Plettenberg Bay only.

• Lecture facilities are located in most fire stations or alternative venues are

readily available, however.

• There are no municipal fire training facilities in the district.

• Only three chief fire fighting staff in the EDM area.

• Only two rescue vehicles operate in the area.

92

• The Oudtshoorn Municipality has a single medium-pumping capacity vehicle

and the necessary equipment to attend low risk and limited moderate- and

high-risk emergencies.

• Veld fire fighting in the Oudtshoorn Municipal boundaries is very limited.

• Mossel Bay Municipality has one medium fire appliance with two support

vehicles that do not appear to be fully serviceable and are thus of

questionable reliability.

• The George Municipality has two medium pumpers supported by a water

tanker/pumper which constitute the predominant of the fire fighting capacity

at George.

• The Bitou Municipality possesses a satisfactory array of vehicles for

conducting veld fire operations; however, only a single light pumper is

available for structural fire fighting.

• The Langeberg Municipality has a light GMC pumper that is situated in

Riversdal and is in reasonable condition; otherwise, the effectiveness and/or

serviceability of most other fire fighting resources are viewed with

considerable reserve.

• The Knysna fire department has the capacity to confidently combat only low

risk fires with a single light pumper and may manage small fires of moderate

risks.

• The EDM has limited rescue equipment and HAZMAT resources.

6.9 CONCLUSION This analysis should stimulate the exploration of rational alternatives and also

enable a planned approach for the cost-effective extensions of functions and

services in all areas. Risk profile illustrates that all local municipalities are

extremely fragmented by both geography and distances between towns and

settlements.

The shortage in resources may result in reduced effectiveness in mitigating

large low-risk fires, small moderate-risk fires and most high-risk fires.

Using the information of other fire fighting services and that of the EDM area, a

suggested organisational structure is presented in chapter 7.This chapter will be

looking at the implications of the supply-side and demand-side factors of

93

location. To be a competitive fire fighting service, the five performance

objectives must be applied.

94

CHAPTER 7

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

7.1 INTRODUCTION Perhaps the greatest change evident in the way that public services will look

from a perspective of twenty years hence is that there is likely to be a much




going to be challenged, possibly to the point of extinction (Milner; 2000:177).

Eddie Obeng (1997:198) states that you can find new ways of delivering old

needs: you already know who the customers are, where they are and what

colour underpants they wear. It is all out there for the taking, but the real barrier

is in your imagination. To be able to go virtual, you will need to redraw your

mental maps. We need to build new mental maps. The opportunity is there but

to convince people to redraw their mental maps will be a huge task.

In the language of the Chinese people there is a saying that goes like this: “May

you live in interesting times.” According to their tradition this is considered to be

a curse. Interesting times can be seen as a curse, because they often bring

about change and chaos. They are times when old ways of doing things no

longer apply and people need new approaches and perspectives (Melnyk &

Denzler; 1996:16).

The implementation of a fire fighting service operational structure will be a new

approach for fire fighting in the EDM area. This research did not include a study

of the legal framework in which the fire fighting service must operate. The legal

framework stipulates the following issues:

Executive authority for fire fighting services as specified by the

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996),

95

The prescribed requirements and processes for deciding on a

mechanism for service delivery by the Municipal Systems Act (Act 32 of 2000),

The division of functions and powers relating to fire fighting services

between the district municipality and local municipalities by the

Municipal Structures Act (Act 117 of 1998), The Fire Brigade Services Act (Act 99 of 1987) that defines the

functions of a fire fighting service (ODS Consultants, 2004:9).

The above mentioned issues cannot be changed like an organisational

structure, but to be objective in creating a new structure the above mentioned

legal requirements have been taken into consideration. The division of powers

between the Eden District Municipality and the other seven local municipalities

is still a struggle for power and will not be solved in the near future. This

struggle for power also impacts on the morale of the fire fighters because they

feel that there is no actual direction due to a clumsy structure and an ineffective

centralising or decentralising of decision making. Therefore it is important to

create a new organisational structure that includes both district and local

municipalities. There is no definite division of boundaries when it comes to a

disaster in the rural areas.

7.2 ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE The movement towards tighter and leaner organisations has drawn attention to

the importance of alternative forms of structure, and has placed increased

emphasis on the demand for flexibility. Due to the revolutionary changes in

organisations, the need is great for new and flexible structures. It is therefore

very important to create a fire fighting management structure that will comprise

all aspects of the EDM area, including the diversity of the environment.

The new structure should include some characteristics of the bureaucratic

organisational structure, namely the flat organisation, virtual organisation,

network organisation and the geographic structure.

Thomson and Strickland (1999:291) state that a geographic organisation, as a

structure, suits firms pursuing different strategies in different geographic regions

96

well. Due to the geographic diversity, this structure is the one to use as it will

promote improved performance. The primary advantage is to focus on customer

needs and provide faster, better service. The duplication of parts of the

organisation structure will be expensive, but the needs of a specific area will be

attended to and will result in faster and better service.

The geographic structure will be the design for both the District Municipality and

the other seven municipalities. The available manpower will be divided into

geographical areas according to the risks in that specific area. Table 7.1 shows

the available manpower and Table 7.2 the different areas:

TABLE 7.1 - TOTAL MANPOWER STATISTICS.

Rank Total Chief Fire Officer 3

Deputising Officer 0

Fire Prevention Officer 0

Training Officer 0

Control Room Operator 18

Administration/Clerk 1

Operational Officer 11

Fire fighter 61

Reservist/Volunteer 85

Source: Otto (2004)

TABLE 7.2 - IDENTIFICATION OF THE THREE GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS Municipality Cities, Towns and Settlements

UPPER PLATEAUX

Kannaland LADISMITH, CALITZDORP, DROËVLEI, VAN WYKSDORP,

ZOAR

Oudtshoorn De Rust/Blomnek, Dysseldorp, Oudtshoorn

DMA Uniondale, Haarlem, Noll

Coastal Platform A

Langeberg Albertinia, Gouritzmond, Heidelberg, Riversdal, Slang River, Still

Bay, Witsand/Fort Beaufort

Mossel Bay Friemersheim, Herbertsdale, Great Brak River, Mossel Bay -

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coastal resorts: Vlees Bay, Boggoms Bay, Dana Bay,

Hartenbos, Little Brak River

Coastal Platform B

George George, Glentana, Herold's Bay, Victoria Bay, Herold,

Wilderness

Knysna Knysna, Sedgefield – coastal resorts – Brenton-on-Sea,

Brenton-on-Lake, Buffels Bay, Noetzie

Bitou Keurboomstrand, Natures Valley, Plettenberg Bay

Source: ODS Consultant (2004:20).

TABLE 7.3 - DEMOGRAPHICS OF EDM DIVIDED INTO THE THREE AREAS

Population Total

Households

Total

Formal

Dwellings

Total

Informal

Dwellings

Upper

Plateaux

123 246 27 713 25 869 1 844

Coastal

Platform A

115 604 32 569 29 095 3 469

Coastal

Platform B

216 056 59 015 47 334 11 641

Source: (www.statssa.gov.za/census01 (2005).

As shown in the above tables the EDM area is divided into three parts by rivers

and mountains. The areas are nearly the same size, with the same number of

dwellings. The upper plateaux that are situated between the Outeniqua

mountain and the Swartberg mountain are smaller than the other two, but the

infrastructure is not so developed as on the other side of the mountain. Table

7.2 divides all the towns into three areas and Table 7.3 is the total population,

households and dwellings per area. Figure 7.1 shows the possible organisation

structure for the EDM fire fighting area:

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FIGURE 7.1 - GEOGRAPHIC ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF EDM AREA

Fire Stations

Source: Adapted from http://www.courses.bus.msu/materials/1022/ch11a.ppt

The regional operations will be divided into Regional Commander Upper

Plateaux, Regional Commander Coastal Plateaux A and Regional Commander

Coastal Plateaux B.

FIGURE 7.2 – REGIONAL COMMANDER COASTAL PLATEAUX A

Source: Adapted from Figure 2.1

REGIONAL COMMANDER:

COASTAL PLATEAUX A

UNIT SUPERVISOR Administrative support

SHIFT A


SHIFT B


SHIFT C


Administrative and

support staff Chief Fire Officer

Fire Safety C

oordinator

Regional Commander: Coastal Platform A

Regional C

omm

ander: Coastal P

latform B

Regional Commander: Upper

Plateaus

99

Each regional command structure will look like the above structure and should

have characteristics of a bureaucratic organisational structure. This part of the

structure performs a particular high specialisation of labour. Other

characteristics are: centralised authority, top-down structure with definite

boundaries between different jobs, sections (in other word units). There can be

more than one unit supervisor with fire fighting teams, depending of the size of

the regional office. The Coastal Plateau B will have more than one unit

supervisor. George, Mossel Bay, Knysna, Bitou and Oudtshoorn, who each has

a fire station in town, can still be used as sub-stations due to their urban fire

fighting capacity and the realistic distances from them to the rural areas.

The Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District is also divided into districts and is

much larger than our local fire fighting services. The success of having 38 fire

stations, 673 paid personnel to cope with 56 700 call outs and the system of

working in districts, shows that the geographical model can work.

The Metropolitan Police Department also converted to a geographical

organisational structure. The new structure created a more streamlined

organisation that promotes teamwork, communication and accountability. They

could focus on what they really must do. If the fire fighting services in the EDM

area transform to a new structure, they will also be able to perform all the

functions according to the Fire Brigade Services Act (Act 99 of 1987). The fire

services must include the total package of fire services policies, functions, sub-

functions and related activities, which are:

Fire prevention,

Fire fighting,

Rescue,

Support and allied activities including,

Risk profile of the area of jurisdiction (risk categories),

Call receipt and processing requirements (including

communications),

Vehicle/equipment availability and maintenance,

Incident management procedures,

Pre-fire planning and risk visits,

Training/personnel,

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Water supplies,

Fire safety (fire prevention) functions and,

Occupational health and safety.

The new EDM fire fighting service organisation structure will be a flatter

structure than decentralised authority by creating the regional offices. The jobs

will be more broadly defined, with greater overlap and flexible boundaries

among the different regional offices.

The area from George to Knysna is predominantly covered with forestry and

timber plantations. Plantations in the Outeniqua region cover about 80 000ha

with substantial coverage occurring around Uniondale and in the foothills of the

Langeberg Mountains. The weeding out of alien vegetation has resulted in the

dense accumulation of dead combustible vegetation in many mountain

catchment areas, adding to the localised intensity of many fires (ODS

Consultants; 2004:18).

Mountain fires are regular seasonal occurrences and due to their inaccessibility,

height, steep slopes, ravines, gorges and isolated valleys, they pose serious

safety risks to fire fighters and isolated communities alike. Mountain fires also

destabilise rock faces and significantly contribute to rock falls and erosion. This

is especially significant in mountain passes and in areas that are in close

proximity to roads and human habitation. The lack of a roads network near the

mountain areas make it very difficult to fight a fire when it is still small.

These fires create their own dynamics that include firestorms and rapid vertical

propagation, generally termed “chimney effects”. These fires, their prevention

and control require special management knowledge and skills coupled to

intimate knowledge of the terrain and local agency structures and functioning.

They most often require multi-agency attendance and due to the size of areas

involved and their complexity, will most correctly be termed and dealt with as

disaster situations. This would require high-level strategic co-ordination and

complex tactical management preceded by detailed pre-incident planning and

multilateral co-operation (agreements) (ODS Consultants; 2004:18).

101

The Zululand Fire Protection Services (ZFPS) is a private aerial fire fighting

service that is contracted by the timber growers in Kwazulu-Natal. With

sufficient bombers available, a load could be dropped on the fire every three

minutes, which would be happening while the ground crew are still on their way.

A network organisation can be created with an organisation like ZFPS. The

ZFPS or similar organisation is highly specialised and also understands the

strategic goals of the partnership.

The ZFPS is also using the Firehawk computerised fire detection system as

described in chapter 3. The EDM fire fighting service can use such a system to

increase efficiency effectively. Due to the regular seasonal mountain fire

occurrences, these fires can be spotted by the Firehawk system when it is still

very small. The Firehawk system can be installed on the various maintain tops

and can overlook each plateau and send the images to the control room. The

Firehawk will be identifying the exact spot where the fire is by using a

geographical information system. The identification will reduce cost by

searching for the fire and will decrease the time that it usually takes to arrive at

a fire.

If all the fire fighters in the EDM area were privately employed and the

communication networks were in place, a virtual organisation would be the

organisational structure to implement. The only permanent employees would be

those in the call centre. However, due to the current lack of computer skills of

the fire fighting personnel, it would not be possible to create a virtual

organisation. If the Firehawk system is a possibility, the control room personnel

must be educated to use it successfully, due to fact that it is a computerised

system.

7.3 THE LOCATION OF CAPACITY The definition of location of capacity, Slack et al. (2001:159), is that location is

the geographical positioning of an operation relative to the input resources,

other operations or customers with which it interacts. Sometimes operations

cannot logically justify their location. Some are where they are for historical

reasons. The decision not to move is made on an assumption that the cost and

102

disruption involved in changing location would outweigh any potential benefits of

a new location.

The two fire fighting services in George are situated almost next to each other.

Sometimes they are disputing who is going on a call out, and sometimes they

both arrive at an emergency scene.

The identification of the supply-side and demand-side factors will simplify the

decision of location. The supply-side factors as implemented in the EDM area

are identified in Table 7.4.

TABLE 7.4 – SUPPLY-SIDE FACTORS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS

SUPPLY-SIDE FACTORS

IMPLICATIONS

Labour costs Cost of employing extra fire fighters,

Cost off relocating existing fire fighters to areas

needed.

Land costs Cost of obtaining a fire station where no other exists.

Cost of upgrading existing stations to required

standards

Energy costs The only important factor is the availability of water.

Transportation costs Cost of delivering goods such as chemicals for

submitting a fire.

Travelling cost of fire fighters if necessary.

Community factors Government financial assistance in creating a

infrastructure for emergency services.

Language will be that of the region.

The demand-side factors can influence service to/revenue from customers as

the location varies. Table 7.5 identifies the demand-side factors that exert an

influence on a location decision;

103

TABLE 7.5 – DEMAND-SIDE FACTORS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS

DEMAND-SIDE FACTORS IMPLICATIONS Labour skills Do the local people have the skills to be fire

fighters?

Cost of training.

Suitability of site The fire station must be on such a site to be

able to move quickly to a call out.

Easy-to-reach main roads network.

Image Must look like a professional fire fighting

service to be proud of.

Convenience for customers

(speed and dependability).

The same as suitable site.

Resources must be in a dependable working

condition.

The Metropolitan Police Department decided to restructure the entire

department and relocate responsibilities to the districts for three reasons;

• To place resources in the community,

• Focus on resources on reducing crime and solving problems in the 83 areas

(districts),

• To hold managers at every level of the organisation accountable for the

quality of policing service within their geographic commands

(http://www.dcwatch.com/police/980909.htm; 2004).

By choosing the best location and the capacity to detect fires more rapidly and

quickly, limited damage and cost will decrease with a subsequent advantage to

the customer and community.

7.4 THE FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Today’s business world is swept, some would say convulsed, by epic change;

whole industries dissolve and re-form before our very eyes, and technology

defies the imagination almost weekly. In such times, the great strengths are not

clairvoyance and omniscience – in short, supply is the requirement under the

best of circumstances. Great strengths are flexibility, adaptability, a capacity for

learning quickly. To be clear in business today, one does not need to be a

prophet. But when great transformations are unfolding, one does need to grasp

the opportunity first (PriceWaterhouseCoopers; 1999:2)

104

These five performance objectives can be applied to any type of operation and

will help the fire fighting service to be more competitive within themselves and

against other fire fighting services. The five objectives can be tested by asking

the following five questions;

• Is the fire fighting service doing things right?

• Is the fire fighting service first on a scene?

• Is the fire fighting service doing things on time?

• Is the fire fighting service making changes where necessary?

• Is the fire fighting service doing there job cost-effectively?

7.4.1 Is the fire fighting service doing things right? This begs the question what the quality of the fire fighting service is. Are they

following procedures when they are fighting a fire? What is the quality of their

resources?

The vehicles and much equipment throughout the district fall into two

categories;

• Inappropriate vehicles and equipment for the intended/stated application,

• Vehicles and equipment that are redundant or nearing redundancy.

105

TABLE 7.6 – MAIN FIRE FIGHTING RESOURCES IN THE EDM

Source:ODS Consultants (2004:43).

Table 7.6 lists only the most important resources available within the district

which are shown as totals in Table 6.8 in chapter 6. The conventional pumpers

in the district are older than 15 years with an average age of over 20 years.

Maintenance is done on a continuous base. Funding will be needed to invest in

new vehicles. Using the Firehawk will also improve the quality of the service.

DESCRIPTION

Tota

l

Major/Heavy Pumps (3850 ℓ/min) 3

Medium Pumps (2250 ℓ/min) 6

Light Pumps (<2250 ℓ/min) 6

2 x 4 Bush Fire Unit 7

4 x 4 Bush Fire Unit 17

Rescue Vehicle 2

HAZMAT Vehicle 0

Water Tanker 8

Aerial Appliance 0

Control Vehicle 2

Trailer (specify) 9

B/A Compressor 4

Power Generator 13

Portable Pump 2

Floating Pump 9

Power Cutting Tools 7

Fire Hose 230

Branches 55

Ropes and Lines 6

Ladders 18

Breathing Apparatus 73

Foam-Making Equipment 23

Power Rescue Tools 7

Pneumatic Rescue Equipment 8

First Aid/Life Support Equipment 1

Fire Station 10

106

With the exception of the vehicles, the other equipment is in a better condition

and can safeguard an error-free service. The trained fire fighters know all the

procedures and are leaders of a fire fighting team.

The resources of the Oudtshoorn Municipality will generally be inadequate to

effectively manage any complex fire situation. Equipment may generally be

classified as rudimentary and the fire service would be unable to deal with

moderate flammable liquid fires. The Mossel Bay Municipality’s vehicles are

generally well equipped. Taking the risk profile of the municipality into account,

it is believed that the vehicle fleet and the distribution of resources are

inadequate to provide equitable services to all communities or to manage

complex or major fires with any confidence. The existing vehicles of the George

Municipality, including the other equipment, will be successful in controlling

most expected fires. Capacity, to deal with veld fires is limited but satisfactory

for the main George urban area. The Bitou Municipal fire service has extremely

limited capacity for managing fires other than medium-size low-risk and small

moderate-risk fires. General fire fighting equipment, with the exception of

structural fire rescue, is satisfactory. Knysna Municipality will be able to manage

small to medium-size veld fires with some confidence.

The EDM maintains a main fire station in George with sub-stations in Uniondale

(DMA) and Ladismith (Kannaland). There is a total of 17 LDV veld fire units in

the district. The distribution of fire fighting resources is as follows:

• De Vlugt (Bitou) – 500ℓ LDV veld fire unit,

• Uniondale – 6000ℓ tanker fire engine and 500ℓ 4 x 4 LDV veld fire unit,

• Haarlem – 500ℓ LDV veld fire unit,

• Goedehoop – 500ℓ LDV veld fire unit,

• Eensaamheid – 500ℓ LDV veld fire unit,

• Ladismith – 6000ℓ tanker unit and 750ℓ 4 x 4 LDV veld fire unit,

• Calitzdorp – 500ℓ veld fire trailer. (Otto,2004)

Water for fire fighting and the availability of fire hydrants, are important factors

to make a localisation decision for fire fighting operations as well as for the

replenishment of tanker vehicles that are virtually non-existent, except in the

107

larger towns. The general status of water supplies in many developing towns

and in most rural and coastal settlements is tenuous.

The district generally has limited bulk water storage facilities; however, general

proximity to the coast may provide a source of water for aerial fire fighting.

7.4.2 Is the fire fighting service first on a scene? Speed is the one objective that a fire fighting service is measure by. If the fire

fighters arrive late at a fire and it destroys everything, who is to blame? Speed

reduces risks. By using the Firehawk, the first response of Zululand Fire

Protection Services is fast and reduces the risk that the fire may develop into a

disaster. The fire is identified when it is just a smoke signal. In the EDM area

the response time is not so fast due to the load of water the vehicle carries and

the mountain passes. When a fire has been reported telephonically by a

member of the public, the control room reports the fire to the nearest fire station.

The quality of the resources plays a major role in the reaction time of the fire

fighting service.

7.4.3 Is the fire fighting service doing things on time? If the local fire department is always late when it is called out to an emergency

and there is another option, the customer will phone the private fire fighting

service when needed. In terms of dependability of a fire fighting service, the

quality of the resources plays a vital role. In the EDM area the different fire

stations have an agreement that they will help if the specific station cannot help

with an emergency.

7.4.4 Is the fire fighting service making changes where necessary? Flexibility is the ability to change far enough and fast enough to meet customer

requirements. The fire fighting services is flexible in their operation when its

members are able to change shifts quickly when they are busy fighting a fire.

They have the flexibility to change over to different procedures and products

during the process of fire fighting. The poor quality of resources can have a

hampering effect on their flexibility.

108

7.4.5 Is the fire fighting service doing its job cost effectively? Cost is the major operation objective. The lower the cost, the higher the profit,

and when it is a non-profit organisation is it good value and the cost is relative

low. Cost can be categorised as fixed cost and variable cost. The costs are

influenced by other performance objectives.

By using tax payers’ money to provide a service that is actually very expensive,

the fire fighting service must be cost-effective. When an emergency occurs and

the fire services cannot operate due to restricted resources because of a lack of

funding, everybody asks questions. But when nothing happens and the fire

service decides to buy a new fire engine, then no funding is available.

The creation, improvement and/or extension of any service as well as the

allocation of financial resources to achieve this will require the revision of the

Integrated Development Plan(s) and Council approval of anticipated changes.

Plans should or could be revised to accommodate the necessary costs

associated with the upgrading of the fire services.

Councils have therefore committed the greatest proportion of capital

expenditure to the development and extension of the necessary infrastructure in

terms of approved five-year developmental programmes. It has been noted that

the limited capital expenditures for most fire services have been financed from

revenue, a source that cannot realistically be viewed to be secure and

sustainable, especially in terms of programmes for asset capitalisation or

recapitalisation. This is also generally indicative of the quantum and terms of

capital commitment by most municipalities. While the present situation may be

understandable, it is believed that further delays may make future capitalisation

and recapitalisation of the fire services unaffordable (ODS Consultants;

2004:53).

Due to the relatively small capital allocations for fire fighting services,

expenditures have primarily entailed the purchase of minor equipment and the

upgrading of existing infrastructure. Although some light veld fire vehicles have

been procured, no provision has been made for several years towards the

replacement and upgrading of obsolete fire fighting vehicles and major

109

equipment. At this juncture, resources are inadequate to provide for the

necessary functions as described or to support the geographical or area-wide

roll-out of services (ODS Consultants; 2004:53).

Problems in funding the fire fighting services are further compounded by various

obligations imposed on both local and district municipalities in terms of the

Local Government: Municipal Systems Act and Local Government: Municipal

Structures Act. Alternative capital funding via grant(s) may also be sourced from

the Department of Provincial and Local Government (DPLG) in terms of

Municipal Infrastructure Grants (MIG) and such alternatives may be explored. A

recent government initiative to recapitulated fire services which the Provincial

Government is administering may also be investigated. Further options include

the sourcing of local capital funding via grants from the National Lottery or via

foreign donor developmental aid. This would be especially relevant to

developing services in/for disadvantaged communities (ODS Consultants;

2004:53).

Should agreement on a centralised or co-operative service structure be

reached, it would require agreement on equitable but proportional contributions

by each participating municipality for such a service. Operating costs are

generally funded via the rates accounts of local municipalities; however, it is

believed that the option of an emergency services levy should be considered.

This is believed to be the best option in that it would be based on property

ownership and may be further aligned to the particular service delivery

standards applicable to a particular area. Various abatements may also be

considered for areas with designated services (FBSA) and in defined self-help

municipal areas. As incentives for improving fire safety, further abatements may

also be offered to industries that employ special fire safety measures (ODS

Consultants; 2004:54).

The Rural/Metro Fire Department provides a high-quality, cost-effective fire

service. Their revenue is not tax-based as the customer pays Rural/Metro an

annual fee based on the total square footage of their home. Non-members are

billed for service at the rate of $800 per hour, per apparatus, for all fire calls.

Non-member fees for a typical house fire can cost as much as 10 years’ worth

110

of membership costs. Homeowners’ insurance usually pays only a fraction of

the bill, leaving the property owner responsible for the difference.

Thomas DiLorenzo (2003) writes the following: “The average cost to

Rural/Metro customers is 25-50 percent lower than similar services provided by

governments although very few, if any, government fire departments can match

the quality of the Rural/Metro’s services.”

(http://blog.lewrockwell.com/lewrw/archives/002233.html; 2004)

7.5 SUMMARY Finally, fires and natural disasters are often viewed to be Acts of God. This has

the tendency of diminishing the importance and significance of organised

prevention and mitigation measures such as public education and awareness of

fire safety programmes and fire prevention activities. The impact of fire on

natural vegetation or on the poorest of the poor, particularly the rural poor,

cannot be overstated. It is those living at the margins, who are always the most

vulnerable.

The need to establish an integrated plan for fire management is an important

matter. Speedy response and adequate ground support are absolutely critical

factors in fighting fires. The implementation of a new structure for the EDM area

is not simple and it will not happen overnight. The new structure will not be

effective immediately but rather be done in phases over a few months. Each

phase must be planned and implemented carefully from logistics to policies,

procedures, training and politics. The establishment of an organisational

structure must follow the decision of location which will have a major impact on

the EDM fire fighting service in the whole area.

Prior to any decisions relating to the fire fighting services, it is imperative that all

functions are standardised and service standards determined. The following are

suggestions that could be implemented:

• Establish a single district disaster management/emergency service control

centre and communications network,

• An undivided fire fighting function whereby both the Municipalities and

District Municipalities form part of the new fire fighting service,

111

• The immediate establishment of a co-ordinating structure for the purpose of

jointly determining standards, service delivery models, regulatory

mechanisms and operating guidelines for the fire services as a whole and,

• Structures and mechanisms should be explored to streamline and improve

service co-operation in the short term which can be prolonged to the future.

Once everything is in place, the new structure will bring the fire fighting service

in line with the way fire services ideally operate. Their functions are:

• Fire fighting ( fire suppression) function,

• Rescue function,

• Hazardous Substances Emergency (HAZMAT) function,

• Fire Prevention function,

• All derived or associated functions in connection with the above.

112

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Zeelie, J. 2004. Personal Telephonic Interview. Eden District Municipality

Assistant Director Finance.

Zululand Fire Protection Service. [The homepage of the Zululand Fire

Protection Service] [Online], 09 November 2004 – last update. Available: http://

www.zfps.co.za/ [Accessed 10 October 2004]

Virtual Organisations. [Online] Available:

http:www.emporia.edu.ibed/jour/jourz3ot/cheri.htm. [Accessed 02/09/2002].

117

ANNEXURE A - QUESTIONNAIRE

Date

Authority

Official

FIRES Number of

Formal / informal dwellings / & veld fires

Storage

Industry

Transport

Other

RESCUE

Transport accident

Environmental (mountains) not sea rescues

HAZMAT(chemical fires or emergencies)

Number of

How many fire Stations

How many sub-stations

How many satellite

How many control centers

Official

Amount

Municipal Total Operating Expenditure

2002/2003

Fire Fighting Operating Expenditure

118

2002/2003

Municipal Total Operating Expenditure

2003/2004

Fire Fighting Operating Expenditure

2003/2004

Official:

Full time Staff

Qualified/Trained leadership


Qualified/ trained fire-fighters



Qualified/trained leadership


Qualified/trained fire-fighters


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