Philadelphia area

[wre722]

What industrial departments reside in the Philadelphia area? Better yet, which ones are hiring? I am on the hunt for a paid firefighter job and the industrial side of the fire service is one I really haven't looked into much yet.

[FWDbuff]

Well, lets see....

Sun Refining, South Philadelphia and Marcus Hook, Pa. locations. These are not true "FD" positions, if you dont mind working third shift tagging extinguishers, monitor nozzles and hose cabinets all night, or sniffing confined spaces and issuing hot work permits, give them a try.

Same goes with the ones on the Jersey side of the river.

Sun Chemicals (formerly Allied Chemical) in the Bridesburg section of Philly (that big place 100 yards from I-95 that always smells like acetone) Same deal- no sitting in a firehouse, go out and sniff confined spaces with meters and issue hot work permits, and inspect/tag equipment all night long.

Boeing's helicopter plant in Delaware County (Ridley Park maybe?) CFR experience needed.

Merck & Company, Inc. in West Point, Pa. (Pharmaceuticals) has an in-house brigade.

Competition is pretty fierce with all these places. Any and all vollies that work there whisper job openings in their buddies ears way before the spots even open up, and they line up at the Human Resources Dept. begging for applications at the hint of a rumor of an opening. An absolutely crystal clean and clear criminal record is required for all of the above companies.

I am sure there may be more, I just cant think of any more right now.

[JTFIRE80]

Of the ones FWD noted, Boeing is really the only one that runs a good amount of calls. They see fire on the jobsite, and run a descent amount of mutual aid as well.

There are a few other Pharmaceuticals that have brigades alon with Full-Time Fire Techs, but the minimum requirements for the position are astronomical.

[arff42]

I just interviewed with Boeing Fire in Long Beach, CA. The qualifications are the same as Ridley Park (FF2, Ops, EMT, ARFF and 5-15 years experience). I am sure Ridley gets about a million applicants from individuals who do not have all the required certs or years of experience. So yes there may be tons of applicants for these jobs, but only a hand full will get interviews. Basically, they are LAteral positions and not entry level. I was 1 of 6 when I went to the oral for Long Beach. Getting your foot in the door is very hard, but just apply for everything and be willing to move around. Once your in things become much easier.

Kev