Self Inspection Program

Fire Chief Dean Everett with the Cottleville Community Fire Protection District has implemented a self
inspection program for certain businesses within the District. This program provides an opportunity for
the Cottleville Fire District and the Business Community to work together in providing a higher level fire
and life safety.

Goals:

The primary focus of this program is to provide fire and life safety inspections to the lower hazard
businesses within the District, while keeping business disruptions to a minimum.

History:

Our fire area covers over 38 square miles, with a day time population approaching 100,000 people
within the District. With over 20,000 businesses located within the District, it takes two full time, and
two part-time inspectors to accomplish the inspections on high hazard occupancies alone.

Objectives:

Although the targeted businesses are classified as low-hazard occupancies, the Fire District believes it is
important to provide these businesses with appropriate information regarding the Fire Code and safety
issues. In addition, the Fire Department believes that these businesses need to meet a reasonable level
of fire and life safety standards for the benefit of the entire community. The self-inspection program will
accomplish this, as well as help to control operational costs for the District, while providing better
service to the community.

The Program:

The self-inspection program is a fairly simple concept. A packet is mailed to each business consisting of
this cover letter explaining the program, a self-inspection checklist, and a return addressed envelope to
be mailed back to the fire District, stating the inspection was completed along with other pertinent
information.

Businesses are requested to respond within 30 days. After 30 days have passed, a reminder letter or
phone call will occur. Those businesses that have not responded will be placed on the on-site inspection
list, tagged for physical inspections by the fire department and may be charged an inspection fee. All
targeted businesses will also be given the opportunity to request an on-site inspection if they choose
not to participate in the self-inspection program.

Targets:

The self-inspection program will target businesses that are statistically at a lower risk for fire. These
include smaller occupancies of types Mercantile, Business, and Storage (examples include small offices,
mercantile, hair salons, law offices, florist shops, etc.) In addition to periodic on-site inspections, the fire
department can maintain a reasonable level of fire and life safety.

Continuation:

For the self-inspection program to be successful there must be a commitment on the part of Fire
District, and the business community for this project to be continued and be implemented on a yearly
basis. This program is designed to provide a long range solution to a much-needed service to the
community. This best ensures continuity of our highest level of service to be provided to the business
community, and to our citizens.

This program meets basic goals common to both the fire district and the owner/manager. These goals
include maintaining a reasonable level of fire and life safety while providing a minimum of business
disruption. It also allows us to focus our inspection efforts on businesses or occupancies that pose a
greater risk with regard to fire and life safety.

To conduct the inspection: NEED DOCUMENT BELOW

1. Check to see if your facility is in compliance with the fire code items listed in the survey form that
you received in the mail.

2. Fill out the following survey form including the contact information to be used in an emergency.
(Coming Soon)!

3. Post the “Self-Inspection Guidelines” brochure in a conspicuous location so you can refer to it at any
time during the year.

If you have any questions, comments for improvement, or if we can provide you with assistance
regarding any part of this program, please feel free to contact the Fire Department at 636-447-6655

Please enter your contact information below:

Supplier Name

Key Contact (s)

Phone Number

Address

City

State

Zip
Email Address
*2. Is your company's Quality Management System
registered/accredited to a quality system standard such as ISO
9001:2008 or ISO/IEC 17025:2005?
Yes

No

*3. If your company's Quality Management System

is registered/accredited and you answered yes in the
previous question, please specify the standard. (If you
answered "NO" please type "NONE")

Please answer the following questions if you answered "NO" to having a Quality Management System that is registered or
accredited:

4. Are you currently working towards QMS registration/accreditation?

Yes

No

5. If you answered "Yes", What is the target date for

registration/accreditation?

6. If no, do you have any plans for achieving registration/accreditation?

7. Do you monitor the performance of your manufacturing and/or testing processes?

Yes

No

8. Is there a system for control of quality documents/data and quality records?

Yes

No
9. Is management committed to quality, focusing on the customer, setting policy,
responsibilities and communication?
Yes

No

10. Are resources managed to assure adequate human resources and infrastructure
to maintain and improve the quality management system?
Yes

No

11. Is production and/or testing planned and controlled to assure satisfactory quality
results?
Yes

No

12. Do you qualify your suppliers' quality systems to assure satisfactory quality?
Yes

No

13. Do you calibrate and control inspection, measuring and test equipment to assure
effective monitoring and measurement of production?
Yes

No

14. Do you validate processes and verify production to assure you meet quality
acceptance criteria?
Yes

No

15. Do you control nonconforming materials/products/testing to prohibit their use,

for effective disposition, and with effective corrective/preventive action?
Yes

No

16. Are there effective systems in place not only for corrective/preventive action,
but also for continual improvement?
Yes

No
17. Is there a system in place to protect the product quality during delivery?
Yes

No

18. If required, can you provide documentation for material/testing conformance to

applicable specifications (e. g., material certifications, quality certificates of
conformance/compliance, MSDS)?
Yes

No

19. If documentation for material/testing conformance is provided, do you maintain

a master copy on file as a quality record?
Yes

No

20. If so, how long are the records maintained?

21. Is there a system in place to review, promptly resolve, and take

corrective/preventive action for customer complaints?
Yes

No

22. Do you have any comments

Vendor Selection Process

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•••

BY JAMES BUCKI

Updated December 03, 2017

The vendor selection process can be a very complicated and emotional

undertaking if you don't know how to approach it from the very start. Here are five
steps to help you select the right vendor for your business. This guide will show
you how to analyze your business requirements, search for prospective vendors,
lead the team in selecting the winning vendor and provide you with insight on
contract negotiations and avoid negotiation mistakes.

Analyze the Business Requirements

Before you begin to gather data or perform interviews, assemble a team of

people who have a vested interest in this particular vendor selection process.
The first task that the vendor selection team needs accomplish is to define, in
writing, the product, material or service that you are searching for a vendor. Next,
define the technical and business requirements. Also, define the vendor
requirements. Finally, publish your document to the areas relevant to this vendor
selection process and seek their input. Have the team analyze the comments
and create a final document. In summary:

1. Assemble an Evaluation Team

2. Define the Product, Material or Service
3. Define the Technical and Business Requirements
4. Define the Vendor Requirements
5. Publish a Requirements Document for Approval
Vendor Search

Now that you have agreement on the business and vendor requirements, the
team now must start to search for possible vendors that will be able to deliver the
material, product or service.

The larger the scope of the vendor selection process the more vendors you
should put on the table. Of course, not all vendors will meet your minimum
requirements and the team will have to decide which vendors you will seek more
information from. Next, write a Request for Information (RFI) and send it to the
selected vendors.

Finally, evaluate their responses and select a small number of vendors that will
make the "Short List" and move on to the next round. In summary:

1. Compile a List of Possible Vendors

2. Select Vendors to Request More Information From
3. Write a Request for Information (RFI)
4. Evaluate Responses and Create a "Short List" of Vendors

Request for Proposal (RFP) and Request for Quotation (RFQ)

The business requirements are defined and you have a short list of vendors that
you want to evaluate. It is now time to write a Request for Proposal or Request
for Quotation. Whichever format you decide, your RFP or RFQ should contain
the following sections:

1. Submission Details
2. Introduction and Executive Summary
3. Business Overview and Background
4. Detailed Specifications
5. Assumptions and Constraints
6. Terms and Conditions
7. Selection Criteria

Proposal Evaluation and Vendor Selection

The main objective of this phase is to minimize human emotion and political
positioning in order to arrive at a decision that is in the best interest of the
company. Be thorough in your investigation, seek input from all stakeholders and
use the following methodology to lead the team to a unified vendor
selection decision:

1. Preliminary Review of All Vendor Proposals

 1. Record Business Requirements and Vendor Requirements
2. Assign Importance Value for Each Requirement
3. Assign a Performance Value for Each Requirement
4. Calculate a Total Performance Score
5. Select the Winning Vendor

Contract Negotiation Strategies

The final stage in the vendor selection process is developing a contract

negotiation strategy. Remember, you want to "partner" with your vendor and not
"take them to the cleaners." Review your objectives for your contract negotiation
and plan for the negotiations be covering the following items:

1. List Rank Your Priorities Along With Alternatives

2. Know the Difference Between What You Need and What You Want
3. Know Your Bottom Line So You Know When to Walk Away
4. Define Any Time Constraints and Benchmarks
5. Assess Potential Liabilities and Risks
6. Confidentiality, non-compete, dispute resolution, changes in requirements

1. Do the Same for Your Vendor (i.e. Walk a Mile in Their Shoes)

Contract Negotiation Mistakes

The smallest mistake can kill an otherwise productive contract negotiation

process. Avoid contract negotiation mistakes and avoid jeopardizing an
otherwise productive contract negotiation process