 MSA shakes, rattles, and rolls out an ‘Industry First’ Since March 5, 2002, all new ICM™ 2000 and ICM™ 2000 Plus Combination PASS and Redundant Alarms shipped from MSA are backed by a two-year warranty.
To test their improvements, MSA engineers subjected the modified ICMs to 10 hours of continuous agitation in a specially constructed “shaker box.” The ICMs took up to 1,800 high-energy impacts per hour--more than most would receive in a lifetime. The punishment, which vastly exceeded NFPA’s testing requirements, was so intense that the shaker box had to be rebuilt halfway through the test. But the ICMs more than made it! Technicians tested them right beside freshly manufactured units. It was hard to tell the difference between the two groups. SCBA Product Line Manager Shane Bray said, “The test results gave us the confidence to do something that’s never been done before. Our two-year warranty is an ‘industry first’ for an electronic SCBA component.” Fire departments across the country share Shane’s confidence. Several have stepped into a new age of ICM durability, including one of the country’s largest, the Chicago Fire Department. They have 1200 of them on the job right now—24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That’s a lot of confidence!
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The
confidence to offer this groundbreaking warranty grew out of a few small
design enhancements aimed at toughening the already tough ICM 2000 and
ICM 2000 Plus. For example, a slightly longer flexible ribbon cable--with
thicker insulation to protect it from physical damage--makes the motion
sensor circuitry nearly invulnerable. A newly specified screw locks
the mechanical pressure gauge in place, virtually eliminating the possibility
of its coming loose. 
