AFSA Honors Industry Legend
DALLAS – In recognition of his dedication to the fire sprinkler industry, the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA) has named Kevin T. Fee as its 2022 Henry S. Parmelee Award recipient. The association’s highest honor, the Parmelee Award is given to a select group of individuals who have tirelessly committed to strengthening the fire sprinkler industry.
Fee has spent over 50 years dedicated to the fire protection industry and its people. He started his career after obtaining a work permit as a teenager which led to a summer job in the maintenance department at Reliable Automatic Sprinkler Co., Inc. Fee worked under the supervision of his father, Frank J. Fee Jr., who was passed down the company from Fee’s grandfather. Fee eventually went on to hold other positions at Reliable including sales manager, vice president of sales, executive vice president, president, and chief executive officer.
Fee has had strong involvement with associations over the years, including AFSA, the National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and was one of the founding members of the International Fire Sprinkler Association (IFSA) in 1999. During Fee’s time, he has been instrumental in the development of several successful programs, including: the Community Action Program for Sprinklers (CAPS), the Suppliers and Manufacturers (SAM) Council, and the Sprinkler Manufacturers Industry Fund (SMIF). Fee has also served on AFSA’s Manufacturers and Suppliers (M/S) Council, including a term as chairman in 1986.
“Kevin feels the need to go above and beyond Reliable and support our entire industry,” says AFSA Chair of the Board Jack Medovich, P.E., Fire & Life Safety America, Richmond, Virginia. “We greatly appreciate his continued and undying support of AFSA and the entire industry.”
“I have had the privilege of knowing Kevin for close to 40 years. His personal dedication to the fire sprinkler industry is unsurpassed,” comments AFSA President Bob Caputo, CFPS. “More so, the dedication of his family as well as that of his Reliable family are second to none. AFSA has been a benefactor of that dedication and lifelong commitment since its founding in 1981. We are proud to recognize Kevin’s contributions to this association, our members, and this industry with AFSA’s highest award. Congratulations!”
Read the full article about Fee in the September/October 2022 issue of Sprinkler Age here.
Medovich will present the award to Fee on October 19 during the general session of AFSA41: Convention, Exhibition & Apprentice Competition to be held at the Bellagio Las Vegas October 16-19, 2022. For more information on AFSA41 and to register, visit www.firesprinkler.org/register-for-afsa41.
Established in 1984, the Henry S. Parmelee Award is the highest honor AFSA bestows. It is presented to recognize an outstanding individual who has dedicated him or herself to the professional advancement of the automatic fire sprinkler industry and to the goal of fire and life safety through automatic sprinklers. It is named for Henry S. Parmelee, who is recognized as the inventor of the first commercially successful closed sprinkler head.