Berkshire Economic Recovery Project Launches Technical Assistance Cohorts

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — 1Berkshire, in partnership with Berkshire Regional Planning Commission and with support from the United States Economic Development Administration announced the launch and the opening of registration for its first round of small business and organization technical assistance cohorts.
 
With five experts as technical assistance providers, this initial round of seven cohorts looks to support up to 49 small businesses and organizations over the course of the fall of 2021. Each individual cohort will be limited to seven participating businesses/organizations and will kick off with a required two-hour workshop. 
 
Following the workshop, participants in each cohort will be given materials to complete before then receiving up to two hours of additional free one-on-one technical assistance from our expert resource providers. 
 
Cohorts being provided for Fall 2021 include:
  • Starting Oct. 6 - Get Ready to Get Funded, with Robin Helfand
  • Starting Oct. 13 - Employee Engagement & Retention, with Karen Carswell & Lucy Steinert
  • Starting Oct. 20 - Essentials of Digital Marketing, with Francesca Olsen
  • Starting Oct. 28 - Don't Just Stand Up, Stand Out! with Carolyn Blitz *non-profits only*
  • Starting Nov. 4 - Get Ready to Get Funded, with Robin Helfand
  • Starting Nov. 10 - Employee Engagement & Retention, with Karen Carswell & Lucy Steinert
  • Starting Dec. 1 - Essentials of Digital Marketing, with Francesca Olsen
These technical assistance workshops are completely free to participating businesses and organizations, but registration is considered a commitment to fully participate in the entirety of the process, from kick-off, to independent prep work, to direct technical assistance and follow-up assessment. 
 
To register for one of the cohorts, small businesses and non-profit organizations in the Berkshires should go to 1berkshire.com/berkshire-economic-recovery-project-technical-assistance-program.
 
As part of the Berkshire Economic Recovery Project, this is the first of a multiple series of technical assistance cohorts that will be conducted over the next 18 months. Ben Lamb, 1Berkshire Director of Economic Development notes, 
 
"This is a benchmark moment when we are able to launch an entirely new set of resources to support businesses and organizations in a way they have directly told us they need," said Ben Lamb, 1Berkshire Director of Economic Development. "We are fortunate to have such a tremendous array of technical assistance providers committing to this project, and look forward to seeing the impact their expertise will have."
 
Registration will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis and is open immediately for all cohort sections. Once filled, registration will cease; however, interested individuals may request to be added to a waitlist. For additional information please contact the 1Berkshire Economic Development team at economicdev@1berkshire.com

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State Fire Marshal: New Tracking Tool Identifies 50 Lithium-Ion Battery Fires

STOW, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Fire Services' new tool for tracking lithium-ion battery fires has helped to identify 50 such incidents in the past six months, more than double the annual average detected by a national fire data reporting system, said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine.
 
The Department of Fire Services launched its Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Investigative Checklist on Oct. 13, 2023. It immediately went into use by the State Police Fire & Explosion Investigation Unit assigned to the State Fire Marshal's office, and local fire departments were urged to adopt it as well. 
 
Developed by the DFS Fire Safety Division, the checklist can be used by fire investigators to gather basic information about fires in which lithium-ion batteries played a part. That information is then entered into a database to identify patterns and trends.
 
"We knew anecdotally that lithium-ion batteries were involved in more fires than the existing data suggested," said State Fire Marshal Davine. "In just the past six months, investigators using this simple checklist have revealed many more incidents than we've seen in prior years."
 
Prior to the checklist, the state's fire service relied on battery fire data reported to the Massachusetts Fire Incident Reporting System (MFIRS), a state-level tool that mirrors and feeds into the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). NFIRS tracks battery fires but does not specifically gather data on the types of batteries involved. Some fields do not require the detailed information that Massachusetts officials were seeking, and some fires may be coded according to the type of device involved rather than the type of battery. Moreover, MFIRS reports sometimes take weeks or months to be completed and uploaded.
 
"Investigators using the Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Checklist are getting us better data faster," said State Fire Marshal Davine. "The tool is helpful, but the people using it are the key to its success."
 
From 2019 to 2023, an average of 19.4 lithium-ion battery fires per year were reported to MFIRS – less than half the number identified by investigators using the checklist over the past six months. The increase since last fall could be due to the growing number of consumer devices powered by these batteries, increased attention by local fire investigators, or other factors, State Fire Marshal Davine said. For example, fires that started with another item but impinged upon a battery-powered device, causing it to go into thermal runaway, might not be categorized as a battery fire in MFIRS or NFIRS.
 
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