Mike Feldon, MD of DoseTech – a leader in advanced special risk fire protection equipment – is the first to admit that nothing comes without hard work, determination and persistence. But it was his late father, Walter Roy Feldon, with whom he is proud to have built their business, who taught him honesty and integrity.
It’s these attributes that run through this family-owned business of 35 years, that have led to its growth and success. Mike relates how the company came into being.
“My father established a flow measurement company which included chemical dosing and chlorination, however, following the principal company being bought out by a competitor and the subsequent consolidation around the world, my father was left with just the chemical dosing side of the business resulting in him having to rebuild his company from scratch.”
Although Mike had his own business focused on steam systems, he became increasingly involved in his father’s business, where his mother, Colleen, also worked. It wasn’t long before they joined forces – roping in Mike’s wife, Sherry, too – culminating in a move from Johannesburg to Cape Town.
Establishing a long-term partnership with FireDos
Around 1998, Mike and his father were introduced to Heinrich David from Germany, the founder of FireDos, which at the time was MSR Dosiertechnik. Heinrich was marketing a water-driven dosing feeder for use in agriculture. A longstanding partnership developed, with Heinrich spending significant time in South Africa to understand the market. Mike relates how his father and Heinrich travelled 5 000 kms around South Africa during a cholera outbreak, visiting all the water treatment facilities to try to solve the problem.
“Heinrich introduced us to the FireDos product,” says Mike, “a water motor that drives a chemical dosing pump. When water runs, it mixes in the fire-fighting chemicals and is ideal for industrial use. Going from being passionate about chasing greenhouses, I suddenly got very passionate about chasing the fire protection industry.”
However, success did not come easy. Banging on the doors of consulting engineers, fire chiefs, and fire departments, did not lead to sales of this exciting product. Although they enthused over it, there was massive resistance due to the pricing. The industry was not ready to move away from the products they were familiar with.
Moving across many sectors of the industry, from pre-industrial applications in harbours and refineries, to warehousing sprinkler systems, DoseTech grew their client base with customers considering high quality and low life cycle cost instead of focussing on initial investment.
MSR Dosiertechnik was also evolving, eventually discontinuing its feeders to focus on FireDos foam proportioners, as well as changing its name to FireDos. It also added extinguishing monitors to its portfolio. These changes had a positive impact on FireDos and DoseTech.
Acquiring agencies for AKRON Brass and Mueller Co. opened up further doors
“Two further breakthroughs were securing the agencies for Akron Brass, an American manufacturer of fire protection equipment, as well as Mueller which manufactures valves and fire hydrants, including adding SAFire of Italy. With these manufacturers under our belt, added to our FireDos range, we were able to secure projects for fuel storage depots and pipeline projects, finding ourselves in an interesting industrial space with innovative technology,” says Mike.
First in the world portable trailer for crude oil storage facility in KwaZulu-Natal
In a world first, DoseTech supplied a portable trailer for a crude oil storage facility in KwaZulu-Natal, comprising a 20 000l/min FireDos foam proportioning system that mixes 3% foam concentrate in the water. “Using an oversize water monitor, we can achieve a reach of 130 metres in an ideal condition,” says Mike. “It was built by FireDos in Germany where I travelled to undertake the factory acceptance. We tested it at a local refinery, then brought it out to South Africa.”
Continually moving forward in the special risk fire protection industry
In conclusion, Mike shares, “I am proud to be a part of the FireDos family and grateful to Heinrich for teaching me determination and persistence. With my father as mentor throughout the evolution of our business, and my grandfather (a WWII survivor) who gave me courage, I am proud to say that DoseTech Fire is successful today. We continue to learn, share knowledge, and keep finding ways to solve problems to benefit our clients. I am proud to be a pioneer in the industry through bringing in new technology, while knocking on doors till someone listens, and continually moving forward.”
“When Mike realised that negotiating better pricing was not an option, he rethought who he was aiming the product at and this was the turning point in their business.”
Worldwide move to Fluorine-free foam agents
With the global move towards Fluorine-free chemicals for fire-fighting as a more environmentally-acceptable option, FireDos is ahead of the curve having already developed a proportioner, called FireDos GENIII, that caters for these higher viscous liquids.
This transition poses a challenge for the fire protection industry, but with guidance from FireDos experts who are at the forefront of this development, DoseTech is able to assist the local industry transition to the new chemical options. This includes selecting the right proportioner for this purpose, plus reviewing the existing installation to discover what can be included or upgraded.
