The IFCPP New England Chapter was founded in 2006 by area security professionals who recognized the importance of establishing a group of individuals who share common goals and challenges in the cultural property field.

The IFCPP NE Chapter visited BELFOR PROPERTY RESTORATION
Marlborough, MA on Thursday, November 29, 2018

Attendees:
Austin Sharpe (IFCPP NE Chapter President)
Nick Haddon (Secretary/Treasurer), Addison Gallery
Richard Boardman, Chapter Board Member, Yale
Susan Rodrigues, Yale
Rick St. Hilaire, Chapter Board Member, Cultural Heritage Lawyer Meg Wilson, Mount Auburn Cemetery
Gregor Trinkaus-Randall, Stony Creek Consulting
Charles Wilkinson, Addison Gallery
Jeffry Stanley, Addison Gallery
Jason Roy, Addison Gallery
Brian Coleman, Addison Gallery
Les Maloney, Addison Gallery
John Michael Gariepy, Addison Gallery
Cleighton Tourtellotte, Belfor Property Restoration
Gerry McGonagle, General Manager, Belfor Property Restoration Hans Wetrup, Belfor Property Restoration
Ernie Marvell, Belfor Property Restoration

We thank Cleighton, Gerry, Hans and Ernie for hosting our visit. We had an in-depth tour of the facilities, presentation and workshop on responding, recovering and mitigating a wide range of cultural materials, from paper and books, to electronic media and textiles. Throughout the evening, Belfor enthusiastically shared their experience and expertise, demonstrating the range of equipment and extent of their facilities in Marlborough.

Meeting Notes:
The key steps in Belfor’s services are:

 1. PREPARE: as a minimum, a basic emergency response plan should include team members, communications and established contacts with companies that provide disaster response services.

2. RESPOND: to stabilize the emergency and stop whatever is happening – for example, water leaks, electrical issues. One of Belfor’s objectives is to bring calmness to the situation.

3. RECOVER: to create a plan of prioritized actions for artwork and buildings.

4. MITIGATION: to stabilize, through recovery and reconstruction.

During the tour, members discussed the value of COSTEP MA as a resource for information and support for the protection of cultural property.

The role and value of volunteers was discussed; the advice was that, unless they are part of a response team, they should stay clear. The site should be secured as rapidly as possible and “freelancing” discouraged. The suggestion was to take the name, contact information of all potential volunteers, and say that they would be contacted if help was required.

Belfor has seen increasing demand for dealing with mold in buildings. Perhaps the recent wet weather has been a significant contributing factor.

Other subjects discussed at the meeting were:

• Spills and falls and the value of surveillance video as evidence.
• Richard Boardman recently saw a demonstration of a robot that inspects floors for potential slip/fall hazards.

Nick Haddon
IFCPP New England Secretary/Treasurer

IFCPP NE Chapter visited the Currier Museum of Art
Manchester, NH on October 25, 2018.

Attendees:
Austin Sharpe (IFCPP NE Chapter President)
Nick Haddon (Secretary/Treasurer), Addison Gallery
Fiaz Mohammad, Portland Museum of Art
Mark Nelson, Currier Museum of Art
Majeor Subri, Currier Museum of Art
Robin Matses, Addison Gallery
Janet Thoday, Addison Gallery
Elaine Doucette, Addison Gallery
Anna Gesing, Addison Gallery
Charles Wilkinson, Addison Gallery
Kara Phillips, Addison Gallery
Joe Antanavich, RIBI Security
Gilda Rossetti, Addison Gallery
Dolores Mann, Addison Gallery
Kristen Medwar, Addison Gallery

Our sincere thanks go to Mark Nelson, Director of Facilities & Security and Majeor Subri of the Currier Museum for being such enthusiastic, generous and knowledgeable hosts.

Tour of the Zimmerman House:
The Isadore J. and Lucille Zimmerman House (1950) was designed by one of the world’s greatest modern architects, Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959). Wright designed the house, the interiors, all the furniture, the gardens and even the mailbox.

In 1979, the building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Dr. and Mrs. Zimmerman left the property to the Currier in 1988. In 1990, the house and grounds were opened so that visitors could enjoy glimpses of a private world from the 1950s and 1960s, including the Zimmermans’ personal collection of modern art, pottery and sculpture. The Zimmerman House is a work of art. The only Wright home open to the public in New England, it is also one of only a few Wright buildings owned and operated by an art museum.

Currier Museum of Art Tour:
The Currier Museum of Art is an internationally renowned art museum with a permanent collection of about 13,000 American and European works of art, representing nearly every medium. The museum is located in Manchester, New Hampshire. The Currier features paintings, decorative arts, photographs and sculpture, including works by Picasso, Monet, O’Keeffe, Wyeth and LeWitt with exhibitions, tours and programs year-round.

The chapter had a tour of the exhibition spaces and current exhibits, security, art handling and mechanical/HVAC facilities. During lunch we discussed security systems and guard operations, and the Currier’s plans for improvements.

Other discussions:

• Online crowd management course. Mark recommended the following course: https://www.crowdmanagers.com/training
• Mark also recommended checking out the International Facility Management Association https://www.ifma.org
• Security scheduling software.
•  Sharing confidential operational, budget and manpower data.

Many thanks to the Currier for hosting a wonderful visit.

Nick Haddon
IFCPP New England Secretary/Treasurer

IFCPP NE Chapter visited the Public Health Museum

Tewksbury, Massachusetts, September 20, 2018 from 11:00am to 2:00pm. 

As part of the Tewksbury Hospital, it was the first museum devoted to public health in America.

Attendees:

Austin Sharpe (IFCPP NE Chapter President)

Nick Haddon (Secretary/Treasurer), Addison Gallery

Gary Miville, Chapter Board Member, RIBI Security

Rick St. Hilaire, Chapter Board Member, Cultural Heritage Lawyer

Charles Wilkinson, Addison Gallery

Kara Phillips, Addison Gallery

Charles Morano, SMG

Skip Wilkins, SMG

John Kozak, SMG

Steven Landry, Maine Historical

Joe Antanavich, RIBI Security

Gilda Rossetti, Addison Gallery

Dolores Mann, Addison Gallery

Linda Perry, Public Health Museum

Museum Tour:

As both a cultural and educational institution, the Museum strives to preserve artifacts and records of our nation’s history in public health and serve as a resource to the community to educate and promote public health initiatives that address current health issues.

The tour of the museum was led by Linda Perry and included the history of public health hospitals, infectious diseases (tuberculosis, smallpox, polio), patent medicines, mental health, dental health, nursing and education.

The exhibits included many medical procedures that were pioneered in Boston hospitals and adopted by the Tewksbury Hospital.

SMG Presentation

Over lunch, SMG Corporate Services presented their active shooter training program.

We are grateful to the guides at the Public Health Museum and SMG Corporation for their participation in the tour and the sharing of their knowledge and experience.

Note that the next meeting of the Chapter will be at the Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH from 9:45am to 1:45pm on Thursday, October 25, 2018.

Nick Haddon
IFCPP New England Secretary/Treasurer