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Fortis Fire & Safety Expands Florida Presence with Acquisition of Piper Fire Protection
CHICAGO, March 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Fortis Fire & Safety (“Fortis”), one of the nation’s fastest growing fire protection service companies, has acquired Piper Fire Protection (“Piper”) headquartered in Clearwater, FL operating two locations in the greater Tampa Bay area. This acquisition strengthens our strategy of developing multi-regional capability, expands our Florida presence and builds a bridge between our acquisition of LifeSafety Management in Boynton Beach, FL, and Piper’s offices.
“Fortis is honored to welcome the Piper team into the Fortis family,” said Rich Ennis, Chief Executive Officer of Fortis. “As an industry leader, Piper will enable us to bolster our competitive presence and significantly grow our business in Florida. Piper’s advocacy for life safety in the communities where they live, work, and serve and commitment to delivering superior customer experience fits right into the Fortis model.”
Founded in 1986, Piper is one of the largest full-service Florida fire protection service companies that has been servicing the needs of west central Florida businesses for over 35 years. Founder Terry Johnson has seen many successful years of growth under his leadership tenure. “I could not be prouder of the company that our Piper family has built from my modest beginnings. I stand in awe at how our fire sprinkler service company has grown into an industry leader.”
Chris Johnson, President, and Owner shared “The decision to sell our business was one of the toughest decisions I have ever made. Over the years, we have been solicited by numerous companies and once we started conversations with Fortis, we knew our values, people-first philosophy, passion for training, and commitment to our community was aligned and would set us up for future growth. I am excited this partnership will provide career growth opportunities to our Piper family.”
Chris Johnson will join Fortis as a co-founder and member of the Owners’ Advisory Council. His leadership combined with his longtime commitment to the industry will benefit Fortis and allow Chris to help shape our future direction.
About Fortis Fire & Safety
Fortis Fire & Safety is built on the philosophy of People First, Quality Service and Building Lifetime Clients. Fortis will position itself as the next generation of fire protection by building an industry leading company through close partnerships with regional operators and investing heavily in technology.
For further information, visit fortisfire.com.
Fortis Family of Brands
Trust is built locally. It lives in the technician who knows your building, knows your local codes, and shows up when something goes wrong at midnight. It lives in the relationship between a fire protection company and the community it has served for decades.
But capability is built at scale. The training standards, the technical resources, the purchasing power, the shared knowledge of a unified national organization — these are the things that make a local provider exceptional rather than merely adequate.
Fortis was built on this belief.
Our network of regionally rooted fire and life safety companies delivers genuine local expertise in every market we serve — technicians who know the regional AHJs, the local codes, and the specific demands of the facilities in their community. Behind each of them stands the full weight of a premier national organization.
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