fire engineer

alarm technician

fire sprinkler technician

fire sprinkler inspector

safety technician

Summit Companies

A day at work starts with assisting opening shop and such, getting your daily cup of coffee and chatting with the others that you may work with to check out what's the move for the day.  It is often very busy with lots of customers coming in with whatever their needs may be and meeting their satisfaction.  I rarely have felt that this job was way out of what I was capable of doing and along with time and experience I set those boundaries above and beyond to better my work and myself.  There is better management within different departments, for example one department had often set aside my concerns and advancement while another vouched for my growth and did their best to meet my everyday needs.  Lots of amazing people that worked at this specific office and lots of fun to be had while working around these guys.  I'd say the harder part of the job would be troubleshooting.  That isn't a bad thing however, that's just part of the job that you're signing up for.  Learning was tough at times but absolutely doable.  The most enjoyable part was the learning and the people who were willing to teach you.

Not a company to work for if you are looking for a job and family balance. If you expect a raise- for get it unless you threaten to leave. If you are looking for stability there is none! Summit will make the job sound good, look good then after  you’re hired you see the Summit come out.  
YOU ARE JUST A NUMBER trying to make their numbers, which is what’s important to them - NOTHING MORE. No management, no HR support, no support from co-workers, no support from Corporate Office. Summit pays penny's for their parts and supplies and then jacks prices up 60-70% higher and more and charges their customers! They make promises they cannot and
will not keep! 
At one time in the company (Madison) they were not replacing parts or doing the actual service on a fire extinguisher but charging the customers outrageous prices for service not done!  No matter how loyal you are or how hard you work it doesn’t matter - they do not reward or even acknowledge but expect more from you 
And you will receive no support and in time you will be terminated (They find ways)  Summit steals from its employees as well from their customers! I’m telling you from experience. 
Go work somewhere else if you have any respect for yourself! 


The companies core business model is buying up small mom and pop fire safety companies. The small business is then expected to pay off their buyout price plus revenue as soon as possible. This is done by increasing cost. It will be 15% raises every few months. Customers rightly so will complain about the 15% price hike, then 30%…. The cost to service a fire extinguishers cost as much as 2 new ones from Uline. As soon as corporate comes in and trains you on the new systems, the support disappears almost entirely. I felt like the whole company was an experiment in some firms portfolio and one day I wouldn’t have a job anymore. I saw it happen to other branches one day poof everyone let go with no notice, no transfers. The culture sucked, management was even worse, the hardest part of my job was having my favorite clients angry with me because corporate raised their bill again or added some bs admin / truck charge without telling anyone. The most enjoyable part was leaving at the end of the day and then finding a way better job. Summit ruined a once beloved 70 year old company that had a reputation for honesty and integrity.  

There is no training for employees, new or old. You have to try and figure it all out yourself or hope that someone is willing to help you. There is no room for advancement and raises are non existent. The pay is low and the benefits are an absolute joke. Favoritism is rampant throughout and you are set up for failure if you are not favorited. They will attempt to push you out if you are not. The office environment is hostile and depressing. Management and corporate are aware of all the issues but seem to just shrug it off since they never attempt the make the necessary changes to fix things. Job duties will constantly be added without the compensation to match. Turn over rate is extremely high and morale is extremely low. Encouragement and constructive criticism don't exist instead screaming, yelling, and speaking down to employees is the route they choose to take when issues or mistakes present themselves. You are constantly blamed for other employees mistakes. If monthly goals for billing are not met they find someone to blame and don't attempt to figure out why it wasn't met.

FLSA is a wonderful place of work, I have been working with them for little under a year now and I truly believe they are working with me rather than against. FLSA provides many opportunities to grow in your career through the help of great (Design) management and NICET certifications available. They provide great incentives to get your NICET certifications and will pay for your testing! Once you pass any level of certification the company will give you a bonus and the recipient will receive the same bonus again on the same date of the following year. I came into this company as a Sprinkler Apprentice and worked my way into a position I was clearly unqualified for. The design manager determined that it would be worth his time to teach me and he gave me the job. I'm not saying FLSA will hirer any wondering body off the street however, this company will invest in you if you are willing to train and work arduously for them.

Almost 20 years. I went through a lot of Management changes at District and Corporate level.
Unfortunately, as the changes unfold you can see that some upper management decisions are based on friendships and not job competency.

The upper level of management,ie District Managers and above have, a propensity to lay all blame on field people, even when the field personel had nothing to do with it. Too many times I sat in meetings with a Regional VP wanting to fire a crew foreman with absolutely no background on the job at hand. When presented with facts and asked to backup said facts with daily paperwork, superiors then wanted no more discussion. I guess plausible deniability for thier part to save thier jobs because their lack of skills and absolute refusal to "deep dive" into jobs.

The office culture at the St. Paul office is horrible! "The Lifers" (employees with the most years at Summit)  are the absolute worst! There is a lot of condescending attitudes, gossipping and backstabbing. Instead of reprimanding these over the hill bullies, upper management pretends it's not happening and allow this behavior to continue. There is high turnover, a lack of strong leadership in most departments and there is always someone waiting to throw you under the bus to make themselves appear to better. There is zero communication amongst the divisions. There is t0o much ego and not enough talent. You're undervalued, micromanaged and the place is run by some of the  shadiest creeps in the state. Avoid this company like the plague

Very supportive company and love the employees. There isn’t really chance to move up the ladder, but they are growing every day so things may change. Very understanding when it comes to personal matters and will try to work with you as much as you let them. Training is not the best but that goes with any corporate job. If you like a bit of a challenge and lots of responsibility you will like the job. I like to have the responsibility and my team lead and other admins really make me feel like I matter, if I ever need anything they will make sure I get it. There isn’t really any favoritism or that high school drama you deal with at other office jobs, seems like one big family. 

A day in the life here is getting yelled at for a horrible system that doesn't work. Even if it's not your fault it's your fault. They like to blame you for their issues and horrible training.  We would have to spend 2 hours each day on some horrible spreadsheet that never worked.   
I learned a ton about fire but learned not to work here. 
Management is terrible they will use words against you and will expect you to be perfect or you will get in trouble.  They will throw you into a pit of snakes
The culture was horrible when I got there but good when I left. 
Hardest part of the job was staying there as long as I did. 
The best part was going home for the day. 
I wish I could say good things but I can't.   It's just a money hungry company. 

Management is lacking, top to bottom.  Management is always blaming and dismissing the actual working and productive employees while creating a hostile environment by not providing support or backup to insure work in the field is being done on time and on budget. Constantly threatening employees with being fired.
The real issue is management...  but they don't or won't look at it that way..  continually letting good people go,  thinking that will solve the issues. Insist on hiring people with ZERO industry experience with the attitude that "anyone can do that job".  So the person quoting your company's life safety (alarm & sprinklers), was probably selling shoes or uniforms a few months ago.  No support. 
Micro management to extremes.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Fire engineer 1 salary reported	$19.00 per hour
Alarm technician 3 salaries reported	$28.17 per hour
Fire sprinkler technician 2 salaries reported	$23.50 per hour
Fire sprinkler inspector 1 salary reported	$25.00 per hour
Safety technician 1 salary reported	$23.00 per hour

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