Many jurisdictions have adopted NFPA 25, Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems, to help ensure that sprinkler systems are properly inspected and maintained. Many property insurance companies often require that this standard…
Read MoreOccasionally loss prevention procedures need revision as we learn more about how to protect the hazard. In January 2008 we wrote a comprehensive article on Property Loss Prevention in Glass Manufacturing Plants. This month we’ve…
Read MoreIf the temperature can or will be below 40°F, the sprinkler piping or heads need to be protected against freezing. There are several methods of automatic sprinkler protection that should be evaluated. Antifreeze Because water…
Read MoreWhy do we see so much new construction in Europe that includes plastic panels? The sales pitch from the architects to the customers is that higher insulation levels provided by these plastic panels is better…
Read MoreOn a regular basis we look at our previous articles and, when sufficient changes occur, we update them for our readers. Sometimes it’s due to new technology, sometimes to loss history and sometimes to look…
Read MoreIt disheartens us that even after the nightclub fires in Rhode Island, USA in February 2003 and in Buenos Aires, Argentina in December 2004, the lessons of those tragic events appear to have not been…
Read MoreFiber reinforced plastic (FRP) panels, sometimes referred to as glassfiber reinforced plastic (GRP) panels, is a composite material made up a polymer matrix reinforced with fibers. The fibers are typically glass, but carbon, basalt, cellulose…
Read MoreThe major hazards associated with hurricanes are: storm surge and storm tide heavy rainfall and inland flooding high winds rip currents tornadoes For coastal areas, storm surge and large waves produced by hurricanes pose the…
Read MoreIn their November 2012 issue, Sprinkler Age magazine featured its Annual Legislative Review for the United States and Canada. This summary of legislation and codes offers an overview of regulations affecting the fire sprinkler industry…
Read MoreOn Monday October 29, 2012 a Cat 1 (80 mph 1-minute) hurricane made landfall in Atlantic City, NJ. The storm had a very broad windfield with a 1,000 mile diameter of tropical storm force winds.…
Read MoreProcessing, handling and storing of combustible dusts within enclosed equipment (i.e., mixers, blenders, mills, separators, cutting tools, holding bins, dust collectors, cyclones, etc.) can easily create an explosive atmosphere that could be ignited by tramp…
Read MoreWhat is a Standard? What is a Code? Why do they change so much? If they change, are we protected properly with the old standard we designed to? Codes Codes are consensus documents that are…
Read MoreElastomeric insulation, also known as closed cell foam insulation, is a flexible type of plastic insulation close to the consistency of rubber. It is normally used as insulation for piping and ducting but is known…
Read MoreYou may be considering adding one or more tanks that contain ignitable (flammable and combustible) liquids at your facility. FM Global Data Sheet 7-88, Storage Tanks for Flammable Liquids, gives guidance on how these tanks…
Read MoreTwo years ago a leading article with a major head line in the USA Today stated “Fierce Hurricane Season Predicted.” The article went on to say that an “extremely active” hurricane season was to occur…
Read MoreDriver and safety training for lift truck operators are very important to industrial plant or distribution warehouse managers and owners for obvious reasons, with personnel safety at the top of the list. But what about…
Read MoreThis is a new NFPA recommended practice, as opposed to standard. It outlines a systematic approach to provide documented confirmation that the fire protection and/or life-safety systems, as envisioned by an owner and/or their design…
Read MoreRecent studies have shown that anywhere from 10 to 25% of facilities can experience flooding. Flood maps can give an indication of the flood exposure for a facility. However, there could be errors in these…
Read MoreIn their November 2011 issue, Sprinkler Age magazine featured its Annual Legislative Review for the United States and Canada. This summary of legislation and codes offers an overview of regulations affecting the fire sprinkler industry…
Read MoreBooster pumps are often needed to boost the pressure of the city water supply to make it adequate for sprinkler system designs. However, an unintended result could be obtaining pressures that are too high. This…
Read MoreBetween March 2010 and now, FM Global has made two revisions to this Data Sheet. In September 2010 the following revisions were made: The maximum linear and area spacing for K25.2EC (K360EC) sprinklers when used…
Read MoreThe table below has been published by the International Codes Council (www.iccsafe.org). It is up to date as of July 15, 2011. STATE INTERNATIONAL BUILDING CODE (IBC) INTERNATIONAL FIRE CODE (IFC) COMMENTS Alabama Statewide; 2009…
Read MoreThey go by many names – computer rooms, server rooms, main distribution frame (MDF) rooms, data centers, electronic data processing (EDP) centers, information technology (IT) equipment rooms, etc.; but, no matter what you call them,…
Read MoreWhat is COPE? It is the Construction Occupancy Protection and Exposure risk for each building. Significant fire damage in large buildings occurs approximately 300 times per year in the United States. Such fires cause property…
Read MoreFM Global Data Sheet 3-26, Fire Protection Water Demand for Nonstorage Sprinklered Properties, is used to determine sprinkler system designs and hose demands for non-storage occupancies, which are not considered storage occupancies in facilities. FM…
Read MoreMetal cleaning can be performed through spraying/immersion in solvents, corrosive solutions and vapor degreasers, through mechanical cleaning, and, by heating treating in oil or molten salt baths (discussed in our February 2011 article). In this…
Read MoreOur previous articles in October 2004 and August 2006 touched on the subject of the need for heat and smoke vents in fully sprinklered facilities. We wrote about engineering and fire testing research versus Building…
Read MoreHVLS fans were originally used in Australia in the dairy industry to help keep humidity low for the cattle. When the original design was introduced in Australia, it was mandatory for the HVLS fans to…
Read MoreRisk Management Solutions, Inc. (RMS) specializes in developing probabilistic models of catastrophes. These catastrophe (CAT) models are developed using detailed databases of highly localized variations in hazard characteristics, as well as databases capturing property inventory,…
Read More