fire detection solutions

We wanted to give a brief review of FireVu’s media stories in 2014 and a few hints about the issues we want to cover on fire detection solutions in the media this year.

Before you know it we are past the middle of January and if we don’t write it now, then we might be on the review of 2015 the next we do something similar.

However, saying that two events this last weekend make this a good place to start a blaze at a fish production factory and another Channel Tunnel fire.

These are sectors we have covered in some detail over the course of last year. We talked about the risks they both face and the costs of major fires at their respective industry facilities.

In 2014, FireVu was featured in Health and Safety Matters (amongst others) discussing the frightening frequency and dangers of fires in food production facilities.

The case of Wessex Foods was used to illustrate the terrible consequences of such incidents, including the cost of calling on 100 firefighters desperately trying to contain the blaze and the awful pollution from the run-off from 50 million litres of contaminated water used in trying to fight the blaze. The bottom line, not to go too deeply into the detail, was the loss of 150 jobs and the closure of the plant.

The fish production factory in Peterhead northern Scotland that went up yesterday employs around 300 staff. We can only hope the valiant efforts of the fire service, which employed 10 fire trucks and crews, have saved enough of the plant to continue operations or there is a robust contingency plan.

In cases of fire 30% of businesses go out of business within a year, 70% within five years according to Home Office Computing Magazine.

The Channel Tunnel fire, which happened was not the first, fortunately only caused delays with minimal structural damage.

The 2008 fire resulted in £60 million worth of repairs being undertaken and 6 months’ disruption to services that cost Eurotunnel an estimated £185m in lost revenue. This fire does not drastically stand out as a particularly large or destructive fire despite the costs cited.

This is not the worst case known to us, the Mont Blanc Tunnel fire for instance caused 39 fatalities, over a kilometre of structural damage, severe delays, and fines levied on the operators with the former French head of tunnel security receiving a jail term. There are even more devastating, more recent, examples that could be cited.

FireVu’s take on fire detection solutions and challenges in the media stories from 2014
The dangers and consequences facing the above industries are not unusual. During 2014 FireVu’s media releases and articles covered a range of industries where early fire detection can prove crucial: petrochemicals, heritage buildings, modern high value properties (such as The Gherkin), manufacturing, air hangars and military facilities.

The waste management and recycling sector is highly susceptible to fire. There is on average a fire a day in the UK at a plant. In general, a major fire occurs every month. It is a state of affairs that has brought increased pressure from the emergency services, politicians, the Environment Agency (EA), local businesses and residents.

In 2014 we saw, to the best of our knowledge the first custodial sentence for a recycling site owner who had been negligent and had not co-operated with the EA.

There was also a new set of sentencing guidelines for waste management and recycling that had negligently polluted the environment: Firms with turnovers of less than £10 million could potentially face fines as great as £400,000. Large firms can now find themselves at the end of a £3 million penalty.

FireVu – new fire detection solutions for operator’s challenges
FireVu, is sold by NetVu and Dedicated Micros Inc. It is a business based on innovation, a business that develops, designs and tests new solutions to meet the needs of our clients and the market.

In September 2014, FireVu launched the Multi-Detector. This new fire detection solution incorporates flame and Visual Smoke Detection with a thermopile (temperature sensing) capability. It is an industry first.

2015 should see new solutions, so please follow us on the FireVu LinkedIn, Twitter and Google Plus pages and here on this website to know further how we can solve your fire detection challenges.

2014 had its surprises and the number of changes in some sectors, especially recycling, giving us plenty to discuss on fire detection in the media. So as new legislation is discussed and enacted, incidents occur, politicians and government bodies speak, we will comment on how to meet the challenges of effective fire detection and protection of high-value assets.