By Iain Cox, Chairman of the Business Sprinkler Alliance (BSA)
Although there are a number of different ways to contain and deal with fires in warehouses, there are only two universal systems of rapid fire suppression: fire sprinklers and Fire Service intervention. The important difference is fire sprinklers provide automatic and immediate onsite protection. For this reason, it is critical organisations understand the benefit of fire sprinklers in protecting industrial and commercial buildings, employee safety and job security as well as UK productivity, business continuity and the wider economy.
![The-Cost-of-Fire[5]](https://warehousenews.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/The-Cost-of-Fire5.jpg)
Research commissioned by the BSA and conducted by BRE Global and Cebr on warehouse fires shows fire sprinklers minimise the cost and impact of fire on businesses and local communities. Yet there still remains a lack of information around the benefits of these systems. Below we address a number of commonly-held myths and misconceptions around fire sprinklers.
Myth: Water damage can be as bad as the fire damage
A typical sprinkler head discharges 70-75 litres of water per minute in comparison to an average fire hose, which emits up to 1,500 litres per minute. Taking these average figures, we can say fire sprinklers discharge less than 5% of the water used by the fire service. Sprinklers also operate immediately a fire has established itself, hence the fire will be considerably smaller than it would be if there was no attack until the fire service arrived.
Myth: Sprinklers can go off accidentally
Records from the NFSN (National Fire Sprinkler Network) show the chance of an accidental sprinkler activation is in the region of 16 million to one (the mechanism requires high levels of heat for activation).
Myth: When there is a fire all the sprinkler heads go off
Each fire sprinkler head is independent and only those above the fire activate. Each fire sprinkler head is a mechanical unit with a glass element that activates when the temperature reaches a minimum of 68 degrees centigrade, so only the fire sprinklers in the immediate vicinity will be activated.
Myth: Sprinkler Systems are expensive
The BRE Global report, commissioned by the BSA, demonstrates that sprinklers are cost beneficial in warehouse buildings over 2,000m2. The overall whole-life costs are lower for a warehouse larger than 2,000m2 with fire sprinklers than for the same building without fire sprinklers. This is a consequence of reduced insurance premiums and the commercial benefits associated with avoiding the damage and disruption caused by fire.
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