5/6/15

Oil & Gas Technology

Valvitalia, a company participated by FSI Fondo Strategico Italiano, have signed the acquisition of 100 per cent of the capital of Eusebi Group, a leading manufacturer of fire fighting systems for the naval, civil, railway and oil and gas industries

Headquartered in Ancona and with three additional plants in Russia, Poland and Kazakhstan, Eusebi employs 250 people and have a turnover of EUR 60m.

This acquisition follows the recent one of Silvani completed by Valvitalia last December 2014 and, thanks to these two historical brands, it gives the opportunity to Valvitalia to become the Italian leader and one of the most important in Europe, manufacturer of fire fighting systems and equipment.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Dennis Kennedy (President of Amerex), Diane Pein (President of Approved Fire Protection), Andrew Halasz (VP Sales - Amerex) and Steve Dmitrovich (General Manager, Janus Fire Systems)

Amerex organized a group of distributors from within the Amerex, Janus Fire Systems, and Solberg group of Amerex companies. This group, known as the Amerex Group of Business Companies is designed to provide an exchange of information between the distributor network and the manufacturer. This is the first time a formally recognized group of distributors has been invited to participate in such a function. The inaugural meeting was held the week of April 20 in Birmingham, Alabama. The group will meet on a regular basis, and will conduct ongoing dialogues between themselves and the manufacturer (Amerex), and may include input from existing distribution.

4/13/15

By Kerry Reals
Flightglobal

Diehl Aerosystems' division AOA is demonstrating its FIREX water-mist fire-suppression system for aircraft cargo compartments, which it says is the only halon replacement system to have passed all US FAA proof-of-concept tests.

FIREX comprises a water tank and nitrogen bottles linked to a common pipe and several spray nozzles that distribute water vapour and nitrogen throughout the cargo hold to extinguish fires.

It has been developed as an alternative to existing halon fire suppression systems, which are to be excluded from new European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) aircraft programme certifications from 2018 due to environmental concerns.

Click here to read the full article.

4/24/15

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Natural Resources Defense Council Staff Blog

David Doniger's Blog

Deal on HFC Super-Pollutants Inches Forward

A global deal to phase down the powerful heat-trapping chemicals called hydrofluorcarbons (HFCs) inched forward after a week of international negotiations in Bangkok under the Montreal Protocol, the world's most successful environmental treaty.

Prospects for progress rose sharply in mid-April when India put forward its own proposal to phase down HFCs on the Montreal treaty. The Indian initiative means there are now four specific phase-down proposals under discussion - including ones from the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, from Micronesia, and from the European Union. China also supports an HFC phase-down. Curbing HFCs also has the support of the entire African bloc and nearly all Latin American, Asian, and small island nations. (NRDC and our partners have put together a fact sheet on the four proposals.)

Click here to read the full article.

5/7/15

By Jack Ewing
The New York Times

FRANKFURT -- Siemens, the German industrial giant, said on Thursday that it would cut 4,500 jobs as it reacts to a slump in oil prices that has eroded its sales of equipment to the energy industry.

Lower oil prices have generally been a boon to the eurozone economy, freeing up cash that consumers can spend on other things. But in the case of Siemens, the effect is the opposite because of its large business supplying producers of oil, gas and electricity.

Siemens said it needed to cut jobs and reduce costs because of "the persistently difficult environment in the global power generation market," which the company said included "regulatory changes, massive price erosion, aggressive competitors and regional overcapacities."

Click here to read the rest of the story.

PRESIDENT: Tim Carman | Janus Fire Systems
VICE PRESIDENT: Steve Carter | Orr Protection Systems, Inc.
SECRETARY/TREASURER: Helen Lowery | DuPont Fluoroproducts
IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT: Eric Burkland | Healey Fire Protection Inc.

Click here to see the rest of the 2014-2015 FSSA Leadership.

Steve Carter

Spring 2015

FSSA Annunciator

The Fire Suppression Systems Association (FSSA) would like to thank Steve Carter, formerly of ORR Protection Services, for his years of service to the association. A former FSSA Director and FSSA Vice President, Steve played a vital role in the association's leadership. In addition to his board roles, he served on the FSSA Technical Committee and was Chair of the FSSA Website Subcommittee while also representing the association on several National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) committees.

The FSSA Board of Directors are sad to see Steve depart, but everyone wishes him well on his new career path as a minister.

"Steve Carter resigned from ORR Protection Systems to pursue a full-time position in ministry," said Ray Aldridge, President of ORR Protection Systems. "We, at ORR, are very happy for Steve - his faith has always been at the core of his life."

During his service to the association, Steve was recognized for his commitment and dedication and his "not so" artistic capabilities. During one Annual Forum, Steve made a technical presentation on the NFPA 72 Update. Laughter filled the room as Steve kicked off his session by drawing a stick figure on a flip chart in reference to Wahl. The following evening at the President's banquet, the paintings and Steve's drawing were auctioned off the raise money for the FSSA Educational Foundation. Steve's drawing raised $1,500.

2/21/14

By David Quirk, PE, LEED AP, CEM
DLB Associates

Mission Critical Fire Protection is a tough sell.

It requires a detailed understanding of RISKS and an awareness of these risks across all stakeholders involved. Today's data centers are getting more complicated with alternative means of cooling technologies, adjusting business models, and transitioning service offerings.

This session provides insights into the End-User perspective on Mission Critical Fire Protection, how to ask the right questions, raise awareness on the risks, and make the sale.

Click here to see the full presentation.

April 2015

FAA

The use of electronic-tablets (e-tablets) as replacements for conventional in-flight entertainment systems has gained popularity among airlines globally. Innovative methods of storing and charging e-tablets in galley carts have been suggested or are already in service with some airlines.

The danger of thermal runaway in the lithium-ion-pouch batteries that are used in these e-tablets is well known, but the potential fire hazard resulting from e-tablets being stored and charged in galley carts or a similar enclosure has not been established. To examine this potential fire hazard, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and the Federal Aviation Administration conducted a series of tests to investigate the behavior of e-tablet fires.

Tests were conducted within a galley cart and thermal runaway of the e-tablet lithium-ion-pouch battery was initiated by either a heat plate or an external alcohol fire. The arrangement of e-tablets inside the galley cart followed the typical methods of storage proposed by airlines and design organizations. The objectives of the tests were to determine a suitable storage configuration for the e-tablets, which would prevent the propagation of thermal runaway, and to determine the effect that thermal runaway would have on a typical galley cart.

Click here to read the full report.

February 2015

By Paul Rivers
Senior Fire Protection Specialist, 3M Company

• Lack of understanding potential of thermal decomposition product (TDP) effects on museum materials.
• For halocarbon based systems, level of HF generated in a fire directly correlated not only the size of the fire but the room volume as well. (kW_fire/m³_room).  
  Significant data set available...
  
  • Peatross, et al, Hughes Associates 1996, 1998
  • Ditch, 2002, WPI, others
• Advanced detection technologies detect to control fire to a certain size, thus limiting resultant HF to a specified level.
• Bottom line: Advantageous to determine a safe, maximum level of HF that will not adversely affect sensitive content materials that are typical to museums or archives

Click here to view the full presentation.

 

 

Here is a video of an accidental Halon system dump (complete with captions) that was uploaded by Specialized Fire & Security in Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Halon System Discharge