FIRE EXTINGUISHING AT PRODUCTION BUILDINGS, PREMISES, WAREHOUSES (SP 5.13130)

Production buildings, premises, workshops and various warehouses are protected by automatic foam fire extinguishing installations. The main codes of practice in the field of designing fire extinguishing systems are SP485.1311500.2020, SP 155.13130.2014 and SP 241.1311500.2015.

Pozhneftehim, a manufacturer of firefighting equipment and foam concentrates, a developer of design solutions in the field of fire safety, offers full support for projects in the field of creating fire extinguishing systems for production buildings and workshops, including design, production of system components, installation and commissioning.

Methods and means of fire extinguishing in production buildings, premises, warehouses (SP 485.1311500.2020)

The structural features of a building, the type of fire load and the customer’s wishes influence the choice of fire extinguishing installation. For extinguishing fires in production workshops and warehouses, various extinguishing agents and fire fighting equipment are used. Air-mechanical foam is recommended for extinguishing flammable and combustible liquids, rubber, rubber technical products, rubber resins and resins, powders, emulsions and much more. The fire equipment includes low, medium and high expansion foam generators and deluge sprinklers. The choice of foam concentrates (AFFF, AFFF/AR, S/AR, S types) depends on the selected fire extinguishing technology.

In production shops and warehouses, fire extinguishing in the area with foam of low and medium expansion, and fire extinguishing by volume with foam of high expansion are used. Four examples of fire extinguishing installations are illustrated in the Pozhneftehim logical diagram.

The Pozhneftehim logical diagram. Examples of fire extinguishing installations. Production buildings, premises, warehouses (according to SP 485.1311500.2020).

Order a typical project in Pozhneftehim

Scope of foam fire extinguishing installations
Foam fire extinguishing is applied at oil, gas and petrochemical industry facilities. The scope of foam fire extinguishing installations also extends to facilities of other industries and to warehouses of multidisciplinary wholesalers (consumer goods). The following is a list of substances and materials, which, in case of fire, are recommended to be extinguished by air-mechanical foam as an extinguishing agent (automatic foam fire extinguishing installations).

Category of premises according to SP 5.13130	Objects to be protected with automatic foam fire extinguishing installations
2	Premises for woodworks, textile, knitting, textile and haberdashery, tobacco, footwear, leather, fur, pulp and paper and printing industries; painting, impregnating, paint work, mixture preparation, degreasing, preservation and de-preservation, washing of parts with the use of flammable and combustible liquids, production of cottonwool, artificial and film materials; sewing industry; production using rubber products; car service enterprises; garages and parking, premises of B3 category.
3	Premises for manufacturing of rubber products.
4.1	Premises for the production of combustible natural and synthetic fibers, painting and drying chambers, areas for open painting and drying, paint-, varnish-, glue-making productions using Flammable and combustible liquids, premises of B2 category.
4.2	Machine rooms of compressor stations, stations of regeneration, hydrogenation, extraction and rooms of other industries that process combustible gases, gasoline, alcohols, ethers and other flammable and combustible liquids, premises of B1 category.
5	Warehouses of fireproof materials in combustible packaging. Warehouses for low-combustible materials.
6	Warehouses for solid combustible materials, including rubber, rubber technical products, rubber resins and resins.
7	Warehouses for varnishes, paints, flammable and combustible liquids.

The Pozhneftehim fire extinguishing installations and firefighting equipment

According to SP 485.1311500.2020, “the type of fire extinguishing installation, the method of extinguishing, the type of extinguishing agent shall be determined by the design organization, taking account of the fire hazard and the physical/chemical properties of the produced, stored and used substances and materials, as well as the speciality of the protected equipment”.
The extinguishing method and fire extinguishing installation devices determine the choice of a foam generator. The Pozhneftehim, a manufacturer of firefighting equipment and foam concentrates, warns that externally similar devices may have different specifications and are not interchangeable in fire extinguishing system designs. Below we consider four examples of fire extinguishing installations depending on the type of foam generator. 

1. Extinguishing fires in buildings, premises, workshops and warehouses using Favorit high expansion foam generator (GVPE)

An automatic fire extinguishing installation using high expansion foam involves application of the Favorit high expansion foam generator produced by the Pozhneftehim, and a foam concentrate capable of forming high expansion foam (Aquafom NSV). The foam concentrate must be synthetic (type S) or synthetic alcohol resistant (S/AR), depending on the fire load. The system is suitable for large rooms, because it allows to quickly fill the entire volume of the storage and eliminate the fire, which can spread to the walls and roof of the building.  

Favorit high expansion foam generator, manufacturer: the Pozhneftehim Group

Favorit GVPE is a foam generator designed to produce air-mechanical foam from 1%, 3% and 6% aqueous solution of foam concentrate. The foam generator is used for cubical fire extinguishing, provides a foam concentrate solution flow rate of at least 50 l/min and a foam expansion ratio of 400 to 800 (depending on the water and foam concentrate quality).

2. Extinguishing fires in buildings, premises, workshops and warehouses using Turbopen universal foam generator (UGP)

An automatic fire extinguishing installation with medium expansion foam involves the use of a Turbopen universal foam generator manufactured by the Pozhneftehim and a foam concentrate capable of forming medium expansion foam (Aquafom NSV). The foam concentrate can be synthetic and fluorosynthetic (type S, S/AR, AFFF or AFFF/AR is selected depending on the fire load of the room). The system is suitable for warehouses of any volume. The use of filmforming foam concentrates is recommended.

Turbopen universal foam generator, manufacturer: Pozhneftehim Group

Turbopen UGP is a universal foam generator. It is used to apply a jet of extinguishing agent (medium expansion foam), operates in the pressure range 0.4 to 1 MPa and has an increased irrigation length (compared to outdated medium expansion foam generators; contact the Pozhneftehim consultants for details). When choosing the oscillation function, the device has different degrees of oscillation (up to 360ᵒ) on the generator central axis.

3. Extinguishing fires in buildings, premises, workshops and warehouses using the Antifire UVPN (special purpose deluge sprinkler)

An automatic fire extinguishing installation with low expansion foam using an Antifire universal foam/water nozzle manufactured by the Pozhneftehim, and a foam concentrate capable of forming low expansion foam (Aquafom N). A film-forming fluorosynthetic foam concentrate AFFF, AFFF/AR or AFFF/AR LV (low viscosity) is used, as well as a synthetic alcohol-resistant foam concentrate S/AR.

Antifire universal water/foam nozzle (UVPN), manufacturer: the Pozhneftehim Group

Antifire UVPN is a low expansion foam generator that can be used in systems of fire extinguishing at various objects. These are production shops, technological sites, helipads, aircraft hangars. The device can apply both low expansion foam and water for water cooling. Depending on the design and modification, Antifire UVPN can be used for surface and volume-surface fire extinguishing. The device has a cone regulator that forms jets with a spray angle of 30°, 60°, 90°, 120°.

4. Extinguishing fires in warehouses with general purpose deluge sprinklers (drenchers)

Automatic fire extinguishing installation with water, water with a wetting agent WA or a foam concentrate solution. Drenchers can be used to extinguish fires and create water curtains. The installation has a wide scope and is suitable for warehouses with substances and materials used in various industries. When designing a drencher fire extinguishing system for warehouses, the ceiling height of the protected premises must be taken into account.

Fire extinguishing standards, Special technical conditions on fire safety
Automatic fire extinguishing installations for storage facilities, which do not have regulatory requirements in the codes of practice SP 485.1311500.2020, SP 155.13130.2014 and SP 241.1311500.2015, are designed according to special requirements. The design of such a fire extinguishing system is developed in accordance with special technical conditions (STU).
Fire safety STUs are required for automatic fire extinguishing installations located at the following facilities:

• Warehouses for chemically active substances and materials interacting with a fire extinguishing agent.
• Warehouses for liquefied petroleum gases, storage facilities for polar liquids, storage facilities for crude oil and petroleum products for non-civil purposes, storage facilities for polar fluids.
• High-rack warehouses designed for storing varnishes, paints, flammable and combustible liquids, materials (cotton, tobacco), dry mineral fertilizers and chemical plant protection products.
• High-bay warehouses designed for storing explosive, radioactive and potent toxic substances, combustible gases, products in aerosol packaging, non-combustible gases in containers under pressure of more than 70 kPa.
• High-bay warehouses designed for storing oil and oil products, rubber resin, flammable plastics, rubber and general rubber goods.
• High-bay warehouses designed for storing flour, animal feed, fur skins, furs and fur products, chemically active substances and materials.

The Pozhneftehim, a developer of standard and special design solutions in the field of fire safety (STU, Concepts of anti-fire protection, Fire safety measures), draws attention to the fact that the designer of such systems should have in-depth knowledge of not only the regulatory framework, but also the technical features of fire extinguishing equipment properties of foam concentrate solutions and fire hazard features of the facility.

What are the advantages of cooperating with Pozhneftehim?
Designing systems for extinguishing fires in warehouses require not only knowledge of the regulatory documentation of the Russian Federation, but also the technical features of different types of firefighting products. When developing design solutions for fire hazardous facilities, we go to the facility to assess fire risks and choose an economically sound fire extinguishing installation. However, it is better if the developer organization entrusts all work on the implementation of the fire extinguishing installation to one contractor. The Pozhneftehim can prepare and coordinate with the supervisory authorities the optimal design solution, supply fire equipment and foam concentrates, take part in the commissioning of the fire extinguishing installation and train the operating personnel at site. When working with different contractors and creating a fire extinguishing installation from various (possibly not compatible) components, the customer’s risks in the field of fire safety increase.

Invitation to Refresher Courses in Fire Safety
The Pozhneftehim provides industrial and fire safety specialists, designers and engineers of design organizations with comprehensive technical documentation, consults and trains specialists at annual Advanced training courses in the city of Donskoy (Tula Region, production site of Pozhneftehim-Detal LLC).

The Advanced training courses “Modern fire fighting technologies at facilities of oil, gas, and petrochemical industries” have been conducted by the Pozhneftehim since 2016 (License of the Ministry of Education of the Tula Region No. 0133/03315 dated 30.09.2016).