Overview of Industrial Fire Protection

This post as known of the overview of industrial fire protection, “Safety science” is a twenty-first-century term for everything that goes into the pr

This post as known of the overview of industrial fire protection, “Safety science” is a twenty-first-century term for everything that goes into the prevention of accidents, illnesses, fires, explosions, and other events that harm people, property, or the environment (ASSE and BCSP 2007, 3). Fire is a hazard that can strike any workplace. Of all the events that can strike, fire losses can be one of the greatest threats to an industrial organization in terms of financial losses, loss of life, loss of property, and property damage. Therefore, industrial fire protection and prevention are crucial components of any safety professional’s job, be it serving as a loss control consultant or a safety manager. Fires can strike any type of workplace at any time, resulting in property damage, injuries, and deaths. The adverse financial effects can be felt by an organization long after the fire is extinguished.

Fire Protection And Fire Prevention

Industrial fire protection and prevention involves recognizing those situations that may result in an unwanted fire, evaluating the potential for an unwanted event, and developing control measures that can be used to eliminate or reduce those fire risks to an acceptable level. As is the case with any safety control measure, these controls can range from engineering strategies to administrative strategies or a combination of the two. Included in fire protection and prevention is emergency response. Emergency response involves organizing, training, and coordinating skilled employees about emergencies such as fires, accidents, or other disasters (ASSE and BCSP 2007, 6).

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) describes fire protection as a series of six opportunities to intervene against a hostile fire, arrayed along a timeline of potential growth in fire severity:

1. Prevent the fire entirely.
2. Slow the initial growth of the fire.
3. Detect fire early, permitting effective intervention before the fire becomes too severe.
4. Provide ability for automatic or manual suppression.
5. Provide ability to confine the fire in a space.
6. Move the occupants to a safe location.

Importance of Fire Safety

Protecting the workplace from fires is a major job responsibility of safety managers. Not only do they have to ensure that the property is adequately protected to prevent catastrophic financial losses to the organization, but there is also the moral obligation to protect the workers and members of the community from the devastating effects that a fire can have upon the entire community. Over the years, there have been numerous examples of the effects that industrial fires have had upon both the workers involved and the communities in which they occurred.

Source Information

Occupational Safety and Health Aministration and Fire Safety

As the federal government agency responsible for setting the national standards for worker safety and health, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established standards addressing each of the three key elements of fire safety: (1) fire prevention, (2) safe evacuation from the workplace in the event of fire, and (3) protection of workers who fight fires or who work around fire suppression equipment. These issues are addressed by a variety of detailed OSHA rules applicable to general industry (all businesses except construction, shipbuilding, and longshoring) in 29 C.F.R. § 1910 (OSHA 2013).

National Fire Protection Association

NFPA is an international nonprofit organization established in 1896 with a mission of reducing the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education (NFPA 2013). The first set of standards developed by the NFPA can be traced back to their work in 1895 and 1896 on sprinkler system standards. At the time nine radically different sprinkler system standards were in effect within 100 miles of Boston. Seeing a need for consistency, the founding group of twenty members released sprinkler system rules “Report of Committee on Automatic Sprinkler Protection” (NFPA 1995, 97).

United States Fire Administration

In 1973, the Commission on Fire Prevention and Control issued its report “America Burning,” which documented the extent to which resources and lives were being lost to unnecessary fires in the United States (National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control 1973, iii). One of the many recommendations contained in the report was the formation of the United States Fire Administration (USFA). As an entity of the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency, the mission of the USFA is to provide national leadership to foster a solid foundation for our fire and emergency services stakeholders in prevention, preparedness, and response (USFA 2013).