Waste Recycling facilities are an extremely harsh operating environment for a fire alarm system. The combination of a usually damp atmosphere and the ever-present sticky dust combine to destroy any item of equipment that isn’t up to the task.
At Blazequel we understand the challenges of the waste recycling environment, thanks to our experience and knowledge of the industry. You can rely on us to help you choose a waste recycling fire alarm system which best matches your requirements. Make sure you download your free copy of ‘Fire Safety for the Waste Management Industry’ to help you understand how best to protect your facility from the risk of fire.
Making the wrong choice can result in your expensive fire alarm system having a short and problematic lifetime, along with disruption and hassle from false alarms. To discuss your application with one of our advisers, please call 01234 357357.
Below we have summarized some of the key facts you need to know when choosing a waste recycling fire alarm system:
Standard Point type smoke detectors are usually unsuitable for waste recycling environments. Dust will gather in the detection chamber and cause false alarms.
Point type heat detectors are suitable in buildings less than 7.5m high (rare in waste recycling applications) or 9.5m high for a ‘Rate-of-Rise’ heat detector.
Beam detectors are an option, but in very dusty applications can cause false alarms due to airborne dust obscuration. We recommend the latest OSID detectors, which have specialist technology that is capable of differentiating between dust and smoke.
High Sensitivity Smoke Detection (HSSD) is great at detecting a fire early. However, it’s often not suitable for waste recycling fire detection applications due to the risk of dust accumulating in the pipework and filters. This can lead to a shortened system lifetime, false alarms and higher maintenance costs. If you do opt for HSSD you need to have specialist harsh environment filters and an air-purging system. This will protect the detection unit and will also enable you to clean dust from the pipework.
Linear Heat Detection Cable is great for protecting key risk areas. It’s very robust, swift to detect heat and is ideal for many waste recycling fire alarm applications – particularly in protecting machinery. Examples include: conveyors, waste bunkers and key items of machinery.
Flame Detection is one of the most reliable and popular fire detection solutions in waste recycling facilities. It will react swiftly to a flaming fire (although it won’t detect smoke at all) within it’s 25m field of view. Take care to choose a detector which is suitable for your environment .IR detectors are the most suitable for dusty areas as they can ‘see’ through dust. UV detectors do not have this ability and dust obscuration can prevent them from detecting a fire. However, UV detectors are great for outdoor waste transfer areas.This is where they are less likely to experience false alarms due to sunlight.
Video Smoke Detection (VSD) is a superb choice for waste recycling fire alarm applications. VSD uses video analytics software on a camera network to detect signs of smoke, which is the precursor of fire in many applications due to the high moisture content of the material being processed. To see the proof of this, check out this real-life video of an SRF Stockpile, where Smokecatcher gave 4 HOURS of warning before combustion – https://vimeo.com/262028525.
Thermal Imaging is another fantastic choice for protecting stockpiled material in waste recycling applications. It can detect a deep-seated fire in a stockpile of waste material, long before it becomes a fire on the surface of the pile. This is great as it enables you to safely deal with a potential incident before any damage is done. Thermal imaging is a fantastic choice for outdoor areas where visual systems (such as VSD) cannot work effectively in all environmental conditions.
‘Hybrid’ combined Thermal and Video fire detection, combines the best features of both video and thermal detection into a single camera, giving you a reliable, versatile solution with excellent situational awareness in the event of an emergency.
