Fire in the hold!
Published: 01 January, 2006
Jan Crucq comments: “Since halon-based systems have been decommissioned, the shipping industry has been looking at suitable alternatives. At the moment there are several replacement systems that have worldwide recognition within the maritime sector.
“One of the most widely-used applications is the HI Fog water mist system which is often installed in engine rooms,” he explains to IFJ. He further predicts a return to CO2 systems and that FM 200 systems are becoming increasingly popular.
The choice of the fire system depends on the sort of ship and the operator. “In Norwegian vessels there is a tendency to use Inergen, another environmentally-friendly halon replacement.
“In the luxury yacht building sector there are other techniques e.g. Novec 1230, but the point I am trying to make is that not all these techniques are internationally-recognised due to differing regulations and organisations all over the world.”
Maritime rules and regulations are roughly outlined by organisations and treaties such as IMO and SOLAS but in addition there are different Classification societies, such as Lloyds, DNV and Bureau Veritas.
These last are some of the agencies appointed to recognise and approve these gaseous extinguishing and watermist systems.
Compartment issues
“We do have a quality watchdog in the form of the ISM system, but that in itself this has nothing to do with the building and installation of the ship, but more with the operational part,” he continues.
“In general, the bigger the engine room, the more complicated the system. So shipbuilders add in compartmentation which separate spaces from each other. This way you control these areas independently from one another. In my opinion this is more important than the choice of the total flooding system in itself.”
Jan explains that the division in compartments is not just limited to the engine room; it is extended over the whole ship. These fire zones each have a fire station where the necessary equipment is stored and ready for use.
In all of these zones there are strategically-placed fire extinguishers which can contain powder, foam or CO2, with weights ranging from 5 to 12 kg. In engine rooms you tend to find bigger mobile extinguishers up to 50 kg. According to Jan these are strategically placed near high-risk areas like boiler rooms and purifier rooms.
“There are several high-risk areas onboard a ship; one of those is the galley. The fact that people work with cooking fat and electrical equipment in the galley poses a risk. Cooking fat can enter the ventilation shaft and when a fire occurs it could spread through these shafts into other rooms. Nowadays, especially in the bigger vessels, these ventilation shafts could have a cleaning system installed inside. In this way cooking fat and other residue is regularly washed away to reduce the fire risk.”
In addition to this precaution, firedampers divide the whole ventilation system into compartments to reduce the spread of smoke and fire.
Organising the fire teams
The captain will always be in charge when an incident occurs. According to the ship’s contingency plans there are fire teams and each of these has a leader. All of these teams need to be managed. In case of a larger crew the captain isn’t the right person for this because he has other tasks, such as navigation and communication, he continues.
Jan believes the captain should oversee the whole proceedings, but he should be minimally involved in the operational part of the fire-fighting. The Fire Team leaders are always ship’s officers; if the fire is in the engine room one of the engineers is usually in charge.
“Depending on the type of vessel and its cargo, the ship will be equipped with personal protection for the Fire Team - all the necessary equipment such as BA and suitable turnout gear.
On oil tankers there are several monitors placed around strategic places and there is adequate foam solution available to extinguish oil fires. The amount of foam concentrate onboard varies, but there are tanks of 3,000 litres of foam concentrate in some cases. On board chemical tankers this would be considered a normal amount.”
Training issues
The amount of training the crew receives depends on the vessel involved and is directed by the STCW and ISM. The crew is obliged to practice regularly on fire scenario’s, man over board and abandon ship exercises. In theory this should keep their knowledge and practical skills up-to-date - and that is exactly the issue at the moment, explains Jan.
He points out that within the rules and guidelines of the STCW, the international treaty of the standards and trading of Watch Keepers, it does not specify that fire training should be repeated on land based training centers at regular intervals.
“It does say that you are obliged to keep up with knowledge and skills by training on board, what this doesn’t provide is training with real smoke and real fire.
“We at HZ Safety are absolutely convinced that practice onboard is essential to get acquainted with the environment. However, it would be of great benefit to have regular training in real life environment with experts to judge your performance instead of your colleagues. Separately from the land based training on the training centre with our partner the Vlissingen Fire Department, we also organise training on board,” he comments.
Jan notices that many students have simply not got the skills to fight fires in an effective and safe way. He puts this down to a lack of suitable training.
“In several countries within the IMO, including the UK, Norway and the US, voices have now been raised to reinstall a recertification deadline for land-based simulator training. However, as with all worldwide treaties, it will be some time until this becomes law.”
Shipping companies now have a fair amount of freedom in how they organise their crew training - and the training structure differs greatly between operators. For some it is just a plain matter of cost, as land-based training is dearer than onboard practice.
Jan comments: “Some operators just spend the money more easily than others, although they do have an obligation to show the flag state and port state authorities that they fulfil all competencies concerning fire-fighting and fire-protection. It differs from sector to sector; passenger liners are usually very competent, the same goes for oil, gas and chemical carriers. But the smaller the vessel, the poorer the training standards are. This is partly caused by the freedom in training which there is nowadays. Operators have to prove by means of their ISM system that their crew is competent. But we are not convinced that some of the classification societies who are performing the ISM audits have the qualification on judging the fire fighting performances during drills. The worst part is that there is economic interest for the classification societies. Our flag state performing port state control did admit this and we did train their experts in judging drills and exercises “ he concludes.
For more information on HZ Safety, please visit:www.hzsafety.nl
Which marine fire suppression products are available at the moment? IFJ takes a look at what manufacturers are offering:
KIDDE
Lee James, Product Manager for Kidde Products, is keen to explains to IFJ about the company’s special suppression systems especially designed for shipboard galleys.
“Cooking surfaces and appliances such as deep fat fryers in galleys have all the elements necessary for devastating fires,” he comments. “That’s why specialist APC suppression systems such as the Kidde Wet Chemical System have been introduced. These systems rapidly detect and suppress fire in any type of cooking appliance before it has a chance to escalate. Systems are available that exceed the tough UL 300 Standard for commercial cooking equipment and are also approved by agencies such as Lloyd’s Register of Shipping and the American Bureau of Shipping.” For more information visit: www.kiddeproducts.com
TYCO
Tyco recently introduced the Sapphire fire suppression system, based on NOVEC 1230 fluid. Tyco’s marketing director, Andrew Shiner, reports: “Since its introduction it has been installed in several hundred ships - ferries, pleasure craft and luxury super yachts - and has already amassed several maritime approvals, such as MCA; Germanischer Lloyd; DNV; BV; ABS; RINA; LRS; Icelandic Maritime Administration; MED and Marchant Marine. It is also accepted by NSI; BZI and DMA; and complies with SOLAS, having successfully completed MSC 848 testing.”
The fluid is stored in cylinders as a low vapour pressure fluid that transmutes into a colourless and odourless gas when discharged. Unlike water-based fire extinguishing agents, it can be used with absolute confidence to suppress fires involving electronic or computing equipment, without the risk of consequential damage, he says.
Typical total flooding applications use between just five and six percent by volume of the fluid, which is well below the agent’s saturation or condensation level, says Andrew. When discharged, the agent is dispersed through natural ventilation, leaving no residue to damage sensitive equipment; it is also non-conductive and non-corrosive.
Andrew comments: “Installations have a footprint similar to that of chemically-based clean agent systems and, most significantly, the fluid has the lowest level of design concentration and the highest safety margin of any viable Halon 1301 or chemical alternative. While certain HFCs and inert gases are used at design concentrations that are below the NOAEL [No Observed Adverse Effect Level], with safety margins that range from 7% to 20%, no other halon alternative comes anywhere close to Sapphire’s 92% safety margin.”
Why is this important? Fires on ships frequently involve diesel oil, as opposed to the more typical Class A combustibles in land-based fires, requiring higher suppressant concentration levels. As the volume of the space on ships is often difficult to calculate accurately - due to machinery - the installation’s designer will often err on the side of caution and include more agent than the actual volume requires.
Additionally, the agent quantity is calculated based on the minimum anticipated temperature in the protected space, whereas the reality is that the temperature will be higher - often significantly so - which would lead to a further “over concentration”. This combination of factors has the potential for more agents being provided than the volume truly deserves, taking the achieved concentration close to, or even above, the agent’s NOAEL level.
For more information? Visit: www.tycosafetyproducts-europe.com
MARIOFF
HI-FOG - firefighting at sea
As early as 1991, Marioff Corporation Oy, received the first order for the installation of its HI-FOG watermist system on the M/S FRANS SUELL.
“Marioff’s HI-FOG system is based on special nozzles which split water into ‘micro-droplets’, providing very efficient cooling of the fire, as well as oxygen depletion. By attacking the heat and the oxygen, two of the three elements required to maintain a fire (the third one being fuel), HI-FOG is an efficient fire suppression system for all kind of fires and has in tests proven its capability to extinguish or suppress accommodation fires, as well as fuel pool and spray fires, says the company.
Watermist has proven its capability in efficiently extinguishing more than 15 real fires on passenger ships, says Marioff. This includes serious fires in the engine room of three large cruise vessels, where - in all cases - a failure in a fuel line caused fuel to touch a hot surface and ignite into an explosive fire. All three fires were extinguished in less than one minute.
Today, more than 500 vessels and offshore structures are equipped with HI-FOG, ranging from the largest passenger cruise vessels afloat to offshore platforms and ships.
The HI-FOG sprinkler system has been selected for prestigious vessels such as the QUEEN MARY 2, the VOYAGER OF THE SEAS and the WORLD. Currently, HI-FOG systems are being installed on cruise vessels for each of the major cruise vessel operators. Also major ferry operators, such as Minoan Lines, Moby Line, Strintzis Line, Superfast and SNCM have opted for HI-FOG on their latest constructions.
More info? Visit: www.hi-fog.com
