Category Archives: Manufacturing Plant

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Peterborough, ON, Canada – Sprinkler system activates to help control early morning manufacturing fire

A fire that broke out in the city’s industrial area Friday morning has left three businesses with heavy smoke damage.  Firefighters responded to the blaze at 100 Jameson Dr., off Fisher Drive, at about 5 a.m.  It happened at Andritz Hydro, which is located in the same complex as FedEx and Measure Max.  The small fire was contained Andritz and no one was injured.

“Unfortunately there was heavy smoke damage throughout the complex,” said Chad Brown, Peterborough Fire Services deputy chief.  Firefighters were on scene until about 10:30 a.m. Streets in the area where closed, rerouting morning traffic. Workers were inside the complex at the time, but in Andritz. The fire alarm went off and the sprinkler system was activated.

The cause of the fire hasn’t been determined yet, but Brown said it’s not suspicious.  No estimate of damage was available Friday afternoon. Andritz, an Austrian company, opened the 17,000-square-foot plant in February 2014, where it makes stator coils used in both new and refurbished hydroelectric generating stations around the world.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Jeffersonville, IN – Fire at automotive supplier extinguished by sprinkler system

Employees at Autoneum in Jeffersonville’s River Ridge Commerce Center were evacuated last Thursday after a minor fire in one of the machines.  The Jeffersonville Fire Department responded to a report of a structure fire at the plant, which makes insulation parts and carpet for GM products, just after 3 p.m. When they arrived, the sprinkler system has extinguished the fire and employees had been evacuated.

Fire crews checked to make sure there was no spread of fire and secured the scene before employees could return to work, Jeffersonville Fire Department Sgt. Justin Ames.  Ames said that although this is the fifth fire the company has had since opening and the second or third this year, he doesn’t have concerns about the safety of the facility.  “It’s common for the work that they do, but they have a great response plan,” he said. “We’ve preplanned this building so we’re prepared.” Ames said the fire department meets with Autoneum owners several times a year to revisit safety protocol.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Greenville, MI – Fire service credits sprinkler system in helping to control fire at plastics plant

An industrial fire at West Michigan Compounding’s (WMC) reclamation center Sunday morning was quickly extinguished by firefighters before it could spread to do additional damage. At approximately 9:15 a.m., the Greenville Department of Public Safety was dispatched to the WMC reclamation center, located at 634 Greenville West Dr. at the former Electrolux property, to the report of a structure fire at the building. According to Public Safety Officer Jamie Sorsen, no one was in the building at the time a water flow alarm was triggered.

“The alarm went off, and when employees arrived on scene, they found smoke,” he said. Sorsen said he requested assistance from the Belding Fire Department for additional manpower and equipment, and together, the departments sent in teams of two and three firefighters at a time to locate and extinguish the fire within the large industrial building.

“We knew that we had a lot of smoke and we knew the area it was coming from, but we didn’t know what was on fire,” he said. “But within minutes they located it.” Sorsen said there were a number of boxes containing plastic that were discovered to be burning about “100 to 200 feet” south of the northeastern corner of the building.

“We were able to locate it quickly, which allowed us to put it out quickly,” he said. It becomes a problem when you can’t locate the fire quickly.” The fire was contained within about one hour after the initial time of call.

“It did not burn through the roof and it was contained to a 30 by 30-foot area,” Sorsen said. “I credit the sprinkler system that was activated and all of the manpower, everybody responding quickly, both part-paid and full time firefighters from here and Belding, as well as the first responders here assisting us.”

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Rochester, NY – Spontaneous combustion fire at textile plant contained by sprinkler system

No one was hurt after a fire on St. Paul Street Wednesday night. An automatic fire alarm went off at the Alsco plant on St. Paul around 7 p.m. A third alarm was declared because of the heat, manpower and the size of the building – approximately 65,000 square feet. Firefighters said the fire was put out without anyone being injured. They said the fire started in the back of the building, and that a sprinkler system helped keep the fire from spreading. The extent of damage to the building is not yet clear. The cause was due to a spontaneous combustion of textiles, according to Rochester firefighters. There was no one inside and no one injured.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Le Mars, IA – Sprinklers contain fire after explosion at manufacturing plant; No injuries

A compressor fire shut down IML Containers in Le Mars Monday afternoon, causing an undetermined amount of damage to the manufacturer of plastic food containers. 

Le Mars fire chief David Schipper said the Le Mars and Orange City fire departments were called at 4:22 p.m. to IML, at 1620 24th St. SW in Le Mars, for a compressor that had caught fire, and what was described as an “explosion” in the building. 

IML employees stood watching as the firefighters went in and out of the building, deploying water hoses and venting the smoke. None of the employees or firefighters were hurt in the fire. 

 

“Everybody did evacuate safely, we did an accountability check, and everybody made it out of the building just fine,” Schipper said. 

The building was damaged to an unknown extent by the heavy smoke, which Schipper said came from burning oil in the compressor. Additionally, electrical and water infrastructure were damaged, and the compressor that caught fire was destroyed. 

“It’s going to be quite a while before this place is back up and in business,” he said. 

Schipper credited the building’s sprinkler system for helping to control the fire. 

“Once again, sprinklers do save a lot, they did contain the fire for us,” he said. 

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Libertyville, IL – (No Media Coverage) Fire at plastics manufacturing plant held in check by single sprinkler

** No Media Coverage – Fire Department Reported ***  Around 1029 hours on Sunday, the Libertyville Fire Department responded to an activated fire alarm at a plastic manufacturing plant. When the first in engine company arrived, the firefighter in the jump seat thought he saw smoke from the building. After accessing the building and alarm room, he crew found the sprinkler bell ringing. After opening a man door into the warehouse they noticed a heavy haze of smoke. At this time the response was upgraded to a structure fire response. The crews made entry via the north side door and found one sprinkler head activated. This sprinkler was controlling a fire that involved a plastic injection molding machine. The crews used one handline to finish extinguishment and mop up. Fire damage was contained to the machine, while other parts of the building sustained smoke and water damage. ***

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

St. Louis, MO – Sprinkler system stops spread of overnight fire at linen company

A Soulard business where three employees died after a piece of a water tank crashed through the ceiling in April was damaged by a fire overnight.

Around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, firefighters were called to the Faultless Linen Company in the 2000 block of South Broadway.

Further investigation revealed a hopper filled with linens was hanging from a conveyor belt when it caught fire. Workers reportedly left the building Tuesday around 11 p.m., which led investigators to believe the fire started between then and 2 a.m.

The building’s smoke alarm notified the fire department of the blaze.

The building’s sprinkler system kept the fire from spreading until it could be knocked down.

No other details regarding the fire have been released.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Middleville, MI – Fire in dust collector at water heater manufacturer knocked down by sprinkler system

No one was hurt and there was minimal damage to a Middleville water heater manufacturer following a weekend fire. Thornapple Township Fire Chief Randy Eaton said the fire at Bradford White Corporation wound up not being as severe as initial calls suggested. His department remained on scene for about an hour last Sunday, June 4.  Fire crews were dispatched around 4:50 p.m. Sunday to the facility at 200 Lafayette St.   On scene, Thornapple Township firefighters located a fire, which was primarily confined to a dust collector. An overhead sprinkler system kept the flames from expanding to the roof and causing any structural damage.  Maintenance crews were working on the system at the time of the fire, and no production was underway. Eaton said less than a dozen maintenance workers were inside the facility but none were injured.  Crews from Caledonia Township and Wayland responded as backup, but weren’t needed to knock down the fire.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Shelbyville, IN – Paint booth fire at 118 year old furniture factory contained with help from sprinkler system

A fire at a 118-year old factory in Shelbyville is being investigated. The Shelbyville Fire Department responded to a call at 12:16 p.m. of the fire at Old Hickory Furniture, 403 S. Noble St. The fire was under control at 1:06 p.m., Fire Chief Tony Logan said.  There were no injuries reported and the company’s employees were evacuated safely.  The fire started around a paint booth. No additional details were available as the investigation had just begun.  Logan said the sprinkler system was working properly, which helped control the fire.

“Sprinkler systems are designed to keep the fire in check,” he said. “Our responsibility is to maintain or support that.” He said it is “imperative” for places of business to have a functioning sprinkler system. “Like I said, sprinkler systems are designed to keep the fire in check,” he said. “It’s not necessarily designed to put it out, but if you keep it in a small, incipient stage where it produces damage, in this case, this facility will be back up and running a lot quicker, employees will be back to work, they’ll be producing their product, with no loss of revenue to them or to the city tax-wise.”

More than 20 firefighters responded to the scene. “If this had happened at 3 in the morning, it could have been a different outcome,” Logan said. “We’re fortunate it happened during the day.”  Most of the damage was inside the building, but there was some roof damage as well.  As the fire department finished putting out the fire, Logan said the investigation was just starting and the Indiana State Fire Marshal’s office may be called to the scene.   “Hopefully we’ll get some answers soon,” he said. “It’s hard to tell with some of these older structures.”  Old Hickory has been in business since 1899. It handcrafts a variety of furniture pieces, including tables, rockers, mirrors and frames, bathroom wall cabinets and bookcases.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

North Little Rock, AR – Fire in welding shop extinguished by single sprinkler; No injuries and damage minimized

*** NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Sprinkler Contractor Reported ***

February 15, 2017 – In a welding shop, some stray sparks set fire to some loose combustible materials. The fire began under a balcony in the shop, and activated the sidewall sprinkler located under the balcony. The fire was extinguished by the sprinkler before any significant fire damage was done.  Both the welder and the structure were unharmed.