Category Archives: Manufacturing

Other - Manufacturing

Modesto, CA – Sprinkler system gives firefighters a big leg up on blaze at cabinet company

A fire-suppression system worked well Tuesday morning at a business off Yosemite Boulevard and Mitchell Road, likely saving firefighters a lot of work and the building a lot of damage.  The fire was in a dust-collection hopper on the exterior of Sierra Casework, on the 200 block of Spenker Avenue. The company is less than half a mile from Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District Station 31 on Mitchell Road.

Initially, there was heavy smoke from the fire, Stanislaus Consolidated Capt. Mark Jacobs said. But the sprinkler system kicked in and quickly knocked down the flames, and the smoke had largely dissipated upon crews’ arrival.

“We have several of these cabinet shops in our district,” Jacobs said, “and these (dust fires) are pretty common. Throughout the cabinet shop are a bunch of vacuum systems, and the main port sucks all the dust out here and they discard it.”

To ensure the fire was out, firefighters used a ladder truck to get on the roof and to the door of the collection hopper. Opening the door, a firefighter called down that there still was a small amount of fire. The door was shut so as to not feed the fire oxygen while a hose line was carried up the hopper’s built-in ladder. Then firefighters made quick work of fully extinguishing the fire.

Other - Manufacturing

Stamford, CT – Fire in basement of industrial building held in check by sprinkler system

A fire in the basement of a Glenbrook industrial building that houses business was contained to that area, allowing upstairs occupants to return to the building on Wednesday. The fire started around 8:30 p.m. last Tuesday at 652 Glenbrook Road in the industrial complex, said Stamford Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Gloersen. First arriving units reported smoke coming from the basement of the large, re-purposed industrial building. The fire which was extinguished by hose lines was held in check by the building’s sprinkler system, he added. Stamford units received assistance from the Glenbrook and Belltown fire departments. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Worcester, MA – Fire on second floor of mill contained by sprinkler system

A fire in a vacant mill on Tainter Street was contained by a sprinkler system that, until mid-September, had been turned off.

The fire broke out around noon Tuesday and went to a second alarm when crews found fire on the second floor.

The city got a court order in September to force the building owner to turn on the sprinkler system in the building, which helped prevent a much bigger fire, officials said.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Reno, NV – Fire at Tesla factory extinguished with help from sprinkler system; No injuries reported

A Tesla’s factory building in the state of Nevada was evacuated late Saturday after a large oven used in the manufacturing process caught fire.

According to a statement issued by the U.S. leading electric vehicle manufacture on Sunday, there were no injuries in the incident and production began again on Sunday morning.

“Last night, there was a fire in the cooling tube coating oven on the 3rd floor of Gigafactory 1 that was quickly contained. Employees were evacuated out of an abundance of caution, there were no injuries, and production began again this morning. We would like to thank the Fire Department and our employees for their rapid response.” the statement said.

KTVN Channel 2, a news channel in Reno where the Tesla’s factory located, reported that the Storey County Fire Department responded the blaze about 10 p.m. Saturday night and the crews found on scene that the fire started in a baking oven where employees make a powder coating.

Joe Curtis, the Emergency Management Director was quoted as saying that the fire was located on the third floor of the factory and did not extend to other parts of the building before it was mostly extinguished by the automatic sprinkler system.

The fire was fully extinguished before 2 a.m. Sunday.

Saturday’s fire was the second time in one month for Tesla to contend with fire at one of its facilities. There was a minor fire last month on the grounds of the Tesla factory in Fremont of California.

The factory in Reno of Nevada produces Model 3 electric motors and battery packs.

Manufacturing, Storage / Warehouse

Royersford, PA – Sprinkler system controls fire at chemical warehouse until fire crews arrive

A chemical warehouse in Royersford caught fire on Saturday night, bringing first responders from around the area together to battle the blaze.  The incident was first reported at around 7:40 p.m. at Hectrio Specialty Chemical System, located on the 400 block of First Avenue.  Crews forced entry to the rear of the building, and used hand lines to battle the blaze, which was contained to a small area in the manufacturing part of the building, according to officials. Firefighters were on the scene containing the smokey fire for close to two hours.

Royersford Fire Department said that the sprinkler systems were very effective in controlling the blaze until crews arrived. That, along with the swift response from first responders, helped quell the “potentially hazardous” blaze.  Despite the bad smell reported by neighbors, the chemicals posed no danger to the public, officials said. According to their website, Hectrio produces and stores chemicals like tin, lead, copper, silver, bismuth, iron and potassium.  The cause of the blaze and extent of the damage are not yet clear. The fire appeared to be contained to the manufacturing section of the warehouse, but there was heavy smoke involved.

Royersford Fire Department was assisted by Liberty Fire Co. of Spring City, along with crews from Trappe, Skippack, Limerick, and Linfield.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Ashland, MS – Electrical fire at factory extinguished with help from sprinkler system

An electrical fire that started at a factory in Ashland Tuesday afternoon is still under investigation.

According to Benton County Fire Investigator Randy Hobson, some electrical wiring on the outside of Abby Manufacturing in Ashland apparently caught fire around 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 4. The fire spread to a nearby pile of tires causing thick, black smoke to fill the air around the factory. The cause of the electrical fire is unknown at this time.

Ashland Fire Chief Chris Shoup used a backhoe to move the smoldering tires away from the building to avoid further damage to the building if the fire was to reignite Tuesday night. 

The outside of the Abby Manufacturing plant received some fire damage. However, there was also a lot of water damage from the sprinkler system on the interior of the plant.

Ashland Fire Department, Snow Lake Fire Department and Able’s Store Fire Department all responded to the fire.

“I would like to say ‘thank you’ to all the fire departments that responded,” said Hobson. “Everybody pitched in. The police department and sheriff’s department helped and the highway patrol blocked off the road for us. If it hadn’t been for them the whole building would have caught on fire.”

Firefighters had the fire contained around 6 p.m.

Abby Manufacturing is a fabricated steel and aluminum products manufacturer. The company was founded in 1994 in Walnut.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Brantford, ON, Canada – Fire following explosion at paint factory is extinguished by sprinkler system

Investigators from the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office, Ministry of Labour and Brantford Fire Department are trying to determine the cause of a Thursday explosion that sent one person to hospital.  The explosion occurred at the Sherwin-Williams paint factory at 140 Garden Ave. at about 6:30 p.m.

The injured worker, a woman, was cleaning a vat when the explosion occurred, said Janet Deline of the Ministry of Labour.  The worker was taken to a Hamilton hospital for treatment. The spokesperson for the company said she’s OK.  No other injuries were reported.

“The incident remains under investigation,” Mike Conway, director, corporate communications for Sherwin-Williams, said in a statement sent to The Expositor. “Sherwin-Williams is working closely with Brantford officials to determine the cause.  “There is no impact to air or water supplies.”

Brantford firefighters were called to the plant, located in an industrial area, just after 6:30 p.m.  Firefighters confirmed an explosion had taken place and a fire had been extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. Firefighters remained on the scene overnight and were still there Friday morning.  The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office was called immediately and investigators started work on Thursday and were continuing their investigation on Friday.

The blast caused a wall relief panel on the side of the building to pop open, fire prevention officer Scott Hardwick said Friday.  Walls in buildings like the paint factory are designed to pop out to relieve built-up pressure and prevent entire buildings from exploding, he added.

There are a lot highly inflammable materials in the plant, including solvents and paints.

The fire marshal’s office is called in to investigate incidents involving an explosion, Hardwick said.

Firefighters were called to the plant on Dec. 18, 2014 following an explosion and small fire. One male worker sustained minor bruises to his shoulder after being pushed into a wall during the explosion.

The worker didn’t require medical attention.

Food Processing, Manufacturing

Suffolk, VA – Early morning fire at peanut processing facility extinguished with help from sprinkler system

Birdsong Peanuts processing plant on Factory Street in Suffolk caught fire Monday morning.  According to a news release from the Suffolk Fire Department, crews were called to the 300 block of Factory Street around 5:10 a.m. after receiving reports of a fire at Birdsong Peanuts. When crews arrived there were no visible signs of smoke or fire from the outside, but after a physical inspection of the property, firefighters found heavy smoke and fire on the 7th floor of the facility.  Crews used ladder trucks and the help of a sprinkler system to extinguish the fire.  Seven employees were evacuated from the building and no one was injured.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Okolona, MS – Machinery fire at furniture plant controlled with help from sprinkler system; No injuries

A fire at a United Furniture Inds. plant here on Saturday should cause only minor disruptions in production and delivery.  No one was injured in the blaze, which – while still under investigation – appears to have started with machinery United uses to move goods around the 800,000-square-foot plant that produces stationary upholstery.

No finished goods were damaged, and the fire should cause only a day of disruption at the plant, which already was scheduled to close a couple of days this week for a bi-annual inventory count.
Executive Vice President of Sales Jay Quimby said the situation turned out as well as it could have.

“First of all, nobody was hurt,” he said. “Our plant personnel reacted quickly, the local fire department responded immediately, and our sprinkler system and plant design functioned the way it should.

“We were already planning to shut down a couple of days for inventory, and this might add another day to that. There was no significant damage to the building.”

Quimby added that United will send out a letter to customers alerting them to the situation.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Ferdinand, IN – Sprinkler system extinguishes manufacturing fire that started in lacquer finishing booth

Units of the Ferdinand Volunteer Fire Department responded to an active fire Saturday morning at MasterBrand Cabinets’ 624 W. Third St. manufacturing complex.  Today was a scheduled down day, according to Fire Chief John Hoppenjans, so a limited number of employees were on hand when fire started in a finish room spray booth that was being cleaned.

Lacquer in the booth combusted but the plant’s sprinkler system activated and extinuished the fire, according to the chief.  The fire department was called at 9:29 a.m. and firefighters went about ensuring the fire was out. The department then ventilated smoke and assisted in the cleanup.  Employees had evacuated the building, Hoppenjans said, adding that the fire was contained to the spray booth.  He credited the operation of the plant’s sprinkler system with helping to limit damage to about $20,000.

Three individuals who had been in the vicinity of the fire were transported by ambulance to Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center as a precaution after complaining of breathing difficulties, according to Hoppenjans.  Six trucks and 24 firefighters were on the scene 90 minutes.  The Ferdinand Police Department and Memorial Hospital Emergency Medical Services assisted.