Category Archives: Manufacturing

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Pasadena, CA – Fire at plastics plant extinguished by sprinkler system; No injuries

A small fire broke out at a high-tech plastics company Tuesday evening, prompting a hazardous materials investigation. No one was injured. The building’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire within about 10 minutes.

Around 6:20 p.m., a small explosion at the Materia facility located at 89 N. San Gabriel Blvd. caused the fire, which was contained to a heating device in the building, said Pasadena Fire Department spokeswoman Lisa Derderian. The device is used to heat plastic materials, Derderian said. “There was a light odor for a small amount of time but our specialists determined there was no hazard,” she said. Fire officials remained on scene until about 7:50 p.m. to restore the system. Twelve employees were inside the building when the fire started and safely evacuated, Derderian said. Fire officials did not have a damage estimate Tuesday night.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Romeo, MI – Fire at Ford engine plant contained with help from sprinkler system

The Ford Engine Plant in Romeo was evacuated Friday afternoon due to a fire that drew firefighters from seven local departments.  Capt. David Faulker of the Bruce-Romeo Fire Department said firefighters extinguished a blaze that started on machinery and spread to the ventilation system in a section of the plant.  Firefighters used fire hoses to spray water on flames from inside and the plant’s sprinkler system also activated.  There were no injuries. 

The fire was declared under control about 3:45 p.m.  Faulker said he could not speculate on the cause or amount of damage.  “It’s under investigation,” he said.  Ford officials could not be located to comment on whether production was scheduled to resume later in the night.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Lexington, KY – 3 a.m. fire at manufacturing plant knocked down by sprinkler system

Sprinklers stopped a fire from spreading at a plant in Lexington.  The fire started just after 3 a.m. Monday at Interplex Plastics on Brentwood Court.  Firefighters say when they arrived, the fire was already knocked down by the sprinkler system in the plant.

No one was in the plant at the time of the fire.  An arson investigator was called to the scene.  No word yet on a possible cause.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Garden City, MI – Factory fire contained with help from two activated sprinkler heads

Garden City firefighters responded to a fire at about 5:30 a.m. after receiving a call that fire was coming through the roof of a manufacturing plant on Industrial Drive.  As a result of the fire and heat, two sprinkler heads had activated prior to the arrival of the firefighters.

En route, the department learned that all employees had evacuated the building. The firefighters observed steam coming from the roof on the northeast corner and light smoke inside of the building.

“Initially the incident commander, Captain Gary Gallo, was told by bystanders that flames were visible from the roof prior to our arrival,” Garden City Fire Chief Catherine Harman said. “They were met at the front of the building by a supervisor who reported a piece of equipment designed to burn off excess coating from their product was emitting heavy fire. He reported employees tried to extinguish it without success. He then turned off the ventilation units on the roof and to the machine that was on fire.”

Firefighters found the door to the equipment closed. When they opened it, they saw heavy smoke but no flames. Harman said that utility supply to the equipment was turned off and the unit was cooled with a hand line. After cooling it down, the firefighters re-checked and there was no excessive heat. The door to the equipment was closed, and firefighters continued to use the cooling heads inside of the unit, supplied by the water supply lines, to continue cooling the equipment.

The supervisor said that he and another worker noticed the fire and he shut down the power to the unit and attempted to extinguish the fire with extinguishers without success. He then turned off the ventilation system and exited the building. “We have advised the company to immediately contact the fire department anytime there is a fire before attempting to extinguish it,” Harman said. “We’d rather get there sooner than later.”

There were no injuries as a result of the fire and no one suffered any problems due to the extreme cold, Harman said.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Franklin, TN – Single sprinkler extinguishes factory fire; No injuries and operations resume quickly

(NO MEDIA – FIRE DEPT REPORTED):
A single fire sprinkler head extinguished a factory fire this morning, protecting the 300,000 square foot facility and more than 150 workers. The fire started around 7:45 a.m. at Lasko, 300 Confederate Dr., which produces box fans each day. Franklin Fire Investigator Josh Sanders said the fire started after a high pressure paint line ruptured near an ignition source.   The fire activated a single fire sprinkler head, which triggered the fire alarm system, prompting evacuation of the plant and shutting down production. Work was able to resume in less than two hours. Sanders estimated the damage at $5,000. No one was injured.

Manufacturing

Marlborough, MA – Sprinklers limit spread of machinery fire; Business spared from more significant damage

Shortly before 8 p.m., a rolling machine, which turns flat cardboard into boxes, caught fire. The building’s sprinkler system prevented the fire from spreading to other machines or sections of the warehouse, said Fire Capt. Bill Pappas.

 Fire crews were able to extinguish the blaze in about 15 minutes, said Pappas. “It was a small fire,” he said. Pappas is unsure what sparked the fire in the machine and said crews are investigating. A few employees were inside the building at the time of the blaze and were evacuated. There were allowed to return inside about an hour after the fire was extinguished. No one was injured, said Pappas.

Manufacturing, Paper Mill / Saw Mill

Elk Grove Village, IL – (NO MEDIA COVERAGE) Fire in paper baler contained by sprinkler system

*** NO MEDIA COVERAGE – Fire Department Reported ***
REPORT OF A FIRE IN A PAPER BALER — CONTAINED BY A SPRINKLER HEAD, BUT CAN’T EXTINGUISH THE FIRE.  ABOUT 300 FEET OF HO– USE REQUIRED TO DO– USE THE FIRE IN THE PAPER BALER.   FIRE OUT IN SMOLDERING BALES AT ABOUT 1:00 PM.

THU FEB 26 2015 ~12:39 PM
ELK GROVE VILLAGE FIRE DEPARTMENT
PAPER BALER CONTENTS FIRE
2255 PRATT BLVD ELK GROVE VILLAGE, IL

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Lee’s Summit, MO – Small business saved from fire thanks to sprinkler system

An automatic fire sprinkler system at a commercial building in Lee’s Summit helped the business avoid major damage from a fire caused by malfunctioning equipment.

According to the Lee’s Summit Fire Department, emergency personnel responded at 7:34 p.m. Feb. 16 to R&D Tool and Engineering, 1008 SE Browning St. Multiple callers from inside the building reported a fire involving a piece of machinery. At the same time, the alarm company reported activation of the automatic fire sprinkler system and alarm.

When the fire department arrived, no smoke or fire was visible from the outside of the two-story building, which was being evacuated.

Fire officials said crews entered the building to find smoke inside the manufacturing portion of the building. A sprinkler head over a laser etching machine enclosure was activated by heat, and extinguished much of the fire, which was under control by 8:04 p.m.

According to fire officials, the sprinkler system kept the fire from spreading from plastic exhaust tubing coming out of the metal dust collector on top of the machine enclosure and up to the roof. The fire originated in the metal dust collection system.

Damage was limited to a small area on top of the machine enclosure with minor smoke damage to the remainder of the manufacturing area. Water did get into the equipment below.

Crews remained on scene to assist with getting smoke out the building and water removal. The building was later able to be reoccupied.

Manufacturing, Other - Manufacturing

Conyers, GA – Sprinklers prevent early morning fire from spreading at printing company

A printing press caught fire at 4D Printing in Conyers Thursday morning, reported Rockdale News. The company’s sprinkler system was able to fully contain the fire before firefighters responded to the scene. When they arrived, fire crews saw moderate smoke coming from one side of the building and heavy smoke coming from the press. According to Rockdale News, firefighters put more water on the smoldering press and ventilated the building.

The sprinkler system had just been serviced and worked appropriately, activating when heat was sensed. This prevented the fire from spreading throughout the 30,000-square-foot facility and consuming the entire structure.

Manufacturing, Manufacturing Plant

Hillsville, VA – Sprinklers help contain fire at manufacturing company

Fire crews cleared the scene of a fire at about 9 p.m. Saturday night at Magnolia Manufacturing in Hillsville. Hillsville Volunteer Fire Dept. Asst. Chief Mike Musser said the fire got into two locations referred to as filter houses. Musser said the suppression system inside Magnolia is top of the line and the sprinklers helped knock down the fire and contain it to the two filter houses as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze.

Fire crews from Hillsville, Galax, Willis, Barren Springs, Carroll County Fire & Rescue, and Laurel Fork were among those on the scene. Firefighters worked for about an hour-and-a-half to clear the scene. Generally fires at Magnolia are contained to one filter house or one machine, he said. Heavy smoke was visible from as far away as Hard Scuffle Road when the fire was at its peak.

Musser said there was significant damage but he wasn’t sure of the extent. He said supervisors and plant managers said the particular plant where the fire occurred would be shut down for a while. Magnolia in Hillsville has four plants at the location. There were no reports of injuries at the scene. All in all, Musser said firefighting efforts were a success.