What Types of Fire Protection Systems Are Used in Business?

Fires are one of the biggest threats to business operations and can cost companies millions of dollars in lost revenue. They can also destroy equipment, cause costly downtime and pose significant safety risks for employees. While not every fire can be prevented, there are ways to reduce the risk and limit damage if a fire does occur. These measures include regular inspections of equipment, enforcing non-smoking policies and designating smoking areas, fire safety training for employees, and installing and maintaining fire protection systems.

The most common fire protection system includes smoke and heat detectors, fire alarms, sprinklers, and extinguishers. All of these are designed to detect, alert and suppress fires, mitigating their impact on businesses, occupants, and the environment.

Fire detection systems can identify a fire and help the fire department find the location of the fire quickly and easily. Fire alarms, sirens, and strobes can also be used to warn people to exit the building and evacuate in an orderly manner. Communication systems, such as distributed antenna systems and fire alarms can also be used to relay information between the fire department and buildings occupants.

In addition to these active fire protection systems, passive systems can be used to help prevent the spread of fire and smoke. These are typically built into the structure of a building during construction, such as using fire retardant materials or constructing walls with a lower flame propagation rate than normal. They can also be added later, such as adding fire doors or fire barriers to a room or facility. These types of passive fire protection systems can be combined with active systems, such as using smoke baffles in conjunction with a fire curtain.

Special hazard systems are also used to protect sensitive products and equipment from fires. These systems are able to actuate quickly and use suppression agents that don’t damage the materials and equipment in the event of a fire. These types of systems are often used in manufacturing and industrial facilities that have a higher risk for fire hazards.

As a fire and security technician, you’ve probably run into many of the largest fire protection companies in the country during your time in the field. It’s important to have an understanding of who they are and what they do in the industry so you can build a strategy for getting their attention when it comes time to sell your business. You can learn more about some of the largest fire protection companies in the nation by visiting their websites or reading their blogs. By doing so, you can also find new ideas for how your company can grow and expand its offerings.