Those who work on an offshore platform need to be self-reliant, especially in case of a fire. No nearby fire service available to help extinguish the fire in time could have many serious consequences.
The omnipresent inflammable gases around a platform make preventing sparks a top priority, and all regulations are centered on this priority. In compliance with these regulations, all fire detection devices and fire extinguishing systems must work as reliably and automatically as possible. Not only that, all firefighting equipment needs to be user-friendly so that it is easy to operate, maintain, and repair, let alone its high corrosion-resistance.
Another problem that the personnel on the offshore platform face is the vertical construction and confined surface area it has, which means every level of the platform requires its own safety services. Understandably, fires in the rooms where personnel sleep or nap and the helipad where helicopters land or take off need to be fought against in totally different ways.
Furthermore, space and weight limitations are substantial, and only professional fire equipment suppliers who understand the offshore platform can find out the best solution to all fire protection problems on the offshore platforms.
According to the inspection reports during 2015 and 2016, up to 75% of the petrochemical firms fail to meet the safety requirements due largely to poor management of such critical issues as fire safety systems, hazardous substances storage, and emergency/evacuation plans. Obviously, most companies know what should be done but rapidly changing business challenges prevent them from getting the job done.
Among those challenges, human factors are the most unpredictable and risky. While much effort has been made to raise awareness of workplace safety hazards on the offshore platform, more active initiatives formulated by the management should be encouraged for an intelligent and effective fire protection system, which includes an automatic detection device and fire extinguishing equipment to reduce the risk related to human factors.
Petrochemical industries all over the world need to have organizational and technical solutions to the problems mentioned above. The fire protection equipment suppliers must be sure that they provide their customers with operational and reliable products at reasonable cost, along with preventive and corrective maintenance.
In addition to loss of life, property damage is so great that more than 50% of the industries go bankrupt in major incidents of fires, even though the damages are covered by the fire insurances. Fire risks faced by the production factor are of many kinds, ranging from human factors, flammable goods, to electrical systems failures.
Despite the legal right to claim compensation for direct material damage, the fire-ravaged firm often suffers the consequential damage not covered by the fire insurance, which is a much bigger problem. Not being able to produce and sell devastate the competitiveness of a firm as well as its corporate image. A professional risk assessment and damage control that intervene timely will ensure that your vital production and valuable business will not be discontinued. We are delighted to share with you our experience and new ideas about how to effectively solve all your problems.
