Fire protection: nitrogen instead of water

320 wire harnesses per hour, around the clock, day after day - this is how Imperial ensures the car manufacturer's assembly supply. A maximum of 90 minutes elapses between the call-off and delivery. To ensure that this works, all processes are meticulously coordinated - from the delivery of the parts on large load carriers, through storage and retrieval, to truck loading and transportation to the plant.

"With the OxyReduct active fire prevention technology, Imperial has a solution that protects the warehouse from fire-related operational and delivery failures at all times."

Dipl.-Ing. Michael Kind, Branch Manager Hanover/Hamburg, Wagner Groupfer protects against downtime."

When it came to fire protection, the best possible solution was to be used. Two things were particularly important to Imperial: the solution had to take into account the fire protection challenges of automated small parts warehouses and be customizable. In addition, the risk of a fire developing was to be prevented in order to guarantee the company's ability to deliver at all times.

Difficult conditions in automated high-bay warehouses

Fire protection in automated high-bay warehouses is generally difficult: high shelves and narrow spaces mean that fires can quickly spread to below the hall ceiling and are difficult to extinguish using conventional means such as foam or water. In addition, there are large quantities of highly flammable storage materials such as paper, cardboard or plastic, which make it easier for the fire to spread uncontrollably.

Picture: Wagner Group

Product information

New detection technology for aspirating smoke detectorsThe Titanus aspirating smoke detectors from Wagner have been developed for the earliest possible and most sensitive fire detection in accordance with Class A as per DIN EN 54-20. The air sampling smoke detectors continuously take air samples from the monitored protected area and analyze them for smoke aerosols. Thanks to intelligent signal processing, fires can be detected at an early stage in their incipient phase and are protected against false alarms. Titanus offers up to 2,000 times greater sensitivity than conventional point detectors and has no cross-sensitivity.

The Titanus Multi-Sens is new on the market. Similar to a fingerprint, the scattered light sensor analyzes the particles for fire patterns or decoy sizes and detects learned substances in order to suppress them. For example, smoke from a cigarette leads to staff being informed instead of the fire department being called.

In Imperial's warehouse, the cable harnesses are stored in small load carriers (KLT). The standardized, stackable plastic boxes are made of polypropylene (PP) - a material that behaves like a flammable liquid in the event of a fire. PP also burns as it drips and ignites neighboring materials, while the high heat energy further fuels the fire. Such a fire is difficult to extinguish: Water is difficult to apply as it runs off plastic surfaces.

Sprinkler system was not an option

Imperial's primary objective when planning a fire protection solution was therefore to minimize the risk of fire in order to protect people and the environment as well as investments and property. As the car manufacturer's just-in-sequence processes do not allow for any delivery failures, a sprinkler system was ruled out from the outset: Its use would inevitably result in water damage - and therefore a business interruption. Instead, the logistics service provider opted for active fire prevention, which reduces the risk of a fire starting and spreading by reducing oxygen. The OxyReduct fire prevention system from Wagner with energy-saving VPSA technology is used here. The acronym stands for Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption. By introducing nitrogen into the protected area, the oxygen concentration is kept below 14.6% by volume. This is below the ignition threshold of PP, the plastic from which the KLT is made. The reduced oxygen level prevents a fire from being maintained or spreading. This also prevents consequential damage caused by smoke, soot or extinguishing agents.

Michael Kind