A Case Study of Active Sales Co
Table of Contents
Types of Fire Protection Systems. 1
Introduction
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), employers are required to comply with hazard safety, and health standards as issued and enforced either by the OSHA or by State Plans have that are as effective as OSHA, although they may have different or additional requirements. This paper is an investigation of the Active Sales Co. and its fire detection and suppression systems with an in-depth analysis of the fire protection systems consisting of types and components used.
Types of Fire Protection Systems
There exist two types of fire protection systems, passive and active. The passive fire protection system constitutes parts of building construction, including, fire doors, a firewall, or sprayed-on structural fire protection. This system functions without outside intervention or mechanical support and also cannot warn occupants of the dangers of an unwanted fire or suppress a growing fire. The active fire protection system encompasses the fire protection, detection, and suppression systems that activate and operate automatically or manually to alert occupants to the presence of smoke or fire and when activated, are designed to change the outcome of a fire in a building.
The active fire protection systems are further subdivided into two sub-categories, fire detection systems, and fire suppression systems. Fire detection systems consist of automatic or manual fire alarm equipment that alert occupants to hazardous conditions like smoke, or changing fire conditions. These systems prevent significant damage and loss that could potentially be caused by an outbreak of fire. On the other hand, fire suppression systems control and contain hazardous conditions until manual suppression can be achieved.
Fire Detection Systems
The main functions of fire protection, in general, are to identify a developing fire emergency promptly, alert the building’s occupants and fire emergency organizations.
The fundamental aspects of fire detection and alarm systems include the control panel. It is referred to as the brain of the fire detection and alarm system responsible for monitoring the alarm input devices such as automatic and manual detection components, then activating alarm output devices such as bells, building controls, warning lights, horns, and emergency telephone dialers. Control panels have two main control panel arrangements, conventional and addressable, and may range from simple units with a single input and output zone, to complex computer-driven systems that monitor several buildings.
Automatic fire detectors are another aspect and are meant to imitate one or more of the human senses of touch, smell, or sight. Thermal detectors are similar to the ability to identify high temperatures, they operate when the room reaches a predetermined temperature, identify abnormally fast temperature climb over a short period, and breakdown insulated sheathing when exposed to heat. Smoke detectors are designed to identify a fire while in its early flame stages, and flame detectors are electronic. This detector consists of two components, a light transmitter, and a receiver, mounted some distance apart, and as smoke migrates between the two, it blocks the transmitted light beam, and the receiver is no longer able to see the full beam intensity, activating the signal on the fire alarm panel. Flame detectors operate on either an infrared, ultraviolet, or combination. Their sensing equipment recognizes fire and sends a signal to the fire alarm panel.
Another aspect is the alarm output devices that include bells, chimes, horns, speakers, and some flashing light devices for the visually impaired. Upon receiving an alarm notification, the fire alarm control panel communicates that an emergency is underway using these devices.
Fire Suppression Systems
Fire suppression systems are used to extinguish or prevent the spread of fire in a building, using a combination of dry chemicals and/or wet agents to suppress fires. Fire sprinklers are part of the suppression system and utilize water by direct application onto flames and heat, causing cooling of the combustion process and prevent ignition of adjacent combustibles.
The three basic types of sprinkler systems include wet pipe, dry pipe, and preaction. In a wet pipe system, water is constantly maintained within the sprinkler piping, and when a sprinkler is activated, this water is immediately discharged onto the fire. The Active Sales Co. has a dry pipe system where pipes are filled with pressurized air or nitrogen as opposed to water, that holds a remote valve in a closed position, located in a heated area, and prevents water from entering the pipe until a fire causes one or more sprinklers to operate. Then air escapes and the dry pipe valve releases, allowing water to enter the pipe, and flow through open sprinklers onto the fire. A preaction sprinkler system employs the basic concept of a dry pipe system with water held from piping by an electrically operated preaction valve controlled by independent flame, heat, or smoke detection. The detection system identifies a developing fire, then opens the preaction valve allowing water to flow into system piping and individual sprinkler heads must release to permit water flow onto the fire.
A post indicator valve (PIV) is commonly used as the valve operator for automatic fire sprinkler and standpipe systems, where the system’s main valve is located underground outside a building. PIVs may be located in paved or landscaped areas. If located in a paved area, PIVs must be protected from damage by traffic. If located in a landscaped area, PIVs must not be allowed to be overgrown with shrubbery. The PIV for Active Sales Co. is located in a paved area and is arranged to be locked in its open or shut position by locking or sealing the operating handle in its stored position. The handle is stored with the valve open and has a wire seal for security rather than a padlock. To operate the PIV, the seal or padlock is removed, the handle is removed from its stored position, and the opposite end is placed on the operating nut of the PIV. The bottom flange of the post indicator is bolted to the top flange of the valve on the water supply pipe to the fire sprinkler system.
An OSY valve is required by water main service lines that provide fire protection. When installing new water main for fire protection, it is important to use the correct main control valve inside the building. It stands for “Outside Screw and Yoke” meaning that when the handle is turned, it directly raises and lowers the gate of the valve by interacting directly with the stem of the valve. Since a fire sprinkler main is dedicated to fire protection and not for domestic use, water cannot be tested in the usual fashion if it is on or not. A quick look at an OSY valve with the stem raised out of the body of the valve will determine if the water is on. The OSY for the Active Sales Co. handles and the stem are both threaded, so they interact together. The stem of the valve itself raises and lowers visibly outside the body of the valve, while the handle remains in a fixed position. As the steam rises, the gate inside the body of the valve rises in unison, letting water flow through the body of the valve. The stem is visible, and it clearly indicates whether it is either raised or lowered; therefore, excessive force leading to damage is less likely to be used in operating the valve.
The inspector’s test valve is found in wet and dry pipe sprinkler systems and requires an alarm test device to verify that the water flow alarm is working as expected. The inspector’s test connection can be located anywhere downstream of the main control valve on a wet pipe system and must be located on the highest, most remote branch line of a dry pipe system as is demonstrated on the Active Sales Co. sprinkler system, intended to simulate the flow of a single sprinkler. On a wet pipe system, the discharge orifice must be the same size as the orifice of the smallest sprinkler on the system, and on a dry pipe system, it must be of a type installed on the particular system.
The main drain is designed to flush water from the system through a series of the pipe. The size of the main drain is in proportion to the size of the riser and is specified by the National Fire Protection Association. The main drain is the central point of discharge used to flush water from the system with all piping within the system required to flow to it. If the fire protection system needs repair, retrofit, or a test of the incoming flow of water, the main drain valve is opened to evacuate the system of the water it contains. The main drain of the Active Sales Co. is located at the fire sprinkler system riser to discharge water outside and away from the building.
An FDC that is, Fire Department Connection is defined as, “A connection through which the fire department can pump the secondary water supply to an automatic standpipe system at the required system demand. Supplemental water can also be provided into the sprinkler system or other system furnishing water for fire extinguishment to supplement existing water supplies.”The FDC is a connection on the exterior of a commercial building where a responding fire department can attach a fire hose and pump water into the building’s standpipe system supplementing the water pressure to the building’s sprinkler system. The Active Sales Co., FDC connection consists of a brass fitting in the shape of a Y protruding from an outside wall of the building known as a siamese valve which has two 2.5″ female fittings that allow water to flow into one 4″ pipe on the interior of the wall. The firefighters can hook the female end of their hose to their pumper truck, run the hose to the FDC, and attach the male end of their hose to the female swivel connections on the FDC.
References
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Brakhage, C. (2016). Fire protection, detection, and suppression systems. Stillwater (OK): Fire Protection Publications, Oklahoma State University.
Murnane, L., & Ruane, T. P. (2005). Fire detection and suppression systems. Fire Protection Publications, Oklahoma State University.
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