Managing Water Supply Concerns

Posted on Thursday, July 21st, 2011

Fire Engineering highlights a very real, and often under recognized problem:

“Supplemental pumping is the key ingredient for a large-flow water delivery operation, especially when distant hydrants are needed to supply engines already operating and in need of more water. Often at large fires, the first few units will lay from hydrants close to the fire and spot in the area needed. This is when a water supply problem usually starts. These units have everything they need to attack the fire. They have the personnel, correct apparatus placement, and proper deployment of the discharge evolutions. Since these units brought in hydrants close to the fireground, the hydrant grid system in that area is becoming depleted of water or pressure.”

Recently, we were approached for water supply and sprinkler analysis by a chemical manufacturer who was retrofitting a manufacturing plant to fit their needs. They faced potential delays due to possible inadequacies in their fire protection systems. The local fire marshal, who understood the need for proper water flow, questioned whether or not the existing water supply infrastructure would be adequate for the sprinkler system. Our fire protection consultants were responsible for the investigation process, the identification of hazards, and the determination of appropriate protection requirements. Beyond the standard testing protocol and analysis, our fire protection services included the testing of the fire pump, the flow of the private yard hydrants, and the hydraulic grade. Fortunately, we were able to prove to the fire marshal’s satisfaction that the fire water supply was in fact adequate. Through proper investigation, demonstration and AHJ management, we eliminated the potential for a costly delay in construction.

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If you would like more information, or believe your firm could benefit from Harrington Group’s expertise, we invite you to contact us. Our engineers are trained to listen to your needs and concerns, and help you move forward to find the Best Total Solution.

1 Comment »

1. 

   The importance of establishing that the water supply available for industrial fire protection purposes is both reliable and of adequate capacity cannot be understated! Just like a building’s structure is dependent on its foundation, a fire sprinkler system’s success is dependent on its water supply. In other words, the water supply for a fire protection system is the foundation upon which the design solution rests.

   If the public water system is proposed to supply fire protection water for a project, the ONLY way to establish the reliability and capacity of the water supply is through a detailed water supply investigation, which not only requires current flow test data, but also a thorough understanding of the water system’s design and infrastructure. The analysis of the public water system is important because the fire protection water supply is required to consider fluctuations on the system that are expected to occur as a result of system demands or other occurrences.

   A sprinkler system designed using only the results of a recent fire hydrant flow test–that is, without properly considering the effect of maximum daily demands and daily/ seasonal fluctuations–could leave the sprinkler system design short during peak usage periods, which exposes the plant to a larger loss potential in the event of a fire. This would be like a structural engineer designing the building’s structure without fully considering the strength and stability of the supporting subgrade. A building owner would not tolerate such a breach of professional responsibility in the structural design. He/ she should never tolerate such a breach in professional responsibility in the fire protection design, either. Nevertheless, the design of the fire protection systems is oftentimes left up to a design-build fire protection contractor, who (in our experience) typically does nothing more than obtain a hydrant flow test for the job.

   A qualified fire protection engineer is specifically trained to analyze the public water system and specify a fire protection water supply that WILL reliably support the required fire protection system design now and in the future.

   Comment by Dale Hansen — July 27, 2011 @ 9:34 am

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