At Field ID, we are always expanding our portfolio of equipment. We started with rigging and lifting and quickly added more and more equipment types. The more we deal with end users the more safety equipment we add. One of our Field ID users, a large mine in North America, had a distinct need to inspect and maintain their fire extinguishers. This introduced us to the world of fire safety. Like most safety equipment we deal with, the fire extinguisher inspection process is riddled with mountains of unmanageable paperwork. As I’ll explain, fire extinguishers are a perfect fit for Modern Safety.
The Fire Extinguisher Paper Trail
Although fire extinguishers seem simple enough, there are a lot of rules and regulations that companies must abide by to ensure they are up-to-spec in regards to safety compliance. There are 3 levels of inspection maintenance:
Maintenance Inspection
The fire extinguisher must be visually inspected to ensure it has good pressure, the correct volume, and that all other types of servicing have been completed (to be explained soon). When this inspection is complete, a safety tag is placed around the pin. This must be done yearly.
Internal Maintenance
Internal maintenance includes having the fire extinguisher emptied and visually inspected. Based on the type of fire extinguisher, there is differing levels of internal maintenance that needs to be done and recorded.
- Water – Yearly
- Foam – Every 3 years
- Wet Chemical – Every 5 years
- Dry Chemical – Every 6 years
Hydrostatic Testing
Hydrostatic testing is the process in which a fire extinguisher is emptied, depressurized and the valve is removed. A thorough internal and external visual inspection is completed. The cylinder is then filled with water, placed in a safety cage and then pressurized to the specified test pressure.
- Water, foam, wet chemical – Every 5 years
- Dry chemical –Every 12 years
An empty fire extinguisher which was not replaced for years. Source: Wikipedia
The Problems with Traditional Fire Extinguisher Safety Management
I’ve just listed 3 different types of maintenance and inspections that need to be done on a single fire extinguisher. Let’s look at 3 problems.
Problem 1: Fire Extinguisher Identification
Like all the other safety equipment we deal with, identification is the first problem in safety compliance management. Currently, fire extinguishers are identified by serial numbers, which is prone to human error. Not only that, when an inspection is completed, the only way to know that is a paper tag that is attached to the fire extinguisher. What if that tag was ripped off? What happens if it’s lost? With no other records, it’s almost impossible to ensure that fire extinguisher is safe.
Problem 2: Fire Extinguisher Paperwork
If you were to properly maintain records of all the visual inspections and maintenance, there would be a mountain of paperwork for each and every fire extinguisher. One fire extinguisher over 5 years can have anywhere from 7 to over 10 pieces of paper-based inspection records! Now, imagine you’re in a mine with over 100 fire extinguishers. The paper trail becomes huge.
Problem 3: Fire Extinguisher Scheduling
Each and every fire extinguisher is on its own maintenance and inspection schedule. How do you manage the maintenance inspection, internal maintenance and hydrostatic schedules? It becomes extremely complicated if you are using paper and pen. Basically, people are walking around physically checking the tag to see if maintenance is due.
A Sample Field ID Fire Extinguisher Profile Screenshot
Why are Fire Extinguishers perfect for Modern Safety
Fire Extinguishers are ripe for Modern Safety. At Field ID, we solve these problems quite well.
Solution 1: Advanced Identification – RFID or Barcodes
Instead of visually identifying a fire extinguisher with serial numbers, just use a handheld device to scan a barcode or RFID tag. Problem solved. No more errors in identification.
Solution 2: Handheld Device for Inspections and Safety Status
Instead of conducting an inspection on paper and recording the results on a safety tag, use handheld devices to actually conduct the inspection and store the results digitally. This will allow you to have a true audit trail for the fire extinguisher. Not only that, you can walk around with a handheld device, scan a fire extinguisher, and see when it was inspected and whether it is safe to use.
Solution 3: Electronic Scheduling
Scheduling and not knowing which fire extinguishers require service is a problem of the past with Modern Safety. With electronic systems such as Field ID, you can login to the web and instantly see what needs to be done and if any equipment is past due.
Electronic Fire Extinguisher Safety- The Time Has Come
Fire Extinguishers are a perfect fit for Modern Safety, not only because it is riddled with paperwork, but because there are multiple organizations that are involved with the whole process. An End User needs to inspect their own equipment as well as send it back to a qualified technician for the other maintenance. Paperwork is coming from multiple different sources. With the Field ID Safety Network, these safety partners can actually share data about a specific fire extinguisher and, for the first time, compile a true safety audit trail (I’ll discuss the Field ID Safety Network in further detail in a future post).
The time for electronic safety management of fire extinguishers has come. Modern Safety is truly a perfect fit.
This is the second part of our 3 part Gas Detector Safety blog series. Last week, we looked at the basics of gas detector safety. Today, we’ll talk about the the How and When of gas detector safety. I’ve done some research and found some great advice of what you need to do to maintain compliance.
