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In association with the Catering Managers Association of Great Britain and the Channel Islands
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Commercial kitchens are a constant fire hazard – they can erupt into flames in an instant and need to be suppressed quickly, effectively and safely. So, the availability of a new type of portable fire extinguisher that is specifically designed to fight Class F fires involving flammable cooking oils and fats is proving to be a major step forward in fire safety in restaurants, hotel and canteen kitchens, fast food outlets and food processing operations. The new TOTAL® brand portable is also proving to be a significant improvement in user safety when compared with conventional portable extinguishers.
Propelled by nitrogen, the extinguisher’s special Tyco-developed agent is effective on all Class F fires that involve cooking oils and fats, including rapeseed, palm, vegetable, sunflower and olive oil. It is equally efficient on Class A fires involving flammable solid materials often found in kitchens, such as wood, paper and cloth.
A unique feature of the new 6-litre BS EN3 Kitemark and BAFE [British Approvals for Fire Equipment] approved TOTAL portable is its ingenious nozzle applicator. This enables the user to apply the wet chemical agent while remaining safely three or four metres away from the fire. This is a major consideration in light of the introduction of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order that transferred responsibility for ensuring fire safety from the fire brigade to the building owner or occupier.
The new portable was developed at the TOTAL dedicated portables research and manufacturing facility in Neuruppin in Germany. It is one of an extensive new range of special-application portable extinguishers that are available through Express Fire in Manchester and from a country-wide network of approved TOTAL supply partners that are trained to advise, install and maintain the right extinguishers in peak condition.
Commenting on the new Class F portable, Nick Jones, a director of Express Fire, says: “According to figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government, in 2004 a total of 2,900 fires were reported in restaurants, cafes and public houses, and no fewer than 5,100 fires were started by cooking appliances.” He continues: “On the basis of industry estimates, that only 20 percent of fires are attended by the fire brigade, the actual figure for cooking oil and fat fires is undoubtedly much higher.”
Compared with the growing number of portables now available on the UK market, TOTAL has direct control over virtually every stage of the cylinder manufacture. This includes: material selection and sourcing in Europe; the most advanced low-heat plasma welding; fabrication, assembly and high-performance powder-coating; cylinder pressure testing; and agent filling. This commitment to quality is underpinned by uniquely numbering each and every TOTAL cylinder to provide a complete and reliable quality audit trail.
The cylinder’s one-millimetre-thick internal powder coating is widely recognised as the industry’s most hardwearing surface. Every cylinder is electrode-tested to ensure that there are no pin-point flaws in the coating, and the quality of the finish can be judged by the fact that there is a complete absence of colour fading that is a common feature of many inferior quality cylinders. Even the cylinder wall-mounting brackets are designed to ensure that there is no metal-to-metal or metal-to-wall scuffing. They are all guaranteed for five years, providing they are serviced from new in accordance with the appropriate regulatory standards.
Further details on TOTAL portable fire extinguishers are available from Express Fire on 0161 688 5050, or from Tyco Fire Suppression & Building Products on 0161 875 0402.
