Intermediate Bulk Containers Pose Unique Risks

Safespill flooring systems have earned the FM Approvals diamond over the past few years and can help mitigate the risk posed by IBCs.

FM APPROVALS SAFESPILL

The FM Approved Safespill flooring system can dramatically reduce the spread of spilled liquids and thereby reduce the size of pool fires that may result. Here the Safespill containment system (left) is compared to a containment pad, using equal volumes of ignitable liquid.

The Safespill flooring system from Houston, Texas – Safespill can automatically capture and remove any liquid spilled on its surface, including chemicals and ignitable liquids. The system has been developed and refined through continuous fire and spill testing at Safespill’s test facility in Houston. The floor system earned the FM Approved mark in 2017 based on the requirements of Approval Standard 6090, Ignitable Liquid Drainage Floor Assemblies and received a second approval under FM 6090 in 2020 for larger floor areas such as those used in aircraft hangars and distribution centers. 

According to Safespill founder and CEO Tristan Mackintosh, “We know the capabilities of our flooring system very well because we fire tested our prototypes to the point of destruction. There were corporate buyers who were waiting for us to get our FM Approved certification. Our FM Approved flooring system is at the heart of both our hangar floor system and IBC Storage Units. For instance, our IBC Storage Units, which are self-contained turnkey storage systems for IBCs, use our FM Approved Safespill flooring system on multiple levels, along with FM Approved sprinklers. Our long-term plan is to earn the FM Approved mark for the entire IBC storage system. In the meantime, our customers are reassured by the FM Approved technology at the core of our systems.”

Teamwork pays off

FM Approvals’ Rich Ferron notes, “It has taken quite a while, but we now have FM Approved products that anyone in the world can purchase to address the very real fire risks associated with IBC use in industry.” 

READ FULL FM APPROVALS ARTICLE HERE