The idea of letting your assets burn rather than investing huge amount of money to protect anything you can salvage is actually age-old concept. Still today, even after huge technological advancements this principle, stands as a very cost-effective and widely used method for asset protection.
This concept was first introduced by Fire-fighters in early days for large fires when a bunch of fire-fighters would feel that containing the fire with their available resources is not possible. Even today, the philosophy is followed based on judgment of their chief.
This concept slowly migrated in design culture, maybe as a result growing popularity of cost-effective design. It was observed that, if a fire to happen on certain unmanned installation, any cost-effective mean of fire-fighting would not help in keeping the fire under control or mitigating it. Rather, the asset damage would necessarily be same irrespective of availability of fire-fighting equipment/ systems.The problem was maintenance of components of FGS (F&G System for fire detection & prevention) on remote unmanned facilities. It resulted into the integration of this concept of letting the asset burn in the event of fire incidents into F&G Detection or Fire Prevention Philosophies of the operators.
The other problem with this concept is that it is solely based facility being unmanned. What happens if the installation is manned for some temporary duration? or what happens if the hazard happens during a small non-routine maintenance work at the facility. Or what about the emissions to environment?
There are many questions to be faced by the companies adopting this principle. Even, literature do not have sufficient information on this matter. There are alternatives available for avoiding this principle. F&G Detection Systems are evolving. The age-old methods of detector placement which necessitated huge numbers of detectors are being replaced by methods involving optimum and smart detector placement. The instruments itself have evolved, are more reliable and need a little maintenance.
It is a choice to be made, to educate yourself, to acknowledge new technologies, to keep yourself updated and to effectively invest into something that will sustain your future! Our future!
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