In any construction project, especially factories, which are places for production activities and store flammable materials and equipment, ensuring fire prevention and control (FPC) is extremely important. A fire protection system not only helps reduce the risk of fire but also ensures the safety of workers, protects property, and helps businesses avoid significant economic losses.
To meet this demand, applying the latest fire prevention and control standards in factory design is essential and indispensable. So what do the current FPC standards require? Let’s explore to understand more about these important principles.
Factory design must meet the following fire safety requirements:
- Equip regulations, signs, prohibitory signs, diagrams, or indicators about fire prevention and escape that comply with fire prevention standards or regulations of the Ministry of Public Security.
- Establish a fire prevention team at the facility or a specialized team appropriate to the type of activity, ensuring that personnel are trained in fire prevention techniques and are always ready to respond to on-site firefighting requirements.
- There must be a firefighting plan approved by the competent authority.
- The electrical system, static electricity prevention, lightning protection, heat-generating electrical equipment, and fire sources must ensure fire safety according to the applicable standards and regulations from the Ministry of Public Security.
- Equip transportation and communication systems for firefighting work, a water supply system, a fire prevention database, an incident reporting communication system, fire alarms, firefighting systems, smoke and escape control systems, and fire prevention and rescue equipment, all of which must meet quantity and quality requirements in accordance with the standards or regulations of the Ministry of Public Security.
Factories must have a design approval certificate, design review documents (if any), and documents approving the results of firefighting acceptance tests from the fire prevention police agency.
For pre-engineered steel factories exceeding fire compartment dimensions, the factory design must comply with the following conditions:
- There must be measures to prevent fire spread through construction structures or appropriate fire prevention systems.
- Ensure solutions that enhance fire resistance limits for major building components comply with fire prevention technical standards, reducing the risk of collapse in case of a fire.
When establishing projects and new constructions design, renovations, or changing the function of factories, factory designs must meet fire prevention and control requirements as follows:
- Construction Location: Ensure a safe distance for fire prevention from neighboring buildings.
- Fire Resistance Levels: Comply with the scale and nature of factory operations; have measures to prevent fire spread between items within the factory and surrounding buildings.
- Technology and Technical Systems: The production technology, electrical system, lightning protection, explosion protection, static electricity prevention, and technical systems, materials, and equipment must ensure fire safety requirements.
- Emergency Exits and Escape Safety: Ensure there are escape routes and evacuation paths, lighting equipment, escape indication signs, smoke ventilation systems, and rescue equipment to support rapid and safe evacuation.
- Fire Traffic and Parking Areas: Ensure the size and load capacity of firefighting vehicles and the water supply system fully meet the requirements for firefighting activities.
- Fire Alarm and Fighting Systems: The number, installation locations, and technical parameters of the fire alarm and firefighting systems must comply with the characteristics and nature of factory operations.
Many small factories only need to comply with basic fire prevention regulations without necessarily having a factory design or conducting a fire prevention review. However, for factories with a volume of 3,000 m³ or more, this becomes a mandatory requirement, based on Appendix V - List of projects, constructions, and mechanized vehicles subject to fire prevention design review according to Decree No. 136/2020/ND-CP.
The documents required for a fire prevention design review request must include:
- Request Document: The investor submits a request document for consideration and feedback on fire prevention; if authorized, it must include a valid authorization document.
- Investment Approval Decision: Applicable for factories using public investment capital.
- Documents Verifying Land Use Rights and Investment Approval: Including documents approving the construction investment policy, investment registration certificates (if any), land use rights certificates, or documents proving legal land use rights for factories using other funding sources.
- Fire Prevention Business Qualification Certificate: Issued to the design unit along with the basic design explanation, clearly indicating the fire prevention solution requirements.
These regulations ensure fire prevention safety for large-scale and complex factories, contributing to asset protection and worker safety.
In factories, there are many potential causes of fire and explosion, including:
- Flammable Materials: Materials such as paper, wood, fabric, oil, and grease are commonly found in factories. When exposed to heat sources, they can easily ignite and spread quickly, increasing the fire risk.
- Chemical Raw Materials and Products: Substances such as oil, gasoline, flammable liquids, and oxidizing agents can all cause fire or explosions if the right conditions are met. They create a hazardous environment in production and storage if not managed carefully.
- Electrical Systems: An electrical system in a factory that is not well maintained or overloaded can lead to electrical wire failures, causing sparks and fires. Damaged or frayed wires are also common causes of fire and explosions in factories.
- Equipment and Machinery: Motors, pumps, fuel systems, and compressors can cause fires and explosions when malfunctions or technical errors occur. In particular, old equipment or equipment not regularly inspected poses a higher fire risk.
- Welding and Metal Cutting: Welding and cutting jobs often generate high temperatures and sparks. Without proper fire safety measures such as shielding and workspace inspections, sparks can ignite flammable materials, leading to fires and explosions.
- Human Error: Unsafe habits such as smoking, using open flames, or being careless while working can lead to fires. Failure to adhere to fire prevention rules is also a major cause of many unnecessary fire and explosion incidents in factories.
The causes above require factory designs to strictly follow safety measures to minimize fire and explosion risks, protecting people and property.
Before embarking on the design of the fire prevention and control system, the first step is to thoroughly survey the site and the surrounding environment of the project. This helps to clearly understand the characteristics of the factory, such as scale, areas with high fire and explosion risks, and the nature of stored materials. Based on the survey results, appropriate solutions will be proposed to optimize the fire prevention and control system for the facility.
After completing the initial evaluation, engineers will proceed to create detailed drawings and model the fire prevention and control system. These plans must meet the technical standards and current fire prevention safety requirements, clearly showing the positions of fire alarms, firefighting equipment, emergency exits, and fire water supply systems. Modeling helps optimize design and easily adjust as needed, ensuring the feasibility and effectiveness of the system in practice.
Before putting the system into operation, strict testing steps must be carried out to ensure the quality and suitability of the fire prevention and control system. Experts will evaluate the effectiveness of the system, check technical parameters, test firefighting equipment, and determine if the system fully meets the safety requirements according to regulations. This appraisal helps minimize fire and explosion risks and ensures the system operates stably during incidents.
Complying with fire prevention and control standards in factory design is not only a legal requirement but also plays an essential role in protecting labor safety and property. A properly designed and implemented fire protection system helps reduce the risk of fire and explosion, safeguard workers' health, and ensure the sustainable operation of businesses.
To ensure your factory meets the highest fire prevention and control standards, contact BIC today. Our team of experts will provide comprehensive consultation and support in factory design, helping you confidently develop production in a safe and legally compliant environment.
