viewpoint: safety

PUTTING PORT SAFETY FIRST

Holger Pfriem, business manager – Asia and Australasia, Dafo Vehicle Fire Protection, evaluates evolving port fire risks – especially as the industry continues to shift to take advantage of automation and electrification – and advises how port operators can act to minimise these risks

The maritime industry is responsible for 90% of global trade, and the number of containers shipped every year is estimated at 200m. In today’s modern world, demand at ports is only increasing. To keep pace and meet tight work schedules, 24/7 operation is needed for site vehicles and machinery, which is bringing increased fire safety risks.

Recent – and frequent –fires at bulk terminals across the globe are serving as imperative reminders for regulation changes as fires bring threat to life and operations. However, there’s a need for clear, industry-specific legislation surrounding fire safety at bulk terminals.

While standard health and safety obligations (HSW Act (1974) and Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999)) apply, there’s a need for new international regulations to reflect the current climate and evolving risks bulk terminals face.

The Health and Safety Executive’s Approved Code of Practice, Safety in Docks, was brought about in 2014 to help the industry and those who have a duty to comply with the applicable regulations found in the HSW Act. Other regulations, such as the Department of Transport’s Port Marine Safety Code (2016), act as a guide, but there is currently no industry-specific, legal regulations for the ports storing bulk materials to follow.

The International Maritime Organisation is currently undertaking a regulatory scoping exercise to address security, safety and environmental issues pertaining to automation and electrification of port vehicles. Although this is a step forward, an international framework governing industry changes is unlikely to be implemented soon due to the time needed to negotiate and draft it as well other formalities.

Evolving risks

In addition to the already existing fire risks at bulk terminals, as areas store various flammable materials, ports worldwide are making the shift to autonomous and electric vehicles, shifting manual operations to machineled processes. While this shift can lead to optimised productivity and efficiency, it’s also influencing the sector’s fire risks.

Automation

The pandemic escalated the port industry’s adoption of automated vehicles, as it allowed operations to continue, with workers keeping a safe distance from one another. However, as less people are on site, or close to operating vehicles, with 24/7 operation, detecting fire risk is becoming more challenging.

Manual fire detection systems working in tandem with automated vehicles can cause delays in suppression agents being released, as they rely on the vehicle communicating a problem with the operator, and the operator reacting and releasing the suppression agent to remove the risk.

Electrification

The move to more sustainable electric fuel sources at ports across the globe is an ongoing development. However, this is affecting onsite vehicles and machinery, as well as the number of lithium-ion (li-ion) batteries being carried through ports.

This development also brings about other fire risks, as li-ion batteries are extremely flammable. If overvoltage, overheating, overcharging or physical damage to a battery’s cells leads to a malfunction, it can cause rapid temperature increases (thermal runaway) and potential fires, toxic emissions and even explosions. Recent fires across the industry highlight the reality of electric fire risks at ports.

Ensuring safety

The first stage in strengthening safety across the industry, amid evolving port risks, is conducting regular reviews of your site’s risk assessments. This involves examining the associated risks of any vehicles or machinery and new processes introduced on the site, alongside evolving issues that can affect safety, such as materials handling delays.

For automation and electrification, there are other measures to consider to maximise safety and minimise operational downtime during a fire: » For electric vehicles and stores batteries, it’s crucial to check that your chosen system is designed to identify thermal runaway at the earliest possible stage, so it can initiate spot cooling to quickly minimise risk in the event of an electric fire. » For autonomous vehicles, automatic detection and suppression is extremely important, as it ensures any fire risk is controlled safely and quickly before a fire takes hold.

It’s also important to ensure your system is a suitable match for the vehicle or machinery it’s protecting to minimise false system activation.

site as a whole

Effective fire safety requires you to consider your site as a whole to ensure that the overall measures you put in place are effective. Your site’s fire suppression solution should be a suitable match for older risks associated with the protection of conventional combustion vehicles, as well as new and evolving risks.

Your site’s suppression system is only the first step in increasing your site’s safety. To ensure it’s effective in an emergency, key personnel need to be trained in its safe use, so they know how to respond in the case of a fire. This will ensure their safety and the safety of your site as a whole. For more information on how you can best protect your bulk terminal against evolving fire risks, visit: dafo-vehicle.com