A New Angle on Sprinkler Protection
Research technical report quantifies effect of obstructed, sloped ceilings on sprinkler activation in warehouses
For optimal fire sprinkler protection, ceiling slope matters.
How could the ceiling slope at your facilities impact sprinkler activation in a fire event? Find out now with FM Global's technical report "Numerical Modeling of Sprinkler Activations and Spray Transport under Obstructed, Sloped Ceilings."
The report is jointly written by Prateep Chatterjee, senior lead research scientist at FM Global and Justin A. Geiman, senior engineer at the Fire and Risk Alliance (the Fire Protection Research Foundation's contractor).
To determine this new angle on fire sprinkler protection, FM Global conducted research in collaboration with the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) Fire Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) to understand protection challenges associated with obstructed, sloped ceilings present in warehouses. This ongoing collaboration with FPRF is aimed at improving FM Global and NFPA standards for fire protection.
The research involved systematic modeling to quantify the effect of ceiling slope and its construction features—such as purlins and girders—on sprinkler activation. Effects of sprinkler installation orientation were also investigated by quantifying the change in water-flux distributions.
The results of this project, along with future large-scale validation fire tests being planned, are aimed at providing guidance for FM Global Property Loss Prevention Data Sheets and NFPA standards.
Maintaining consistent standards based on the best science streamlines and helps reduce the cost to implement fire protection solutions.
FM Global provides the complete scientific research findings here in the downloadable technical report.
Download: "Numerical Modeling of Sprinkler Activations and Spray Transport under Obstructed, Sloped Ceilings."
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