Emphasis shifts to active fire safety measures for European tunnel operators

Catastrophic fires in the Gothard and Mont Blanc tunnels in the recent past have exposed the limitations of traditional passive measures, which are solely designed to protect the structure of a tunnel and prevent collapse resulting from the intense heat generated by a fire. In contrast, active measures address the need to contain the fire and aid evacuation under critical conditions - an HGV fire. for example, can easily release 200MW of heat. Combined with other measures such as the careful design of ventilation systems, active systems maximize safety for tunnel users and the structure alike.

"Where there is traffic, there is the potential for human error and accidents - and that means the risk of fire is ever-present in road tunnels", says Petteri Saarinen, President of Marioff Corporation. "Incorporating state of the art active fire protection methods will add perhaps one or two percent to new build costs. That's actually less than the cost of a passive system - although we would argue that the cost of installation really needs to be compared with the cost of letting a major fire burn out of control, in terms of loss of life, direct damage, and the knock-on effects of traffic disruption over the ensuing months or even years."

Both the A86 and M30 projects in Paris and Madrid use Marioff's HI-FOG active fire protection systems, which are designed to spray millions of fine droplets of water at high pressure onto and around the source of the fire. The resulting 'fog' is highly effective in reducing the potentially lethal temperatures around an HGV fire, aiding evacuation and gaining precious time before the arrival of the emergency services.

"The levels of interest we are now seeing from contractors and authorities throughout Europe is extremely encouraging", adds Petteri Saarinen. "It seems that the industry has taken on board the lessons of history, and is starting to make active fire protection a key element in its armoury of safety measures."

About Marioff.

More than 15 years ago, Marioff was the first company to develop water mist fire protection technology - HI-FOG. This was initially designed to protect passenger ships, where it is essential to use the minimum amount of water for fire protection. In addition to saving lives and safeguarding traffic flow, a HI-FOG system protects the structure against major material damage.

Marioff Group is a global business, specialised in the production of very high efficiency water fog fire protection systems, designed for the industrial, commercial and infrastructure development sectors. Marioff is also the world leader in the supply of fire protection systems for the maritime and offshore sectors. The company has dominated this market since the start of development of water mist systems, and holds more than 1,300 patents. For more information about Marioff, see www.marioff.com

For more information:

Marioff press contacts:
Marioff Ltd
Mr Tom Knowles

Acting Managing Director
Aberdeen office, Unit 2, 26 Oldmeldrum Road
Newmachar, Aberdeenshire, AB21 OPJ
Scotland

Tel. +44 (0) 1651 869 100
+44 (0) 1651 863 293
Email: marioff1@btconnect.com

Marioff Corporation Oy Finland contact:
Petteri Saarinen
President

Marioff Corporation Oy
Tel.: +358 9 870 851
E-mail: petteri.saarinen@marioff.fi