In Spring 2019, sustainable building materials firm Tarmac partnered with Hamilton Waste and Recycling for the production of solid recovered fuel (SRF) to be use as an alternative, renewable energy source to improve the sustainability of its operations at its cement plant in Dunbar, Scotland.
SRF is produced at Hamilton Waste’s site from non-recyclable, waste material, using a Lindner shredder. The SRF is then transported and stored at Tarmac’s Dunbar plant where it fuels operations.
“The safe storage of any flammable materials requires careful planning and consideration,” says James, Director, Fire Shield Systems Ltd. “Both Tarmac and Hamilton wanted to ensure their sites remained as safe as possible.”
“Fire Shield Systems surveyed both our production site and Tarmac’s storage site to develop a cost-effective solution which was third-party accredited and approved by both our insurers and the Environment Agency,” says David Hamilton, director, Hamilton Waste.
“For the production site at Hamilton Waste, a fire cannon and organic class A wetting agent, operated by a multi-zonal, flame-detection system was installed,” says James. “This gave targeted suppression, offering fast protection and minimal clean up.
“The Dafo system – a standalone fire suppression system – was also installed for the protection of the machinery-drive enclosure. This system offers robust and reliable, linear, heat detection.”
“For the SRF storage at Tarmac’s Dunbar plant, a water spray system was selected. It operates with fast-acting, IR3 flame detection which means, in the event of activation, any operations downtime is minimised.” says James.
“We’ve used other systems in the past, but this situation required a more specialised and technical solution,” explains David.
“We couldn’t fault the service. They’ve delivered the best-in-class and most cost-effective solution to a very high standard. We would absolutely recommend Fire Shield Systems to other businesses looking to improve the fire safety of their operations.
“We couldn’t be happier with the results.”
