Frequent Fires After Holiday Resumption of Work: How to Prevent Fires Before They Start

[Industry Warning] Frequent Fires After Holiday Resumption of Work: How to Prevent Fires Before They Start

With the holiday work resumption in full swing, safety is paramount. Recently, a fire broke out at a construction site where improper welding protection allowed slag to fall onto a condenser below, causing a gas leak that instantly ignited a large fire that burned for nine hours before being extinguished. Although there were no casualties, it caused significant economic losses.

In engineering, installation, and workshop maintenance, working at different levels is extremely common. When the work surface is made of steel grating, resin grating, or a perforated structure, the risk of sparks and objects falling through to the level below increases dramatically. Traditional "fire catchers" and "fire blankets" can block some sparks, but in complex working conditions, there is still a risk of sparks flying and igniting equipment below. Faced with such high risks, how can we build an effective defense?

I. Accident Review: Management Loopholes Behind the 12-Character Mantra

Looking back at this accident, the core problem lies in "taking shortcuts, avoiding trouble, making assumptions, and neglecting supervision." These 12 words encapsulate the common problem in almost all safety accidents. Upper-layer welding and lower-layer leakage—seemingly accidental risk aggregation—is actually the inevitable result of inadequate protective measures. Safety is not just a slogan; knowing is important, but doing is even more crucial. Only by aligning knowledge with action can risks be truly isolated.

II. Technological Breakthrough: SUNTEX Introduces a Multi-Layer Isolation and Protection Method (Upper, Middle, Lower)

Addressing the challenge of hot work in layers, SUNTEX calls on the industry to promote a three-dimensional prevention and control system (upper, middle, lower) to firmly lock the risk of hot work within a controllable range, achieving "fire prevention before it starts."

Upper Protection (Source Control): V-Shaped Spark Receiving Plate to Allow Sparks to "Enter but Not Exit"

A specially designed V-shaped spark receiving plate is hung below the welding and cutting work point. Designed by a frontline welding foreman based on practical experience, the plate is lined with fireproof cloth.

V-Shaped Sloping Surface Design: Utilizing the principle of a physical slope, this allows flying sparks and welding slag to slide smoothly into the groove, effectively preventing them from rebounding and splashing out of the plate.

Flexible Fireproof Lining: This flexible material further absorbs impact, ensuring that sparks and slag "stop immediately upon impact," cutting off the possibility of falling fire at its source.

Middle Protection (Blocking Propagation): Laying a Fireproof Interlayer

If sporadic sparks still manage to penetrate the upper protection layer, the middle protection is crucial. Galvanized iron sheet or high-standard SUNTEX welding fireproof cloth is laid on the grating directly below the hot work area, depending on the intensity of the hot work. This physical barrier effectively holds falling sparks, preventing them from igniting debris or equipment in the middle layer.

Lower Protection (Key Protection): Giving Sensitive Equipment a "Fireproof Coat"

For cable trays, precision equipment, or flammable pipes directly below the hot work area, final bottom protection is required:

Lay SUNTEX flame-retardant fireproof cloth over the equipment or cables.

For high-value areas, erect temporary isolation sheds.

Ensure that even if tiny sparks escape the first two layers of protection, they cannot ignite the core facilities below.

III. Safety Philosophy: There is no such thing as excessive protection, only insufficient protection.

"With multiple layers of protection, how can a fire occur?" This is not only a technical sharing session but also an industry appeal. All accident prevention begins with workers not taking shortcuts and ends with managers not being negligent.

Safety is not the accumulation of knowledge, but the result of action; peace is not the result of luck, but the reward of protection. SUNTEX urges all engineering and production units to strictly enforce hot work permits upon resuming work, implement multi-layered protection measures (top, middle, and bottom), and continuously disseminate scientific fire prevention concepts.

Remember: Every standardized operation can potentially prevent a disaster. Because of us, someone returns home safely.#weldingblanket

By the way,
Come & visit us #tectextil2026 #frankfurt
21.-24.April 2026
Frankfurt am Main
Hall:11.0 Booth: E59B