IFF Magazine E-Newswire September 2014

The evolution of the ST15 Mist Nozzle branch by FireBug Company

The launch of the ST15 introduces a new dimension in fire fighter safety and efficiency. Designed, developed and manufactured in the UK, using tried and tested micron technology; the ST15 encapsulates science in order to provide ultimate extinguishing and cooling with unrivalled levels of fire fighter safety. Not only does the ST15 provide safety, rapid cooling and extinguishing it is also the most water efficient nozzle on the world market today, approximately 65% more efficient than other comparative nozzles.

This evolution in research in development started in 2010 at Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters who embarked on a four-year programme to make £4 million of savings. To achieve this, the organisation set about on a programme of transformation that was soon referred to as ‘the changing shape of Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service’.

New and smarter ways of working were needed whilst also ensuring that changes would not compromise firefighter or community safety. It was during this exploration for new ways of working that former Deputy Chief Fire Officer Chris Enness, a sprinkler advocate; saw the potential of the misting technology used in sprinklers to be used by firefighters at incidents.

At a sprinkler conference Chris Enness spoke in detail to the Chief Executive of FireBug, Nick Link, and this is where the story of ST15 begins…Nick was equally excited about the potential for firefighters to use the misting technology and together he and Chris set about making the idea reality. Various types of equipment were considered for issuing the mist, including positive pressure ventilation fans and hose reel jet branches but all had their drawbacks.
Various prototypes of a misting branch were manufactured, with the focus on designing a branch from which the mist would issue from as well as be able to perform similar to a traditional hose reel branch with ball valve operation and jet stream. This dual functionality allows for natural switching between Mist Mode and Jet Mode in difﬁcult ﬁre ﬁghting conditions. The small droplet, high density WaterMist offers effective ﬁre ﬁghting with the added beneﬁt of jet mode for conventional ﬁre ﬁghting and dousing.

In July 2013 firefighters in Staffordshire started testing the branch, feeding back their thoughts and experiences to the team working on the project, thus developing the product based on evidence.

It was at this time that names were sought for the new branch and it was during a team meeting at the Service’s Headquarters that the Internal Communications Officer Lindsay Skelton came up with ‘ST15.’ ST15 being the postcode for the Service’s Headquarters which was the location at the heart of the project.

Following extensive field trials over the past 18 months we are now proud to introduce the branch with its official launch date 10th November 2014. The ST15 is now available for purchase through FireBug’s UK distributor Angloco Limited, based in West Yorkshire.

The branch has some impressive statistics including extinguishing a fully fledged car fire with as little as 60 Litres of water, saving up to 65% water saving on comparison to similar products, as well as outstanding cooling capabilities when trialled in compartment fire scenarios.