The new Foam Campus by RelyOn Nutec Fire Academy

Across the world, the foam transition is now in full swing and many organizations have already begun this transition. Along the way, organizations are finding that this transition goes far beyond simply replacing foam concentrate with fluorine-free foam concentrate and that there are many technical aspects on top of foam performance and capability that need to be addressed. The Management of Change (MOC) procedure is an indispensable tool to go through this process to ensure Foam Assurance. In recent years many performance-based tests have been performed by foam suppliers and (company) fire departments; however. there are still gaps to close and for the end user these performance-based tests are the most important link in the foam transition. Will the new generation foams work on their products within their operating environment? In short, the foam transition is a challenging process with many failure mechanisms.

Over the past months RelyOn Nutec Fire Academy has received several questions from fire departments and foam manufacturers about the foam transition and performance-based foam testing. In order to be able to answer these questions and serve the market as well as possible, we have developed the RelyOn Nutec Foam Campus.

The new fluorine-free concentrates require a different approach to application technique and tactics. Being dynamic during your foam deployment is crucial and needs much more emphasis than with the old fluorinated foam concentrates. Proper application technique is essential for successful extinguishment. Achieving 90% knockdown is more difficult due to the flow properties of fluorine-free extinguishing foams. Therefore, the speed of achieving 90% knockdown has become even more important. This requires a different deployment strategy to take advantage of the fluorine-free extinguishing foam characteristics and achieve good results.

Our Foam Campus offers advanced live fire training objects and specialized foam training programs. We have translated lessons learned in the foam transition journey into new objects and implemented improvements to existing objects. In the Foam Campus, the focus is on the application of the new fluorine-free foam types and we have developed two new objects: the 80m² tank and the low lying 9m-diameter storage tank. Furthermore, we have made minor adjustments to our live fire simulator units to ensure the correct application techniques are trained. This is all in addition to the existing much used simulators such as the foam laboratory, the miniature tank storage farm, the high 9m tank and the 120m² tank bund.

The 80m² simulator is a rectangular tray 20m x 4m. The tray is equipped with plates (ramps) to perform the roll-on technique correctly, and by using vertical plates we can create both upwind and downwind areas where the foam can be applied indirectly onto the burning liquid. This forces trainees to apply dynamic application techniques and experience the heat loading when foam is applied on the short and long side of the simulator. There are various objects placed in the tray to obstruct the flow path of the foam and challenge firefighters in applying foam in the most efficient way.

The 9m-diameter low-lying storage tank is specially designed for studying and demonstrating various aspects of foam behaviour. The round surface of the tank allows us to observe in detail how the extinguishing foam spreads and behaves under various conditions and this tank provides a unique opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of different foams and application techniques.

The fire simulators have a wide range of capabilities, from basic training to larger advanced performance-based foam testing. Participants can learn how to properly apply foam utilizing the various strategies and techniques in a realistic environment. For advanced users, the tank provides the ability to conduct in-depth tests and examine specific foam issues to establish a benchmark.

The versatility of the Foam Campus makes it a valuable tool for foam suppliers to investigate various foam-related issues, and it offers end users the opportunity to prepare even better for liquid pool and full surface tank fires.

For more information, go to https://fire.relyonnutec.com/nl/