Did you know that hot works and waste fires are on the rise? Local authority research conducted by Material Focus uncovered a 71% increase in battery fires across waste sites and bin lorries, going from 700 in 2022 to 1200 in 2023.[1] Similarly, CE Safety found that 79 of the 259 construction-related fires in 2022/23 resulted from hot works.[2] This is both dangerous and costly, as, across this same period, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire each recorded two injuries due to hot works blazes.[3] Furthermore, Zurich reports receiving £250 million worth of claims related to hot works infernos[4] and attests to seeing insurance claims of up to £20 million for damage caused by battery-sparked waste fires.[5] Traditionally construction, waste, and recycling sites have relied on visual inspections, smoke/heat detection, and sprinkler systems to prevent or tackle fires but these measures are not perfect. In this episode of PASS Presents, we introduce you to the FLIR A40 Automated Thermal Camera: a 24/7 monitoring solution that can detect and alert teams to small temperature increases that might ignite.
Quick Links
- PASS Presents How to Protect Your Site with FLIR A40 Thermal Cameras
- Introducing the FLIR A40 Smart Sensor Automated Thermal Camera
- Tune In to PASS Presents
- Further Information
PASS Presents How to Protect Your Site with FLIR A40 Thermal Cameras
Between 2019 and 2020, ESA waste management recorded 670 infernos and estimated that 38% of these fires were caused by, or were suspected to be caused by, lithium-ion batteries.[6] Moreover, in 2021, Eunomia, a social-environmental research and consulting group, found that 48% of all waste fires were caused by Li-Ion batteries, costing waste operators, fire services, and environmental organisations £158 million a year.[7] Meanwhile, between January 2015 and March 2019, 28% of construction blazes attended by fire crews in England were caused by hot works. Insurance company Zurich said it had seen damage from hot works fires spike “to £250 million in the last three years” (as of 2020).[8] This is an expensive and dangerous problem, only likely to get worse as we come to rely evermore on Li-ion batteries. That’s why construction, waste, and recycling sites must have a simple, safe, cost-effective solution for preventing fiery outbreaks. Thankfully, Nasim Gauher, Teledyne FLIR’s Application Engineer for Industrial Automation, stopped by to tell us about one such solution: the FLIR A40 Smart Sensor Automated Thermal Camera.
Hot Works & Waste Fires are RISING: Protect Your Site with a FLIR A40 Thermal Camera
Introducing the FLIR A40 Smart Sensor Automated Thermal Camera
- Accurate and stable temperature measurement for 24/7 monitoring
- Narrow field of view option for system integrators
- Easy integration into existing IT systems and support for industrial protocols, such as Modbus TCP, EtherNet/IP, MQTT, and REST API
- Small and rugged with M12 Ethernet, Digital I/O, and RS-232/485
- IP66
- Diamond-like carbon coating on the lens
- Analytics and alarm capabilities for condition monitoring and early fire detection
- IR resolution: 320 x 240px
- Accuracy: ±2°C
- Low-noise imagery and data
- Compatible with FLIR Atlas SDK Software
- MSX® imaging
- Easy HMI and SCADA integration using common industrial protocols and alarm I/O
- SNMP trap and advanced firewall protection
- Simple configuration via a standard web browser
- Simultaneous VMS video and alarm integration via ONVIF S compatibility
- Heavy-duty M8/12 connectors
- Compact, lightweight camera with multiple mounting options
- 29°, 51°, and 95° lens options
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Further Information
For additional details or advice regarding FLIR’s A40 Smart Sensor Automated Thermal Camera, please don’t hesitate to contact our Sales team on 01642 931 329 or via our online form.
Alternatively, you can find more information about the FLIR A40, as well as preventing hot works and waste/recycling site fires, on our website: www.tester.co.uk
Footnotes
[1]Material Focus via National Fire Chiefs Council, Over 1200 battery fires in bin lorries and waste sites across the UK in last year, last accessed 18 March 2025.
[2]Jonathan Bruce, ‘The regions with the most hot work fires in 2022/23 revealed’, CE Safety, last accessed 18 March 2025.
[3] Jonathan Bruce, ‘The regions with the most hot work fires in 2022/23 revealed’.
[4]Zurich, ‘Hot Works – Zurich Calls for Thermal Image Cameras to Combat Fires’, last accessed 11 November 2021 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uj3F6KidPXI>
[5]James Nicholson, Chief Claims Officer at Zurich UK, via National Fire Chiefs Council, Over 1200 battery fires in bin lorries and waste sites across the UK in last year.
[6]ESA via Eunomia, Lithium-ion Battery Waste Fires Costing the UK Over £100m a Year, last accessed 18 March 2025.
[7]Eunomia, Lithium-ion Battery Waste Fires Costing the UK Over £100m a Year.
[8]Terry Gangcuangco, ‘Zurich shines spotlight on hot works fires’, Insurance Business, last accessed 18 March 2025.
