Since they don’t wear a cape or colorful tights, to the untrained eye the fire alarm technician is just the guy who comes in to check the safety of your fire equipment. But in reality, the fire alarm technicians at Global Safety Malta are specialized employees who actually end up saving lives by making sure your equipment functions properly in an emergency situation at your commercial building!
Yet these humble heroes walking among us in simple uniforms often go unappreciated because people don’t understand the special powers they possess and bring into play on a daily basis. For example, all Global Safety Malta fire alarm technicians…
1. Battle the forces of evil at a moment’s notice! When the call comes, the fire alarm technicians rush bravely in to battle the villain, whether it’s a malfunctioning backflow problem or a damaged sprinkler system. They soundly thwart the forces of equipment failure by repairing and replacing the critical systems, always emerging victorious.  
2. Excel at searching out the right clues to every puzzle. The crafty fire alarm technician can decode the secret language and uncover the valuable clues in blueprints, diagrams, specifications, schematics and operational/product manuals to find the information that saves the day and restores equipment to its proper functionality. It’s all in a day’s work for the fire alarm technician!
3. Protect their customers and save the day. The fire alarm technician deals directly with our customers, listening to their needs and providing the best, safest solutions for their situation. With professionalism and skill, they communicate with headquarters to make sure all is well for their customer, humbly accepting a mere humble thanks for their efforts.
4. Go wherever the wind takes them…even overnight. The life of a fire alarm technician is filled with adventure on the road, going where they are called and serving willingly. Global Safety Malta fire alarm technicians are flexible enough to travel overnight in order to perform inspections and repairs for clients that are not so close by. That’s what all heroes do!
Bravery, trustworthiness and competence are all marks of the highly trained fire alarm technicans at Global Safety Malta. Do you have what it takes? We are always looking for skilled individuals to join our force of heroes.

For larger premises, such as a car dealership that has a showroom, office, workshop, store and flammable storage, you need to break this down and consider each area on its own. However, it is best not to have too many different types on the same premises if possible as this adds to confusion in a panic. So, if you have foam in the workshop, use a foam fire extinguisher as the water-based one in the office area.

Should your premises have multiple risks such as a garage workshop, a powder fire extinguisher may be better as your fire may include wood, paper, paint and fuel all at the same time. In a garage workshop we would recommend powder for general use and CO2 for small welding fires but the office area would still need water-based ones as powder will make a mess. In an office, hotel or nursing home, powder would make a dust cloud that may stop people from finding exits.

A commercial kitchen should have a combination of fire blankets, wet chemical extinguishers for any deep fat dryers, plus C02 for electrical fires. An office would have the same risks as most shops, salons, hotels, residential homes, shopping centers, etc. so the requirements would be a water additive extinguisher with a CO2 at each fire point. Construction sites would have multiple risks so powder and CO2 would be a good option.

Don’t forget a fire extinguisher in company vehicles – every vehicle should have a 2kg powder extinguisher in the driving area, and larger vehicles carrying dangerous goods require further fire extinguisher provision.
Another consideration is the temperature. So, if they are stored outside on a petrol station forecourt or building site, powder would be best as it can be used down to minus 30 degrees. Foam and water would beat antifreeze but this reduces the fire-fighting ability and, by the time an engineer visits, discharges and refills with antifreeze, will probably cost more than you paid to buy a new extinguisher!

e Ghost Ship Fire: 36 Lives Lost From Lack of Fire Safety Systems
December 14, 2016 by Total Fire and Safety
On December 2 in Oakland California, a deadly fire took 36 lives in a warehouse facility turned artist residence known as the Ghost Ship Artist Collective. It took four days for local firefighters to recover the scene. An absolute contributing factor? The lack of a sprinkler and fire alarm systems, blocked and inadequate fire exits and a lack of working fire extinguishers.



In fact, the few extinguishers found among the bodies were inoperable. Officials say it is the highest number of fatalities in a structure fire in the U.S. in the last 13 years.
The tragedy shed negative light on the building owner, who refused to comply with fire codes and the state of the Oakland housing market, where people endured living in dangerous conditions since there was no other affordable alternative in the area. The city is also under scrutiny since the building had not been inspected for 30 years, and rightly should have been closed down.

But for those of us in fire safety, like Global Safety Malta, the tragedy is a demonstration of the importance of our work, and how what we do saves lives.

The Looming Disaster
The Ghost Ship had been home to numerous fire hazards for some time and was no stranger to the authorities. The facility had been reported for tall weeds, mounds of garbage on the grounds, and illegal conduct of the community within, even though the space was not meant for residential use. The cause of the fire is still under investigation but at first, an old refrigerator was thought to be the cause.
The interior of the building was a chaotic mixture of improper electrical wiring and makeshift staircases, stacks of wood, furniture and other junk scattered around and wooden structures in progress. The fire started on the first floor, and people trying to evacuate had to weave through the inside clutter and climb a rickety, tight staircase to get out. People on the second floor were trapped by smoke and flames.
Many of the bodies were found as they were in their last moments–holding and hugging each other in fear.

At Global Safety Malta, we truly believe we do something more than just come to work, collect a pay check and go home. We play an important role in keeping our community safe!

In the case of the Oakland tragedy, an inspection attempt was made as recently as last month when a code enforcement officer responded to complaints about piles of garbage. No one came to the door and the Oakland inspectors are not allowed to gain access to a building without permission.
The blaze started during a rave dance party, and the facility was not equipped or zoned for such a gathering. NFPA reminds us that in the case of nightclubs, theaters and auditoriums where large numbers of people gather, fires are the most deadly when the proper features and systems are not in place.
For theaters, night clubs, venues, etc. NFPA codes call for a considerable number of safety systems and features to be present for these structures, not just a single safety system or feature.

Saving Lives, a System at a Time
When building owners take shortcuts in service, look for the cheapest option or have the mindset that a fire like this could never happen to them, the consequences can be dire. That’s why we make sure we are doing our part in taking care of our customers and ensure that the systems they have onsite are adequate for their needs.
Our entire team, including our administrative employees, field technicians, managers and even our owner believes that it is our responsibility to do our job 100%  because in the end we are protecting what matters most–people’s lives.
When we arrive at a facility we..

• TEST and INSPECT to make sure everything is in working order
  
• PROVIDE REPAIR/INSTALL SERVICE so everything is done correctly and ready to activate in an emergency
  
•  and VERIFY that everything is up to code for the customer.
  

As fire safety systems continue to improve, be warned that “we can’t be complacent just because numbers have gotten better.” It’s important that everyone responsible for the safety of those inside a facility have it properly inspected with well maintained and fully operational fire safety systems in place. Do you?

If you are unsure of whether your building is up to code, please don’t hesitate to contact us at Global Safety Malta. We take our jobs seriously because we know what we do saves lives!

- See more at: http://www.totalfireandsafety.com/blog/the-ghost-ship-fire-36-lives-lost-from-lack-of-fire-safety-systems/#sthash.lTrwE3NW.dpuf