Ingenieur Vol 76 ingenieur 2018 October | Page 69

fire protection system complemented with mobile/semi-fixed equipment (available to be deployed at a moment’s notice). Photo 2: Foam system designed to combat rim seal fire (4) worldwide where the floating roof has sunk and a full surface tank fire developed. An operator’s Safety Case assessment should consider this scenario, including its causes, consequences and firefighting policy (5). Conclusion and Recommendations The safety aspect must be incorporated at all stages of a project, not just during the operational lifetime of a project. Early intervention will eliminate and reduce much of the risk associated with the project. Towards achieving this, this article introduces the concept of Independent Protection Layers (IPLs) in order to emphasise the need to have adequate and effective safety measures to prepare for catastrophic failure. Below are the authors’ recommendations: 1. Bunds should be constructed as per recommended specifications above, with bund performance standards developed with minimum performance specifications, to be used during periodical inspections. 2. Have firefighting capability to manage fire in a controllable and safe manner to avoid escalation of fire. This includes proper planning of emergency response manpower (competency and training), foam reserve availability (of suitable type and sufficient for full surface fire demand) and active Disclaimer The specifications detailed for bunding requirements in this article may be more stringent compared to the Department of Environment’s (DOE) requirements. However, note that the purpose of having bunds is not limited to containing spills, but also to limit fire and heat exposure during a pool fire event. Considering the risk of pool fire, an individual bund is always better than a common bund for more than one tank, and the 133% or greater bund capacity is well above the requirement of 110% maximum capacity of largest tank. Note that this article limited discussion to aboveground storage tanks and does not discuss underground storage tank requirements where bunds are not applicable as secondary containment and other methods to contain spills such as double wall tanks may be required. Lastly, the authors were not involved in any way in the investigation of the Kemaman Bitumen Company fire and thus the recommendations can only be treated as opinion. REFERENCE (1) News Straits Time: 150 firefighters still battling Terengganu’s largest blaze in years, July 6, 2018 (2) Australian Environment Protection Authority : Bunding and spill management, May 2016 (3) UK HSE : Safety and environmental standards for fuel storage sites: Process Safety Leadership Group Final report, 2009 (4) Sensor ACM: Foam and spray system https:// w w w. sensor- acm.pl/our- of fer/for-fuel - energy-and-chemical-industry/tank-gauging- equipment-and-solutions/foam-and-spray- systems/ accessed on 9/7/2018 (5) New Zealand Government worksafe.govt.nz : Floating roof tank fire scenarios, July 2017 (6) Ireland Environmental Protection Agency : IPC Guidance Note on Storage and Transfer of Materials for Scheduled Activities, 2004 67