MIXING sport and business is nothing new. Many deals have been sealed in corporate boxes at the football and at company golf days. But talking business while watching the Winter Olympics in Vancouver was a first for Austrade's Business Club Australia.

Brisbane-based businesses Flight Centre, Ausenco and privately-held Aviation & Maritime Systems and Fire & Safety Systems attended networking functions at the Games.

Austrade's Vancouver post manager, Kevin Lamb, said the program provided a unique opportunity for businesses to increase awareness of the opportunities between Australia and Canada.

"Canada is a natural market for Australian companies, as no two countries are more similar in culture, business, government structure and policies," Mr Lamb said.

He said 16 Australian businesses had secured Games-related contracts with the Vancouver Organising Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, some with the assistance of Austrade.

In fact, British Columbia's 2010 Commerce Centre modelled itself on Austrade's highly regarded Business Club Australia program.

Fire & Safety Systems' Canada president Brad Pickersgill said when the Brisbane-based company - which provides fire protection systems worldwide to the mining, oil and gas, power generation and industrial industries - decided to establish a presence in Vancouver, it was Austrade that assisted with setting up.

"Austrade has provided networking opportunities to help grow our presence in Canada, especially Vancouver, helping us to navigate our entry into Canada. They provided advice on legal, accounting and business services, making our transition much easier," Mr Pickersgill said.

"Our participation in the Business Club Australia program will add more value for us because of the good networking opportunities and access to key business people it provides."

Austrade's Toronto-based Senior Trade Commissioner and Consul General, Stefan Trofimovs told The Courier- Mail that a growing number of Australian companies in Canada were targeting the oil and gas sector. They cover engineering design, procurement and construction, equipment, software, training and other technology services.

Canada is the world's third-largest producer of natural gas.

The Business Club Australia kicked off at the Sydney 2000 Olympics by holding networking functions and since then has been conducted around successive Rugby World Cups; the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games; and the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

More than 36,000 people from around the world have participated in Business Club Australia.

Australian Financial Review 23-Feb-2010
Jason Clout

SMEs go for Gold

Australia's athletes have had their share of success in Vancouver, and a number of Australian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are trying their luck in Canada as
well.

A function conducted by Austrade in Vancouver this week will spotlight the trade links between the two resource-rich countries. The big mining companies will be there, as will
some SMEs such as consultants Fire & Safety Systems.

The president of FSS's Canadian operations, Brad Pickersgill, said it opted in 2008 to establish a base in Vancouver to service its North American clients. The family business specialises in fire protection for high-risk applications like mining and metals, oil and gas, power and heavy industry.
Melbourne-based cleaning and waste management business Douglas Site Services won contracts to two of the major Olympic venues. Education operation Navitas World
supplies university transfer programs for foreign students.

Vancouver Austrade's post manager, Kevin Lamb, said there were sound reasons for Australian SMEs to try Canada when seeking overseas markets, including its size and cultural similarities.

Mr Lamb said it was the first time Austrade had targeted a Winter Olympics, largely due to the possibilities Canada provided.

FSS Announces Official Launch of North American Office
 
Fire & Safety Systems and The Australian Consulate will be hosting a cocktail reception to highlight the opening of our North American headquarters, to be held in Vancouver, Canada on the 27 March 2009.

Special Guests will include former Queensland Premier and now Trade Commissioner The Honorable Peter Beatie, who will speak at the event about the opportunities available in the mining, oil, gas and energy sectors, Australian High Commissioner to Canada, Mr Justin Brown and hosted by Honorary Consul, Mr Kevin Lamb.
 
Guests interested in attending should RVSP to Louis Brun at Austrade at louis.brun@austrade.gov.au by 13 March 2009.
 
FSS Looks forward to seeing you at the event!

When: Friday, 27th March, 2009
Time: 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Location: Australian Consulate
1075 West Georgia Street, Suite 2050
Vancouver, BC V6E 3C9
Dress Code: Business

Australian wines, refreshments and hors-d’oeuvres to be provided.
RSVP is essential. Please e-mail: louis.brun@austrade.gov.au by 13 March, 2009

The Mining Chronicle, June 2007
Feature: West Kimberley Power Project

Fast-tracked fire protection
Fire & Safety Systems experience in industrial fire protection extends for more than 40 years, both in Australia and overseas.

Based in Brisbane, the family owned and operated firm specialises in fire protection for industrial high-risk projects including mine sites, power stations, petrochemical plants, smelters and refineries.

“In the end, equipment is still equipment. It’s how you respond on-site that really makes a difference,” said FSS Principal, Brad Pickersgill.

“We pride ourselves on our ability to keep pace with fast-tracked schedules, which is all important these days, given the increasingly schedule-driven nature of the industry,” he said.

Fire & Safety was engaged in the West Kimberley Power Project mid last year for the detailed design, supply and installation of all fire detection and protection systems.

“From our point of view, it’s been a pleasure to work on this project – quite refreshing actually,” said Mr Pickersgill.

“Although it’s been a particularly aggressive schedule, EDL hasn’t been afraid to make decisions, allowing and entrusting us to get on with our job and do it well,” he said.

“Getting equipment to the remote sites on time has been challenging at times, but we’ve been able to manage this, and overall it’s been one of the most satisfying projects we’ve worked on in a long while.”

In other works, Fire & Safety Systems also provided fire protection for the Darwin LNG Project and enjoys an ongoing alliance with the Newcastle and Bowen Basin coal fields.

Fire Australia Magazine October 1999

THE PASMINCO CENTURY PROJECT
A Model for High Risk Industrial Fire Protection Systems

When production commences in late 1999, the Pasminco Century Mine located in remote North-West Queensland will become the world’s largest zinc mine. The path from Feasibility Study in early 1995 through to Engineering and Construction in 1997-1999 was a challenging and rewarding effort and highlights a practical ‘fit for purpose’ fire engineering model.

Fire protection systems are of critical importance in any industrial application where continued operations and minimal disruption to production are strict requirements. However, the Pasminco Century Project, with its remote location and environment, placed extra responsibility on the performance of its fire detection and suppression systems.

The Minesite is located approximately 250km north west of Mt Isa near the Lawn Hill Station. The ore will be processed into concentrate, which will be transported through a 300km long slurry pipeline to Karumba on the coast of the Gulf of Carpentaria. From there, concentrate is dewatered, dried and stored prior to load out onto a transfer vessel for offshore transfer to export ships.

Through the pro-active involvement of the Project Insurer, FM Global and the Queensland Fire & Rescue Authority, a practical and responsible design philosophy was developed by Fire & Safety Systems, as the specialist fire protection consulting engineer for the Project working closely with the Engineering, Procurement and Construction Manager, Century Minenco Bechtel Joint Venture (CMB Joint Venture).

Transfer of Information Critical

The definitive requirement agreed at the feasibility estimates and project commencement in the Fire Services Design Philosophy was for an integrated fire protection system providing a reliable and immediate alarm to a minimum of three site locations to initiate an emergency response.

At the forefront of this philosophy is the largest ‘peer-to-peer’ fire alarm network installed in Australia and the first to use fibre optic technology as a data transferal medium between 19 Sub Fire Indicator Panels at the Mine and 5 SFIP’s at the Port. The decision to use fibre optics was to increase the integrity of underground network cabling during the wet season, when lightning strikes are frequent and severe.

This system ensures a definitive location of any emergency condition to the First Aid & Emergency Centre, the Concentrator Control Room and the Truck Dispatch Centre located at the Mine Administration Center (these being the 24 hourly manned locations) and activation of the local emergency warning system for the respective facility.

A critical part of the engineering effort was to select equipment that would utilize the best of fire alarm and detection technology, but also perform under harsh environmental conditions and temperatures in an industrial application.

The key to the successful integration of the fire alarm network was described by FSS Technical Officer Brad Pickersgill as “A strict job execution plan, incorporating engineering, procurement and implementation, which required the skills of the design engineer, the vendor’s team and the installation contractors, working together to achieve the desired outcome.”

A Practical Approach to Suppression

The fire suppression systems for the project were underwritten by a practical, fit for purpose design philosophy, which included removing from the scope, systems that were unwarranted or that which be replaced by good engineering practice and operating procedures.

Not unlike most industrial facilities of this magnitude, Factory Mutual requirements dictated the majority of the fire suppression mediums. These included:

• Automatic wet pipe sprinkler systems for switchroom underfloor cable galleries, hydraulic lube oil areas, high voltage cable racks and enclosed or elevated conveyors, particularly at the Portsite.
• Automatic high velocity water spray systems for the Main 11kV Transformers and the Excitation Transformers at the Minesite.
• Self-contained foam hose reel and monitor stations located within the Grinding Building;
• Fixed foam systems on flammable liquid storage in the Reagent Facility;
• Fixed and water oscillating monitors for open conveyors, bulk fuel storage and transfer vessel;
• Fixed fire hydrants systems for the Minesite and Portsite;

Another design improvement was the evolution of the conventional fire hose reel into a multi-purpose fire/wash down hose reel throughout the heavy plant areas within the Minesite Concentrator and the Portsite Facility.

Fire Alarms in critical plant areas such as conveyors and lubricating oil packs would result in shut down via the fire alarm network interfacing the Distributed Plant Control System, which controls both Sites.

“A milestone result… ensuring protection of life and property”

Doug Pickersgill, Principal of Fire & Safety Systems considered “The successful commissioning of some 20 active fire suppression systems at the Minesite and placing them in full operation in a two day period was a milestone result for the Project, ensuring the protection of life and property on schedule and under budget.” Doug added that the effort “indicated the close cooperation between the CMB and FSS project teams, from Engineering and Procurement through to Construction.”

“…compared to similar projects… this has been the smoothest” Dorian Fay, FM Global.

Dorian Fay, Senior Risk Engineer for FM Global also reflected in his report on the successful outcome of the fire protection systems. “…compared to similar projects on which I have worked this has been the smoothest,” highlighting the close interaction required with the project Insurer.

Emergency Response – Protecting the Local Community

The introduction of ‘fly-in fly-out’ mining operations in remote areas of Australia with large construction camps and permanent resident communities of workers to build and subsequently operate the mining facilities has led to a major risk re-evaluation to safeguard the lives of the mine community, in addition to the mining and associated infrastructure facilities.

It is no longer acceptable in any community to believe that a single domestic smoke detection device and a portable fire extinguisher provides responsible fire protection to the occupants of an 800 person permanent village.

“A pro-active response is a distinct requirement”

Pasminco Century Mine Limited (PCML) and the CMB design team clearly defined the requirement to ensure that the Village, being equivalent to a small township, was provided with similar safety assets to any other community.

John Datson, Senior Engineer for Pasminco’s Project Development Team stressed the design criteria early. ”A proactive response to any fire or emergency situation anywhere on the Minesite is a distinct requirement”

Following this doctrine, the heart of the ‘Darimah’ Village being the central facility is fitted with a full AS 1670 fire detection system and AS 2220 Emergency Warning System in addition to wet chemical suppression systems in kitchen areas and hand portable fire extinguishers and hose reels. Further more the size, remoteness and response time from the fire safety center dictated the need for a reticulated fire hydrant system comprising water supplies and pump sets to allow the early response to an emergency to be backed up with positive active suppression by the Village fire teams.

To further enhance the emergency response for the residents of the village the fire alarm system extends to 36 fire points located thought out the accommodation units each being equipped with a manual call point and interconnected to a zoned emergency warning system that overlays the respective zones. Heavy duty hose reels capable of flowing 1.25 L/s provide interlocking coverage through out the Darimah Village.

The activation of any fire alarm from the Village is received at the Minesite fire alarm network via radio link to deploy the “On Call” emergency response team and the response vehicle to support the Village fire teams.

As the design for the total site developed, a similar approach was taken with all mining and infrastructure facilities. All mining facilities, yard areas and infrastructure facilities are equipped with addressable fire alarm systems and emergency warning systems and automatic fire detection systems respectively.

Irrespective what facility or building a person enters at the Minesite or Portsite the fire protection system philosophy and emergency warning system is consistent. “Confusion with differing warning systems is an issue that will never have to be addressed at Century Mine,” stated Ken Barnett, CMBJV Site Services Manager.

With pre-operations commissioning currently in progress at the Minesite and Portsite prior to the commencement of production in late 1999, it can be assured the fire prevention and protection measures taken to protect the lives and property for the Pasminco Century Project can be considered world’s best practice and ‘fit for purpose’, befitting one of the largest high risk industrial project undertaken in Australia this decade.