Southern Supply Company is a wholesale distributor located in Springfield, Missouri. Southern Supply has a critical data center through which it handles all of its business activity, from shipping and receiving to accounting, for its 12 locations in Missouri and Kansas. Because it is key to the operation of its business, Southern Supply made the decision to protect their data center with a clean agent fire suppression system, rather than just a traditional sprinkler system.
By choosing a clean-agent suppressant like FM-200 (HFC-227ea), Southern Supply would not be susceptible to the water damage that sprinkler systems can inflict on computers and other sensitive electronics.
Equipped with TVSS to protect equipment
Like most, Southern Supply’s data center is equipped with a transient voltage surge suppressor (TVSS) to condition and control the incoming power protecting the valuable equipment. Early in the morning on April 13, 2005 – with no one occupying the building – a severe thunderstorm rolled through the area and lightning struck the data center.
The fire suppression system’s SHP-Pro Control System detected the fire and activated the FM-200 Clean Agent System
The TVSS performed its function, protecting the electronic equipment from a large electrical surge, but in so doing, the TVSS unit caught fire. The fire suppression system’s SHP-Pro Control System, equipped with fast-acting smoke detectors, detected the fire and activated the Fike FM-200 Clean Agent System, rapidly extinguishing the fire.
Avoided downtime and equipment damage
Southern Supply’s data center did not experience costly downtime or equipment damage. Fike’s distributor, Engineered Designed Facilities, Inc. (EDF), who provided the system installation, promptly responded to the situation and recharged the fire-suppression system to ensure ongoing protection for the data center.
Anna Squires, MIS Director of Southern Supply Company’s data center stated, “We are thankful for the quality performance of EDF and Fike’s Clean Agent Suppression System — it operated exactly as it was designed to and as a result we avoided serious downtime and equipment damage. Our purchase of the SHP Pro control system and the FM-200 clean agent system has proven to be a great investment.”
