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FFI-RAPPORT 16/00707
B.2 Technical Error
Scenario number 2
Technical error in electrical system
Scenario justification
Justification
: As the chosen storage system for the Piql Preservation Services is the AutoStore®
system, referred to as the piqlVault system, which is wholly automated, an electrical fire may
occur. According to the supplier of this storage system, Element Logic, the likelihood of such an
event occurring is low, as the piqlVault system runs on very little electricity. The risk, however,
is there regardless, and including it is natural in this assessment, as one of its focus areas is the
storage phase. Fire, whether it be caused by a fault in the electrical system or not, is a common
occurrence, and the Piql Preservation Services should expect to be subjected to this threat
during its 500 year or longer existence.
Purpose
: The components of the Piql Preservation Services – the Film, the Box, the Bin and the
Vault – are all vulnerable to extreme heat and direct contact with fire. Though plastic was
chosen as the material for the PiqlFilm and –Box, among other things, for its better fire resistant
properties than many other storage media, none of the components are immune to the prolonged
exposure to flames; They will burn with sufficient exposure.
Benefit
: All Piql partners are required to have various measures of fire protection in place.
However, not all are suited for implementation in the piqlVault. Piql AS recommend an oxygen
reduction suppression solution to ward of the flames, as this causes the least damage to the rest
of the Piql Preservation Services. Here, we show the benefits of following this recommendation
instead of a sprinkler system.
Scenario outline
The scenario is set in the geographical zone North (Asia). An error in an old, outdated electrical
system in the building housing the piqlVault system leads to the outbreak of an electrical fire.
The error causes the system to (i) shut down and (ii) sparks to ignite a fire at the top of the grid,
as this is where most of the electrical components are situated. The bottom piqlBoxes are safe
from the fire as long as it is not allowed to spread. The fire protection system that the building
has installed, however, is a sprinkler system. While this stops the fire from spreading notably, it
poses another risk to the integrity of the films, as the piqlFilms should not be exposed to water
except under controlled conditions. Neither is water a positive thing to introduce in an
automated system. When the sprinklers are activated, the water splashes over the top of the grid
and trickles down through the grid to assemble at the bottom of the floor, rising steadily to
submerge the lower piqlFilms.
Cause
Type of risk
(Hazard/Threat)
Hazard: Technical error of electrical system causes fire.