Roush Fenway Racing Finds Sustainable Fire Protection Solution in 3M Innovation

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In: NASCAR Cup Series News

The Roush Fenway Racing partnership with 3M goes well beyond the logos on the No. 16 Ford Fusion.  During the nine-year relationship, the two have worked together to find ways to use innovative 3M technology throughout the Roush Fenway organization.  Most recently, Roush Fenway was looking for an effective fire protection system that would address the need for sustainability and employee safety in the team’s engine dyno room.  3M provided a solution with their 3M Novec™ 1230 Fire Protection Fluid.

“We had used the Novec™ 1230 in our race cars with good results; the real test now was how we could adapt this solution to our sustainable facilities,” said Ian Prince, Chief Sustainability Officer, Roush Fenway Racing.

The two main objectives were to have a fire suppression system that would be code compliant with respect to adequate fire protection for the room and its occupants and present an acceptable environmental profile.  After understanding the problem and the objectives, 3M acquired a sample of the Sunoco E15 fuel used by all NASCAR contenders. 3M then performed tests of International protocol standards and found that 3M™ Novec™ 1230 Fire Protection Fluid would extinguish this hazard at a concentration that provides a large margin of safety for anyone who may be in the protected space.   Novec 1230 fluid is also more environmentally sustainable compared to the legacy agents such as HFC or halon suppressing agent.  Working closely with Roush Fenway and their local fire protection installer and service company, 3M provided guidance on design concentrations. 

Roush Fenway Racing now has a modern day automatic fire suppression system in its dyno room that meets local, national and international regulations.  The large margin of safety for occupied spaces is also an important consideration for the insurance carriers covering the facility.  Additionally, it is another step in Roush Fenway’s push to use more environmental friendly products.  “The resulting safety margin was more than I anticipated and I can confidently say that Roush Fenway Racing is again leading the field in best practices for fire safety and sustainability,” commented Prince.

For more information regarding 3M Novec 1230 fluid or other Novec branded products log onto www.3M.com/Novec. Also visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/#!/3MNovec1230fluid. For more information about 3M’s sustainability initiatives visit www.3M.com/sustainability.

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