The US-headquartered Underwriters Laboratory (UL), a global safety science company that came into existence more than 120 years ago, has partnered with Bengaluru-based JGI Group to set up a new fire testing laboratory—UL Jain Fire Laboratory (UJFL)—in the IT city.
The lab has already conducted more than 100 outdoor fire tests and several manufacturers of fire fighting foams, including K.V. Fire Chemicals (India) Pvt. Ltd. and Integrated Fire Protection (IFP) and users such as Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, Cochin Airport Authorities, Foam Tech Antifire besides many others have visited the facility for fire tests.
The new facility consists of a fire lab with a 13m-high roof for testing fire-related products like fire fighting foams, different classes of fire extinguishers and sprinklers as per UL and Indian standards. The lab also has a visitor's bay and a control room in an adjacent floor with separate glass windows for viewing and witnessing fire tests. It is equipped with analytical equipment such as FTIR for analysis of foam and other chemical samples besides safety devices for fire extinguishers.
“There is immense potential in the fire fighting industry in India as a lot needs to be done as far as setting up new standards for fire safety is concerned in the country. More than 100 foam tests, sprinkler and spray nozzle tests and dry chemical powder tests have already been conducted at the fire testing facility so far. We expect that this fire testing facility will accelerate innovation in developing new fire suppression products and serve the industry,” said Chenraj Roychand, founder-chairman of the JGI Group which operates 85 educational institutions with 51,600 students and 6,450 employees across 64 campuses across India.
Under the agreement, the JGI Group will operate the facility and provide manpower, while UL will be the technical partner contributing to the know-how, training, equipment and leadership. Additionally, UL will also facilitate year-round training and certification programmes, both web-based and offline, along with workshops for industry, academia and government agencies.
“Our tie-up with the JGI Group will enable us to bring our safety mission to India and also provide our testing expertise to the students and the community. Our company uses research and standards to meet evolving safety needs,” said Suresh Sugavanam, vice president and managing director, UL South Asia. Interestingly, UL has around 11,000 professionals who aim at promoting safe working and living environments for all people across the globe.
