Fire Rover is a state-of-the-art fire detection and suppression system designed to protect various facilities by identifying and extinguishing fires in their earliest stages.
Leading its charge is Ryan Fogelman, Vice President of Fire Protection Services at Fire Rover.
Ryan’s fire protection journey began through his work with various inventors.
Before Fire Rover, he helped launch numerous consumer goods products, developing a keen knack for guiding new technologies from concept to market.
This experience laid the foundation for his role at Fire Rover, where he has become a recognized figure in the industry, regularly speaking on fire safety and advocating for early detection and risk mitigation.
His dedication and impact is illustrated in his monthly and annual reports on facility fires in the U.S. and Canada, which have become essential resources for industry stakeholders.
His dedication to improving fire safety has been acknowledged with two Edison Innovation Awards, highlighting the value of the solutions he champions.
The inception of Fire Rover in the waste and recycling sector was driven by a clear need for better fire detection and suppression solutions.
Upon joining Fire Rover, Ryan quickly identified a glaring gap: “I reached out to industry professionals, but no one had data on the number of fires in waste and recycling centers.”
Utilizing Google AdWords, he began tracking fire incidents and reporting his findings.
Over time, he gathered and benchmarked data, learning and evolving his approach.
His dedication paid off, establishing him as an expert on waste and recycling facility fires and early detection solutions because, in his words: “When starting a company, you need to be an expert to be taken seriously in the market.”
Fire Rover officially launched in 2015, following a year of preliminary operations.
The first three years were dedicated to piloting the product and gaining feedback from initial customers.
These early adopters were cautious but optimistic about their solution.
Ryan remembers a pivotal moment for the company when a customer who initially doubted the system’s necessity due to a lack of water later became a staunch advocate after witnessing it in action.
“They gradually installed our system into all their facilities.”
These initial successes lead to broader acceptance within the waste and recycling industry.
The regular fires at these facilities pose severe risks, and Fire Rover’s technology has provided a practical solution.
By 2022, Fire Rover had successfully responded to 2,880 incidents.
Fire Rover’s success in the waste and recycling sector set the stage for its expansion into other industries.
One of the primary areas where Fire Rover has seen success is in industrial settings.
These facilities often house flammable materials and operate under conditions that can easily lead to fires.
By integrating Fire Rover’s thermal detection and suppression technology, these facilities can mitigate fire risks more effectively.
The system has also been implemented in battery recycling plants, where fire risks are particularly high due to the nature of the materials handled.
The continuous flow model of Fire Rover allows for seamless integration with existing sprinkler systems, covering extensive areas with its nozzles and cameras.
Fire Rover’s technology has proven its worth in facilities like airplane hangars, where traditional fire deluge and automated systems might not hit the mark.
The system’s targeted deluge approach ensures precise application of fire suppressants, reducing collateral damage and enhancing fire response efficiency.
Highlighting the precision and adaptability of their system, Ryan says: “We know exactly what we’re aiming at, and we can target that area, or target a collateral area that might need cooling to break the fire chain.”
Additionally, Fire Rover’s adaptability extends to various other settings, including waste-to-energy facilities and chemical plants.
He believes that these environments can also benefit from Fire Rover’s ability to detect fires early and suppress them effectively, preventing extensive damage and potential hazards.
Fire Rover’s design allows it to work in harmony with existing fire suppression systems, providing an additional layer of protection rather than competing with traditional methods.
This collaborative approach enhances overall fire safety by combining the strengths of various technologies.
“Our continuous flow solution allows us to integrate our system with existing sprinkler systems, covering high-risk areas of the building with our nozzles and cameras,” Ryan says, “We can be as little as one nozzle to covering the entire operations.”
This integration ensures that facilities benefit from comprehensive fire protection.
When a fire department arrives at a site protected by Fire Rover, they can rely on the system’s precise targeting and our virtual firefighters, who address the fire quickly and efficiently using our technology that allows us to have a thermal view of the incident even when the building is filled with smoke and darkness.
“With our system, they can follow our nozzles directly to the heat source,” Ryan adds.
Industry experts have also seen the value in Fire Rover’s approach.
Emphasizing the importance of early detection and Fire Rover’s seamless integration with existing fire safety protocols, Bob Schallenberger, VP of Critical Mineral Recovery, said: “The cameras and nozzles provide redundancy and reliability, ensuring that any system failure is quickly compensated for by another.”
By positioning itself as a complementary solution, Fire Rover enhances the effectiveness of traditional fire suppression methods, providing a robust and reliable approach to fire safety.
Fire Rover’s effectiveness is best demonstrated through its performance data as illustrated in Ryan’s painstaking labor of love the ‘7th Reported Waste & Recycling Facility Fires Report.’
From 2022 and 2023, the system successfully responded to 1,809 actionable fire or hotspot events in 2023, a 28% increase from the previous year, highlighting the system’s capability to detect and manage fire risks promptly.
System pressurizations, which indicate the activation of the fire suppression mechanism, totaled 301 in 2023, marking a 13% decrease from 2022.
This reduction suggests an improvement in early detection and fire management, reducing the need for full system activation.
Ryan attributes this to the system’s enhanced monitoring capabilities: “By improving our monitoring capabilities, we’ve been able to detect fires earlier and manage them more effectively.
This means fewer system activations and less damage overall, which ultimately protects both the facility and the environment.”
Fire suppression activations also saw an increase, with 183 incidents in 2023 compared to 137 in 2022, reflecting a 34% rise.
This uptick indicates the system’s proactive approach in tackling fire incidents before they escalate.
Additionally, Fire Rover managed 217 fire department dispatches, showing a 49% increase, illustrating the system’s role in facilitating rapid response by emergency services.
Crucially, there were no catastrophic losses in areas protected by Fire Rover in both 2022 and 2023 – a zero-loss record that speaks volumes about the system’s reliability and effectiveness in safeguarding facilities from severe fire damage.
This robust performance data underscores Fire Rover’s value as an essential tool in fire safety management not only in the waste and recycling sector but also its potential across other sectors.
By consistently improving its detection and suppression capabilities, Fire Rover ensures that facilities can mitigate fire risks more efficiently.
The success of Fire Rover is not only reflected in its impressive performance metrics but also in the experiences of industry professionals who have seen the system in action.
Schallenberger emphasized the importance of the Fire Rover system in maintaining safety and operational continuity at his sites, having previously suffered issues with his network going down: “The cameras and nozzles provide redundancy and reliability, ensuring that any system failure is quickly compensated for by another,” exemplifying just how crucial reliability is for facilities handling hazardous materials, where even a small fire can have severe consequences.
David DeVito, COO of ReWaste, underscored the practical benefits of Fire Rover in his operations: “The first system I put in with Ryan saved my building within two weeks.”
He credits Fire Rover with saving his facility from potential disasters, emphasizing the system’s role in early detection and effective fire management, adding his view that: “We need to educate people in the waste industry about removing hazardous materials from the waste stream to prevent fires.”
Ryan also highlights the system’s environmental benefits, noting that Fire Rover uses significantly less water compared to traditional fire suppression methods: “I’ve read articles where they mention using a million gallons or more of water to put out a fire, which creates a significant amount of firewater.
“In contrast, we use about 1000 gallons, making our method much more environmentally friendly.”
By using less water, Fire Rover reduces the runoff of contaminated water, which can have adverse effects on the environment, making Fire Rover an eco-friendly choice for fire suppression.
Looking ahead, Fire Rover is set to expand its reach into new industries and regions.
With ongoing projects in chemical plants and battery recycling facilities, the company is also eyeing opportunities in airplane hangars and other industrial settings.
“We’ve developed a hot works unit, which can replace the need for manual monitoring,” Ryan shares.
With a focus on innovation and adaptability, Fire Rover continues to enhance fire safety, making facilities safer and more efficient.
The company’s future prospects reflect a commitment to expanding its impact and setting new benchmarks in fire protection.
Ryan gives a final summation of Fire Rover’s mission: “We are changing the way the world fights fires from water, water, water to targeted deluge solutions using intelligent monitoring.
“At Fire Rover, we use thermal cameras to detect heat. When we see an abnormality, we have a box on-site and a human in a control center who looks, verifies, and reacts to fire.
“They can call the fire department, call a fire brigade, or call someone on site.
“We can also charge our unit, pressurize it, and then apply a suppressant to the actual fire.
“The damage from a fire far exceeds the cost of a Fire Rover system.
“Having so much practice fighting these fires in reality, even though we’re remotely operated, has given us unique insight into how to handle battery fires, explosive fires, and all the different types of hazards that we’re seeing in many of our customers’ facilities.
“Not only do we ensure that your system is working when we leave, but we also ensure that your system is working every single day, 24/7, 365 days a year.”
