Episode 40: Fire Testing

Technology Today

Southwest Research Institute

Technology

4.8 • 19 Ratings

🗓️ 21 February 2022

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

SwRI fire testing provides critical information to manufacturers and consumers, making our homes and our world safer. In SwRI burn labs, fire experts unleash walls of flames to test everything from electronics and sofas to batteries, gas tanks and much more. Through explosions and infernos, they are evaluating the performance of construction materials, textiles and products to find out if they pose a fire risk. They also evaluate fire safety systems to make sure they are up to standard and can properly extinguish flames. In this episode, we discuss their important work and find out what piece of furniture in all of our homes poses the biggest fire risk. Listen now as SwRI Director of Fire Technology Dr. Matthew Blais discusses safe, controlled fire testing to evaluate products, materials and systems.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	The Heat is on, as we discuss SWRI's fire testing services.
0:06.0	In Burn Labs, our experts crank up the flames for critical research.
0:10.8	Products, materials, and structures are exposed to heavy smoke and fire
0:14.8	and evaluated in real time.
0:17.5	How SWRI's fire testing makes our homes and our world safer.
0:22.5	Next, on this episode of Technology Today.
0:28.9	We live with technology, science, engineering, and the results of innovative research every day.
0:35.3	Now, let's understand it better.
0:37.3	You're listening to the Technology
0:38.5	Today podcast presented by Southwest Research Institute. Transcripts and photos for this episode
0:45.3	and all episodes are available at podcast.s.s.org. Hello and welcome to technology today. I'm Lisa Benia. SWRI fire testing services evaluate how a range of materials, products, and systems hold up to flames. A highlight for me not too long ago was seeing our fire testing team in action in one of our burn labs. Fire and billowing smoke quickly filled up the test area.
1:12.2	It was fast.
1:13.4	But what also stood out to me was that it was a very safe and controlled process.
1:18.5	These types of tests are carried out to gather critical fire safety information.
1:23.6	SWRI, Director of Fire Technology, Dr. Matthew, is here today to talk about our fire testing services.
1:29.9	Thanks for joining us, Matt.
1:31.4	Hi, Lisa. I'm glad to be here.
1:33.4	So it was great to get that firsthand look at our fire test in progress not too long ago.
1:39.1	As I mentioned, fire testing at SWRI is a very safe, controlled process.
1:46.0	I described some of my experience,
1:52.9	but there's really much more to it. How is fire testing conducted at SWRI and what special equipment and technology is used to carry out fire testing? Well, first, there's two basic
1:58.8	types of fire tests, those that are done to standards which
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Southwest Research Institute, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Southwest Research Institute and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.