An Ocean Engineering demonstration giver told MJ that the product on show, Ultra-fog, had been developed in response to losing the efficiency of the Halon gases which had to be abandoned with CFC emission legislation back in 1994. He said that the way the new system worked was 'all down to the nozzle'.

The water is projected by a small amount of nitrogen, but comes out of the unit as a very fine mist. Instead of simply landing on the oil fire and causing an eruption of flame (as you would expect), the surface area of the water droplets is so great that it lays like a blanket over the fire and quite simply chokes it out.

Ultra-fog has already been taken up for use on larger ships because it uses 85% less water than traditional sprinklers, which gives it a distinct advantage. In case of a large fire, the weight of water from a traditional system can be enough to destabilise a vessel. Also, there is less damage from smoke and the water itself and finally, there is less structural damage caused by the stress of cold water hitting hot metals.

Water fog systems are now the preferred medium in use to comply with new regulations for local protection on both passenger ships and cargo vessels. Local protection for major items of machinery means that vessels have an early alternative to dealing with fires without using the main flooding system.

Because fog systems are safe in occupied areas and are environmentally friendly, Ocean Engineering has just had the Ultra-fog system approved for use on small vessels by the MCGA (the Swedish Authority) and the Irish Department of Marine. One advantage for small vessels which may be carrying expensive kit such as hydro survey equipment is that since Ultra-fog reduces heat faster than traditional systems, there is a reduced need for heat absorbent shielding around sensitive areas.