This New Tech Could Stop Structure Fires Before They Spread

A new building technology is catching fire among developers because of its ability to stop blazes from spreading. A chemical treatment developed by Mighty Fire Suppression treats wood and stops fires from engulfing a building.

M-Fire Suppression has been touring the country, most recently in Oakland, offering fire demonstrations. It will host a demonstration in New York at the Nassau County Fire Service Academy on Thursday. The company has contracted with 10 national builders, according to M-Fire Suppression President Steve Conboy.

“All these builders are afraid of arsons,” Conboy said.

Fires have broken out at several multifamily properties and building sites throughout the country, including Boston, Oakland, Charlotte and New York. A high-rise fire in London also highlighted increased fire risk in tall buildings.

M-Fire’s environmentally friendly spray has received Underwriter Laboratories GreenGuard Gold certification. It is used to treat raw lumber and counteracts the chemical reaction in fires. It also can be used on raw brush to create a fire break during wildfires, like the Wine Country fires that destroyed 8,000 structures. The spray can be more effective than fire retardant, which is often dropped from air tankers and very little of it hits the ground, Conboy said.

Preventing arson is becoming a top priority for cities and developers to maintain and build affordable housing. The most cost-effective way to build affordable housing is to use raw lumber and then to protect it from fire and arson, said Performance Plus Engineering President Thomas Curry, who attended the Oakland demonstration.

Conboy said M-Fire has been testing the compound for two years and received approval six months ago. So far M-Fire has processed $20M in orders.