A chemical plant in China exploded due to failure of adhering to health and safety regulations by the management of the factory. This caused 6 people to become hospitalised. 

Huang Yi, spokesman for the State Administration of Work Safety, said that "the bosses of the Goure PX Plant chose the cheapest bidder to build the facility at the expense of safety". He said a "furnace was too close to storage tanks, so when unspecified materials leaked into the furnace because of a broken tube, the blast tore into a tank and caused the fire. (source: Fox News).

This is the worst thing that could happen whilst dealing with storing chemicals. The management  should be adhering to the basics, like keeping chemicals away from fire and checking regularly for leaks.  All organisations are required to stick to COSHH (control of substances hazardous to health) guidelines regardless of their industry. Would having a chemical store container have helped? 

How would we have stored them? Well firstly, we would make sure that the containers are kept away from any source of fire. Stores can be made fire proof, which would have helped a little with this situation. Stores can also be ventilated and dry. Vents are installed to all chemical stores to stop a build-up of chemicals in the air inside the container. A bunded floor is a great way to collect fluids, to stop them from spreading. The standard wooden floor is replaced by a bund to collect leaks, drips and spills. The container walls, roof and doors can be lines to create a stronger shell. Any fluids collected are emptied via a drainage sump. 

Although all these extra accessories will help to keep your chemicals safe; it is also important that you regularly check and maintain your chemicals. Also, if you buy a fireproof chemical store, we still wouldn’t recommend putting it by the fire!

If you are worried about the storage of your chemicals, talk to us at Lion Containers (Chemical Stores) Ltd. We offer a large range of different sized chemical stores and we can have them custom built to suit your needs. When manufacturing these units we are still following all Government regulations and also the environment Agency’s recommendations. All of our chemical stores come as standard with integral bunded floors to meet regulations, removable galvanised steel grated floor or steel chequer plated floor. Making sure that if chemicals are to spill they are easily caught with this specialist flooring, also if there is a chemical spillage it will not enter any drainage systems. Control of hazardous liquids is key when it comes to chemical storage. 

We also offer optional extras on our containers such as drainage taps, zone 1 lighting, heating and bespoke steel shelving. Whatever chemicals you are storing in these container we can make sure our chemical stores are all built to suit and keep them safe. You can be assured that if you buy a chemical store with Lion Containers (Chemical Stores) Ltd, you won’t be having the police knocking on your door saying your chemicals haven’t been stored correctly. View our Chemical Store case studies to view examples of our storage projects, or call us on 0333 600 6260.

It was reported by Gazette Live that a big fire broke out at a well-known chemical company who supply chemicals to the oil industry. All staff had to be evacuated not just from that specific building but from the whole industrial estate! People spoke of a black cloud of smoke soaring more than 100ft into the air.

Up to ten fire engines attended the scene in Eaglecliffe Industrial Estate to battle the inferno! Even a specialist fire engine equipped with foam pods, command and a control unit had to be dispatched to the scene. Fire brigades used the foam to bring the fire under control and advised residents to stay indoors and close windows in case they were affected by the smoke. Luckily there was no causalities at the scene neither was there any reports of injuries at the time. The nearby roads were closed until further notice and even confirmed by Northern Rails that trains are being affect due to the blaze.

According to the BBC News the blaze started at 1pm and was extinguished by the evening! An investigation took into place to find out what was the cause of this huge fire and the fire chief had concluded that some plastic storage containers containing small quantities of chemicals were involved in the incident, this evidence also suggested the cause was accidental.

Here at Lion Containers we understand storing chemicals has to be followed by strict laws. We are able to offer COSHH stores and chemical stores. COSHH means ‘Control of Substances Hazardous to Health’ meeting regulations required by the law where companies are required to control the substances that are hazardous and harmful to health. However a Chemical Store are custom built and built to your specific requirements. Whether its flammable, corrosive, toxic or harmful chemicals you are storing, using a chemical or COSHH store is ideal for secure and safe storage. All of our chemical stores come with a standard integral bund, so any spillage within this unit will be held in the bund until it is safely drained out and disposed. Standard louvre air vents come fitted for a better source of air flow, reducing condensation or keeping equipment stored at the correct temperature needed. 

In the case of the Eaglecliffe fire, if their chemicals were stored in a custom built chemical storage container, with IP Rated electrics including an external fire beacon and smoke alarm and the unit was lined with FR60 (fire rated) boards you would have an early warning of the fire! Also, with the fire rated boards fitted you would have an additional 60 minutes before the unit would potentially burn through! This is more than enough time for a fire engine to arrive and battle that fire. Another benefit of using our containers for this application is that they don’t have to be stored near buildings or public areas. These temporary structures can be sited in all sorts of awkward tight spaces so when you call through to enquire please let us know what we are heading in for! 

We could also install bespoke steel shelving with mesh cages to ensure the chemicals are kept orderly and secure. Another option to consider are over pressure vents to prevent pressure building up inside the units and blowing up!  So there you have it, there are some advantages into having a shipping container as a chemical store and the most important of them all is for your own safety and the safety of others around you. To find out more information on custom built chemical stores or COSHH stores, call our friendly sales team on 0333 600 6260 

As I read about this story in the news, something came to my attention - why weren’t they storing the chemicals safely in a chemical store? Chemical Stores are built to your bespoke requirements, so it would suit whatever chemical you wanted to store in there. 

Personally if the company who suffered from the ammonia leak came to me I would of offered them a secure unit with air conditioning. The reason being, their gas cylinders full of ammonia would have been kept at a controlled temperature I would of also suggested for the container to be lined with non-combustible spray foam insulation. I would have recommended putting a ventilation system that worked efficiently to control the air flow within the chemical store. This would help maintain the temperature within the chemical store without having any sudden temperature rises or drops. When it comes to ammonia, it is vital to make sure that the cylinders are not over heated. This will lead to the cylinder exploding and will cause the non-coloured gas to spread throughout the air, in turn causing people in the vicinity to inhale toxic fumes. 

A bunded floor is something to definitely consider, for those storing any liquid chemicals that may spill, drip or even leak! The marine ply flooring is removed from the container and then replaced with the bund to hold any spillage. Bunds hold the maximum capacity of 110% so I’d say this is definitely a must if you were storing chemicals in your containers that may leak! 

If you have any further questions about Chemical Stores that you are unsure of or would like to discuss further please do not hesitate to get in touch with our friendly sales team on 0333 600 62 60.