Research

Ongoing research is vital to the fire suppression industry as it drives innovation, enhances safety, and ensures that standards evolve with changing building materials, technologies, and hazards. Research into modern building materials—such as lightweight composites, engineered wood, and new insulation products—helps determine fire behavior, burn rates, and suppression requirements. Fire safety research also examines emerging risks, including lithium-ion battery fires, energy storage systems, and new modes of construction such as modular and high-rise timber buildings.

Globally, major organizations such as the NFPA Fire Protection Research Foundation (U.S.), FM Global Research Campus, UL Solutions, RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Canada’s NRC, and the UK’s BRE Centre for Fire Safety Engineering, to name a few, conduct large-scale testing and analysis. These groups collaborate with universities, manufacturers, insurers, and fire service agencies to share data and develop performance-based solutions. Their findings inform revisions to codes and standards worldwide, ensuring that suppression technologies remain effective against evolving fire challenges.