119 Living Lab Service Holds On-site Briefing Session

Support for the Entire Process of Firefighting-Related Technology and Product Development

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The National Fire Agency Research Institute announced on the 19th that it will hold a visiting briefing session for firefighters nationwide from February 22 to March 16 to promote the ‘Firefighting 119 Living Lab Service,’ which supports technical review and effectiveness verification in various research and development fields such as fire, chemical, digital, and robotics.

In the ‘Firefighting 119 Living Lab Service,’ the term Living Lab means a ‘living laboratory.’ It is a system where firefighters and fire experts with extensive experience in related fields directly solve issues through scientific analysis and experiments when supply institutions, private companies, or firefighters conducting fire research or developing fire products request consultation or verification of problems.

This service began supporting firefighting research and development projects by appointing a professional committee in 2016. Since then, the system has been improved to provide highly reliable verification services not only for research and development projects but also for reenactment experiments and scientific analysis of various accidents or unusual fires.

In 2021, 20 services were provided to firefighting agencies, industries, and related organizations, and last year, 22 services were provided. Among them, in the investigation of the cause of a fatal accident during the warehouse fire in Gyeonggi Province last year, it was revealed that “urethane foam used as insulation material in the warehouse generates flammable gases, and when these gases accumulate in compartmentalized rooms, they can cause smoke explosions during the combustion stage.”

Additionally, the service has participated in various research activities such as ▲demonstrating the risk of burns to firefighters during fire suppression, ▲verification of wearable water rescue search and national safety robot systems, ▲consultation on fire response for electric vehicles on ships, and ▲research consultation on digital twins, IoT, and multi-video data recording devices. The experimental results are used as educational materials to ensure the safety of firefighters.

To apply for the service, applicants can download the application form from the National Fire Agency Research Institute’s website and submit it via official document (to the National Fire Agency Research Institute Response Technology Research Office) or email.

This visiting briefing session plans to actively reflect the voices from the field regarding safety accidents occurring at fire scenes, special fire response methods, and new suppression techniques into the ‘2023 Firefighting 119 Living Lab Service’ system.

Han Donghoon, head of the Response Technology Research Office at the National Fire Agency Research Institute, said, “We will expand the Firefighting 119 Living Lab Service system and strengthen the technical cooperation system with industry, academia, research, and government to promote active firefighting-related research and development in the future.”