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Falck are Wilton International’s on-site emergency response specialists – providing industrial firefighting, medical and security services. Paul Frankland, the company’s Commercial Director, explains how businesses benefit.

When it comes to site safety and security, few can rival Falck’s experience and expertise. The business, which operates internationally, is a leader in fire, medical and rescue services for high-risk industries, including power plants, petrochemical and industrial sites.

For businesses at Wilton International in Teesside, UK, that makes them a very desirable neighbour.

“What sets us apart is that we have broad expertise, long experience and a proactive approach to fire-fighting,” says Paul Frankland, Falck’s Commercial Director.

“Our USP is really our understanding of the risks and hazards that operators have to manage on these kinds of sites, and our ability to work with those companies to develop plans and processes that cover prevention, response, recovery and mitigation.”

“We have specialist equipment, high levels of fire-fighting media and highly skilled people. Our equipment is specifically designed to meet some of the emergency response plans that businesses have on Teesside.”

A one-stop shop for emergency preparedness

“We have quite an aggressive approach when incidents do occur,” says Paul. “Typically in the UK, if a facility has an incident they can’t recover from, the likelihood of a rebuild is low. That means there’s a huge benefit to being able to recover as much as possible.”

“It’s not just about putting fires out and managing spill response. It’s about protecting a customer’s assets.”

“We have multi-skilled site protection officers who are accredited firefighters, highly skilled medics with FREUC¹ level 5 qualifications, and are licensed to operate in the security arena, providing all access control to the site and responding rapidly to any security incidents that take place. We’re really a one-stop shop for emergency preparedness needs.”

Specialist support for COMAH-designated facilities

Falck is ideally equipped to support companies with a high-tier COMAH (Control of Major Accident Hazards) designation.

“Businesses operating at that level have specific requirements they need to meet to manage risk,” says Paul. “That’s tested by the legislator, HSE, the regulatory authority and various stakeholders like company health and safety officers and insurers.”

“We work with them to plan at the appropriate level and understand their risks and requirements. We make sure we have the equipment and skilled people on hand to quickly come into action, and connect on a day-to-day basis to make sure the plans are tested and any improvements are made as needed. We also work cohesively with blue light services like the police, ambulance and emergency planning unit.”

The benefits of on-site emergency response

“Having a response team on site is absolutely invaluable,” says Paul. “It means you’re not reliant on local authority availability, which might vary due to other demands in the area, road conditions or weather. The Wilton International team is dedicated to the site and specialised in the kind of incidents that could occur here.”

“The responders are working to a plan that’s already in place. They have the right equipment and extinguishing media to hand that’s matched to the risk level involved. They also offer the highest level of medical response in the industry in the UK.”

“The result of all that is that they’re able to take action very, very quickly.”

Another key benefit is that the cost of these premium services is spread between companies based at Wilton International, much like other shared site services and assets, including power generation and utilities infrastructure.

“If you were going to build a facility that needed this level of services on greenfield land, you might be looking at over £2 million of operational expenditure plus significant capital asset investment,” says Paul. “But here you already have that set up.”

Serving a wide range of industry sectors

Although Wilton International has its roots in the chemical and process sectors, both the site and Falck’s services are suited to a much wider range of energy-intensive businesses.

“Our services can be adapted for all kinds of industries,” says Paul. “Aviation, automotive, energy, pharmaceuticals, bio-technology, manufacturing, the list goes on.”

And Falck Fire Services UK is ready to support businesses investing at Wilton International right from the start of their projects. One example is SABIC, a petrochemical business which recently upgraded its facilities on the site.

“We worked closely with SABIC when they built their LDPE plant, from construction through to commissioning and then providing services when the plant became fully operational,” Paul says. “We’re there for our customers throughout the process.”