Independent conducted research by the Centre for Economics and Business Research has analysed the economic impact of fitting sprinklers in warehouses in England and Wales. It found that each year the economy loses £190 million in productivity and impacts to the supply chain from warehouse fires. It also loses 1,000 jobs and the government loses £32 million in tax receipts.

The environment suffers as well, with 135,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted each year from warehouse fires, the equivalent from the production of electricity for a city the size of Portsmouth. On average 21 local businesses are impacted by road closures and air and water contamination. To read the full report see Cebr Report

A separate report by the Building Research Establishment found that over the lifetime of the building, the benefits of sprinklers outweigh their costs by 3.7 times for warehouses larger than 2,000m2.

Unlike most western economies, the UK does not require sprinklers in warehouses until they are much larger, 20,000m2 for England and Wales. At this size, fire-fighters often cannot deal with a fire and huge damage results. These two reports show that fitting sprinklers in warehouses larger than 2,000m2 makes sense for business, for the economy and for the government. To read the full report see BRE Report