About Us
©FIRETRACE LIMITED 2010 -
Contents
About us
Firetrace Timeline
In the beginning there was just Dave & Chris Melton who had like many others always dreamed of owning their own company. And so it came to pass that in the year of my Lord nineteen hundred and seventy six their dreams became reality with the formation of a small Fire protection company named Sterling Safety. This fledgling enterprise had humble roots trading from the kitchen table of the Melton’s family home.
Gradually Sterling safety expanded gaining customers and staff until by 1980 it had outgrown the kitchen and moved into modest commercial premises in Bramford Road. Ipswich.
With Chris keeping her experienced eye on the finances, further expansion added a fire alarm department closely followed by a safety sign department but all the time Dave was experimenting with various novel ways of detecting and extinguishing fires.
Eureka!!!!!
Dave had developed the original Direct Firetrace systems during the mid 1980’s as an answer to some difficult flameproof fire detection application being undertaken by the Sterling safety Company for the paint manufacturing industry.
It had somehow dawned on Dave that perhaps this simple tubular detection system could be the answer to all sorts of fire protection challenges.
Its strength is in its simplicity Firetrace was proving to be both efficient and reliable, avoiding the pitfalls suffered by more complicated electrically operated competitors. The operating principal of a Firetrace system is not rocket science, but it’s efficiency is derived from the fact that the Firetrace detection tube always bursts at the hottest place, as Dave often describes with a rye smile, that his amazing discovery was that “the hottest place is near the fire”
1989 Original patent application filed and prototype demonstrated on Anglia Television news
By 1990 the Firetrace concept had become established and was showcased on the BBC Tomorrows World program having undertaken a gruelling road test in the Paris Dakar race.
1991 Anglia television filmed a live Firetrace demonstration extinguishing a combine harvester broadcast throughout the eastern region on Farming Diary
In 1992 Firetrace was again featured by the BBC on their Top Gear program.
Although it was by then becoming obvious that Firetrace was suitable for far more uses than just vehicle applications and the first low pressure Indirect systems were introduced. This new innovation allowed the Firetrace detection tube to not only operate larger but multiple extinguisher systems, although Dave still insisted that “having a small fire is like being slightly pregnant” and stopping a small fire in its early stages is far better than fighting a big fire.
1995 A range of high pressure Firetrace valves were developed to handle Co2 and Nitrogen for use in electrical panels throughout the food industry
1997 BBC Tomorrows World program ran a feature on Firetrace products including the new Pyroflex and Pyroplug innovations, which later went on to win a prestigious award at the IMPEX inventions exhibition in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
1999 Firetrace became a separate Limited company as sales had by then exceeded that of its parent company Sterling safety Ltd. which was sold off to allow room for the inevitable expansion of the Firetrace range.
To help with this expansion Dave and Chris invited their oldest son Andy to join the board followed a few years later by his brother Tim.
2002 As the Firetrace export business was becoming too large for our Ipswich facility to handle so manufacturing rites were licensed to Firetrace International base in Arizona USA.
2006 Fryertace a derivative of the Firetrace Indirect concept for use on cooker hoods and chip fryers was introduced.
2007 After 31 years at the helm Dave decided it was time to pass the responsibility of running the company to his sons, he also promoted Peter Lenney, his loyal assistant of more than 20 years to the board of directors, confident that his business is in safe hands, Dave now intends to devote more of his time to the important task of innovation ensuring that Firetrace will always be at the forefront of fire protection technology.
2008 Continued demand for Firetrace systems had created the need for bigger premises, fortunately a larger adjacent factory unit became available at 22 Knightsdale Road and Firetrace now has room to spare.
Firetrace Limited is
THE Automatic Fire Suppression Company.
Email: info@firetrace.co.uk
Phone: 01473 744090