A fire-breathing facility at RMIT will put emergency service's uniforms and other materials to the flame test to ensure we are creating the safest personal protective clothing for our firefighters and defence personnel.
Called the Flash-Fire Laboratory for Advanced Manikin & Material Evaluation (FLAMME), The $2.3 million modular flame test chamber is one of the first of its kind in Oceania and will be used by RMIT researchers and research students in partnership with industry.
The insulated steel chamber inside textile research facilities at RMIT's Brunswick campus is roughly the size of a shipping container. At the centerpiece of the chamber is a fire-proof mannequin who can withstand the full force of 12 super-power jet flames without getting burnt.
Outside the chamber is an operating room with a large viewing window, so users can watch combustion tests in progress.
Director of the Centre for Materials Innovation and Future Fashion at RMIT, Professor Rajiv Padhye, said there was a high demand for such a facility to test uniforms.
"We could test the fire resistance of uniforms for firefighters, as well as soldiers, gas platform workers and steel foundry workers," he said.
RMIT Associate Deputy Vice Chancellor Learning and Teaching, Professor Robyn Healy, said the industry currently ships items to Canada for testing, which can mean long waits to get the results back.
"This new facility will allow manufacturers both locally and from across the Asia Pacific to actually be there during the testing and make adjustments to the testing protocols where needed," she said.
The chamber is specifically designed to be used for textiles, but Healy said they hoped to also test the flammability of building and automotive materials.
Looking out for our 'firies'
Victoria is one of Australia's most bushfire-prone areas, with 1.5 million hectares of land burnt in the 2019-2020 bushfire season alone.
With the state about to enter another fire season, Healy said it was more crucial than ever to ensure our firefighters and volunteers have the highest quality uniforms to protect them.
"Firefighters are constantly putting themselves in danger to protect the community. This combustion chamber will help develop and test textiles that are up to the task of protecting them from the dangers of fire," she said.
State Manager for CFA's Personal Protective Equipment and Clothing, Mark Tarbett, welcomed the new facility.
"This new technology will offer our industry access to highly specialised services to assess the performance of innovative firefighting materials and emerging protective garment designs," he said.
"This will ultimately lead to safer outcomes for people working in high-risk environments such as fire fighters and other emergency service personnel."
RMIT leading in textiles research
RMIT's strong partnerships with the CFA and other firefighting and military uniform makers will help to ensure high demand for the facility.
The project has been supported with funding from the Australian Research Council, the Defence Science and Technology Group, RMIT, Deakin and Swinburne universities, and garment manufacturing company Bruck Textiles.
Healy said the facility underlined RMIT School of Fashion and Textiles' reputation as a leader in textiles research and development, and as well as its responsiveness to industry needs.
"We are really excited to now have this chamber operational at our Brunswick campus," she said. "It opens up so many exciting new opportunities for research, student learning and industry partnerships, and provides a solution the industry has been crying out for."
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