Matt Humby
In a new series, SHP interviews speakers featuring at our partner show, Anticipate London – combining Safety and Health Expo, FIREX, Facilities Show and IFSEC for cross-industry sharing, between 2-4 December 2024.
In this article, we speak to Matt Humby, Senior Technical Consultant at Firechief Global ahead of his sessions at Anticipate on the fire risks around lithium-ion batteries.
Matt Humby (MH): Well sadly we have seen a number of lithium-ion battery fires this year, but the one that stands out for me is a fire in South Korea where a number of batteries exploded in a factory killing 23 people. It highlights the need that we need to take this need very seriously and we must have safety procedures in place to mitigate against the risk.
MH: We are now engaging with insurance companies, and they are now agreeing that this is not an ’emerging’ fire risk but a fire risk, and have started to implement safety documents which is great. However, it’s a journey and we at Firechief will be here to help with that.
MH: Yes, we are still waiting for change but things are starting to happen. The Electrical Safety Bill which we are supporting is, we hope, going to have an impact, so I’m hoping that in 2025 we will see improvements, but until then, we will continue to push for education around the topics.
MH: It’s going to be brilliant! Engaging with new contacts, current customers. We’re going to have a bigger stand with new products around lithium-ion battery safety – and I’m speaking! I can’t wait!
To sign up to attend Anticipate London and to see Matt’s sessions at ExCel London on 3 December, click here.
