In some businesses a small fire can just be a bit of a nuisance, with a temporary disruption to normal activities and some welcome banter among staff as they walk to the assembly point when the fire alarm sounds. In other circumstances, even the smallest of fires can be a complete disaster to the business. A fire in the food industry, for example, can result in losses measured in hundreds of thousands of pounds, and in the electronics industry they can easily reach tens of millions of pounds. The reason is not the threat to life, but in high tech businesses in particular it is property losses and - to an even greater extent - business continuity losses that cause the problems. In the electronics industry, a small fire can have a disproportionate effect on the business, even if it occurs in a relatively inexpensive piece of equipment. If it occurs in a critical piece of equipment or in a clean room, it can result in severe disruption over a prolonged period, with associated loss of jobs, income and status in the marketplace.
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