Should a company establish its own fire brigade?

The establishment of full-time fire brigades and the determination of their staffing levels shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fire Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China and the Regulations on the Organization of Full-time Fire Brigades in Enterprises and Institutions. These arrangements should be based on the actual needs of the enterprises and institutions, with the costs to be borne by the entities that establish such brigades. The staffing, fire trucks, and types and quantities of firefighting equipment for a full-time fire brigade in an enterprise are determined through consultation between the entity that establishes the brigade and the local public security fire department ； The establishment of full-time fire brigades and the allocation of personnel in public institutions require approval from the personnel planning department. After the establishment of the full-time fire brigade, it shall be submitted to the fire protection agency of the provincial people’s **public security department for inspection and approval

Article 39 of the Fire Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China: The following entities shall establish dedicated fire brigades to carry out fire fighting tasks within their own premises: (1) large nuclear facilities, large power plants, civil airports, and major ports； (II) Large enterprises that produce and store flammable and explosive hazardous materials ； (III) Large warehouses and bases storing important combustible materials ； (IV) Other large-scale enterprises with a high risk of fire and located far from the public fire brigades, other than those covered by items (1), (2) and (3) ； (5) The management units of ancient architectural complexes that are located far from public fire brigades and have been designated as national key cultural relics protection sites.

It is mainly due to the special nature of chemical enterprises; some fires require professional fire teams to extinguish them!

The size of the enterprise and its level of risk. Ordinary companies are unable to maintain and establish a professional fire brigade; they mostly have volunteer fire teams that also handle management tasks, and these teams can only deal with ordinary emergencies and fires. They rely on nearby capable organizations for mutual assistance in rescue efforts, and they also depend on local fire forces to complement their capabilities. Large enterprises that have the means can establish their own fire brigades, but this requires purchasing a lot of equipment and maintaining a pool of personnel, which is also a significant burden. So whether to establish a fire brigade depends on the company’s own needs; it’s better not to do so if external resources are available, as it’s costly.