Kentec strengthens team and product portfolio to support growth in China

Frank Tan has been appointed business development manager for the Asia Pacific region and will play a key part in Kentec’s expansion into the rapidly growing Battery Energy Storage Systems market in China, as well as increasing the overall presence of the brand in this key commercial zone.

A graduate of the University of Science and Technology in Beijing and the recipient of an MBA from Shanghai’s Donghua University, Tan boasts three decades of experience in the fire safety and detection arenas having worked with prestigious brands including Johnson Controls, VESDA, Airsense and SDHY.

Further, Tan is the holder of both a Registered Electrical Engineer Certificate and a Registered Fire Engineer Certificate.

Derrick Hall, director of sales and marketing at Kentec, informed Fire Safety Matters: “Frank brings invaluable knowledge and experience of the market in both China and the wider region. He will help to drive Kentec’s growth in the fast-moving Battery Energy Storage Systems sector where fire presents a considerable risk for operators.”

Addressing the risk

In response to the massive growth of BESS installations in the region, most notably so in China, Kentec has developed a solution that effectively addresses the particular fire risks. Such installations are often located at remote and unmanned sites, in turn making fire episodes harder to detect and suppress and the risk of costly damage that much higher.

Building on this new solution, Kentec will shortly launch a flammable gas sensor purpose-designed to detect specific gases in BESS applications that could lead to combustion. The sensors are calibration-free over their lifetime in order to save on site servicing costs.

In operation, when one of the sensors is connected to a Kentec panel (such as the ZXT or other Kentec extinguishing and releasing systems), the solution alerts operators to the circumstances that might give rise to potentially lethal explosive gases and fire before anything can happen, duly allowing those operators to mitigate the risks posed through venting or other measures.