COLORADO WILDFIRE INFRASTRUCTURE
Colorado Wildfire Infrastructure
Water, power, and fire-protection systems built for high-risk sites
Colorado’s wildfire-interface zones present a specific set of infrastructure constraints: limited municipal water, remote access, high elevation, winter exposure, and outage risk. Effective wildfire protection depends on the performance of the infrastructure backbone—water supply, pumping capacity, pressure stability, standby power, and controls.
Highline Infrastructure Group is headquartered in Colorado and designs and builds mission-critical systems for sites where failure is not an option.
Why Colorado Wildfire Sites Are Different
Many wildfire protection failures are not caused by spray components—they are caused by infrastructure limitations. Colorado sites frequently involve:
Limited water availability
Municipal supply may be constrained or unavailable. Dedicated storage and engineered supply becomes the primary reliability driver.
High elevation & long runs
Static lift, long pipe runs, and elevation gain materially change pump sizing, pressure stability, and overall performance.
Outage and access risk
Utility outages and constrained access during events increase the need for standby power, remote readiness verification, and serviceability planning.
The Infrastructure Backbone That Determines Performance
Highline approaches wildfire protection as an infrastructure problem. Reliable performance depends on four core layers:
1) Water supply
Dedicated storage (cisterns or ponds), engineered intakes, wet sumps, and suction protection that maintain usable flow.
2) Pumping & pressure stability
Transfer and booster pumping sized to achieve defined terminal flow and pressure at critical connection points.
3) Standby power
Generators and ATS integration sized for real motor starting loads and runtime requirements when utility power is compromised.
4) Controls & commissioning
Sequencing, permissives, VFD tuning where appropriate, and verification testing so the system behaves predictably when needed.
Common Failure Modes Highline Designs Against
- Pumps sized without true friction loss, elevation gain, or terminal performance requirements
- Poor suction conditions (intake geometry, screen limitations, NPSH issues) causing cavitation and premature failure
- Unstable pressure profiles and water hammer due to inadequate pressure stabilization planning
- Generators undersized for motor starting loads or derating at elevation
- Control logic drift, mis-sequencing, or unverified interlocks preventing reliable operation
- Insufficient winterization, service access, or maintainability planning for remote sites
How Highline Approaches Wildfire Infrastructure
- Define performance targets: required flow/pressure at connection points and runtime expectations.
- Model real constraints: elevation, long runs, suction conditions, and seasonal exposure.
- Engineer the backbone: water supply, pumping, pressure, standby power, and controls integration.
- Commission and verify: startup, tuning, testing, and documentation so the system is ready when needed.
Request a Colorado Site Assessment
If your property is in a wildfire-interface zone and requires dependable water supply, pumping performance, standby power, or integrated control systems, Highline can evaluate constraints and define the right infrastructure approach.
Contact Highline Infrastructure Group