Especially in the area directly around the source of the fire, components (steel parts) will be twisted together into a compacted mass, or fused and entangled with cables and plant components. In the dismantling and salvaging process, as well as in the demolition carried out at the same time, the top priority is to ensure the safety of all persons.

Choosing and deploying the most suitable salvage equipment (crane with basket, cutting machines, nibblers, excavators, fork lifts, etc.) requires considerable experience.

Salvage operations also take place to determine the cause of the damage (this task is carried out by the fire prevention agency experts) and the reusability of machines and facilities (even if only as a spare parts warehouse).

Since almost every incidence of fire leaves behind poisonous and corrosive residues, the top priority is dealing with the materials to be disposed of in a professional, knowledgeable fashion. Protecting individuals by means of personal protective equipment (PSA) is legally regulated; the complexity of fire damage and specialist operational requirements demand, however, combined methods of application (e.g. working with extraction, pressurisation, use of neutralisation liquids, setting up dirt traps, etc.).

Following fire damage in the commercial and industrial sector, larger amounts of the same disposal material generally accrue. Because of this it is very important, despite the time pressure, to work out a specific disposal plan. The local disposal company is normally involved in these discussions.