Maritime climate
The Bay of Fundy coast is damp and foggy, so ingress protection and corrosion resistance are useful.
The Port of Saint John is Canada's third-largest by tonnage, with a cargo base that includes dry and liquid bulk and break bulk, giving the refinery and terminals deep-water supply routes. Crude arrives by supertanker at the Canaport deep-water terminal, and process units and storage contain classified areas. This page explains what to look for in an Ex-proof smartphone for Saint John, New Brunswick, and where the IS-04Z1 stands against that list today.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Saint John, New Brunswick: pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
Where things stand: the IS-04Z1 has not launched, and none of its four certification routes has produced a certificate yet. Operator approval runs on its own timeline. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Ex marking | Group, category, protection concept, gas group, temperature class | II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 (target) |
| Gas group | IIA, IIB or IIC matched to the area drawing | IIC (target) |
| Temperature class | T-class below the ignition temperature of the gas | T4, 135 °C (target) |
| Where it applies | Saint John, New Brunswick: Refinery process units, Crude and product storage, Marine terminal | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Saint John Refinery. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
The companies on site and the hazardous-area types a handset is likely to meet there.
The Bay of Fundy coast is damp and foggy, so ingress protection and corrosion resistance are useful.
More than 80 per cent of production is reported as exported to the United States.
The Bay of Fundy never fully freezes, which moderates winters, but the January average is still about minus 8 degrees Celsius and rain and snow total roughly 1,295 mm a year, so outdoor equipment faces cold, wet conditions.
The Canaport LNG regasification terminal was permitted for an initial 1 billion cubic feet per day and was set up by Irving Oil and Repsol to serve Atlantic Canada and the US Northeast.
Irving Oil moves much of its product by tanker to regional terminals at ports in Atlantic Canada, Quebec and New England, an area it treats as under-served by pipelines.
The Irving Oil Refinery in Saint John was built from 1960 with a California partner and expanded to Canada's largest refinery, processing over 300,000 barrels per day.
“Ex-proof” is shorthand for equipment carrying an explosion-protection marking (the Ex mark) that matches the area it enters. The marking states the protection concept, gas or dust group and temperature class, and it must be backed by a certificate issued by a recognised body, so a phone described as Ex-proof should come with a certificate number you can check.
The IS-04Z1 is designed to carry the marking II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. That is a target: certification is in progress, no certificate has been issued, and SAMS will publish the certificate numbers when they exist.
In Saint John, New Brunswick. A marking check at Saint John would compare gas group and temperature class with the refinery's data for process units and storage. The IS-04Z1 target marking is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4, subject to certification. Irving Oil decides whether that suits each area, including the marine terminal.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
No. Nothing can be bought or taken into a classified area today: certification is in progress and launch is planned for Q4 2026. What is available now is the datasheet, the written certification schedule and evaluation units for safe-area use.
No price is published. While certification is in progress there is no list price and no committed lead time, and a supplier quoting a firm figure for an uncertified Ex handset is promising something it cannot stand behind. Indicative pre-launch pricing is issued in writing against a stated quantity and site.
The marking target is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. It becomes a marking only when the certificate is issued; until then it is a design target.
Likely candidates are refinery process units, crude and product storage, marine terminal. Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Not exactly. Explosion proof is a broad everyday term; intrinsic safety is one protection concept, which limits energy so ignition cannot occur. Flameproof (Ex d) is a different concept that contains an explosion. The IS-04Z1 is intrinsically safe by design.
Large refineries run planned maintenance outages that bring many contractors, with operator-set dates. Ask the operator's contractor team about timing, site induction and which devices are approved for process areas, and book any certified equipment early.
A coastal port brings humidity, salt and fog, and winters are cold, so sealed devices with corrosion-resistant connectors and low-temperature ratings are sensible. Confirm operator guidance on ingress protection and temperature class.
It can. The Bay of Fundy coast is damp and foggy, so ingress protection and corrosion resistance are useful. IP68 describes dust and water protection, not explosion protection. Check the datasheet for environmental limits and ask Irving Oil how long devices stay outdoors on the marine terminal.
Other guides for Saint John Refinery, other places in Canada, and the pages behind them.
Send the site, zone and gas group and roughly how many handsets. We reply by email with the datasheet and the certification schedule.
Send the zone and gas group of your site and we will reply with the datasheet and schedule.