TrueAlert ES from Autocall Fire Detection Systems

by Passive

Autocall TrueAlert ES appliances are the industry’s most advanced line of intelligent, fully addressable notification products. Constant electronic supervision of each notification appliance and revolutionary self-testing capability help ensure that appliances will work when needed and enable building owners to avoid tedious and potentially expensive after-hours manual testing.

Highlights:

  • Delivers better protection: Each appliance has the intelligence to report its location and status to the Autocall fire alarm control panel, improving protection and giving facility managers and system operators the confidence of knowing all their notification appliances are ready to perform in an emergency.
  • Minimizes disruption to business operations with appliance self-testing: Built-in light and sound sensors enable the fire alarm control panel to detect the operation of the strobe and sounder and confirm whether the device tested properly. This means testing can be performed at any time, without disrupting building occupants and operations—it can even be scheduled to take place automatically.
  • Provides greater design and expansion flexibility: Flexible wiring architecture allows system designers to go further with less wire and face fewer design roadblocks. TrueAlert ES systems are also highly scalable, so they can grow and expand as buildings change and life-safety needs evolve.
  • Allows faster, easier, lower-cost installation: Addressable technology and a flexible wiring scheme make it possible to significantly cut installation time and cost. In many cases, TrueAlert ES appliances can be installed with smaller gauge, unshielded wiring, and the forgiving wiring architecture helps avoid mistakes during installation.
  • Provides stronger documentation and reporting capabilities: Appliance information and test history are stored and can be easily retrieved from an Autocall ES panel to generate reports for compliance officials.

www.autocall.com/

Euralarm welcomes new member Vanderbilt

by Passive

Following a decision of its Board, Euralarm has welcomed its newest member Vanderbilt. The company will join the Security Section of Euralarm. The Security Section represents the intrusion, access and video sector and is key stakeholder in organisations such as CertAlarm, CEN-CENELEC, IEC and the European Commission. Together with a diverse number of stakeholders in Europe, the section collaborates on finding solutions for today’s as well as tomorrow’s challenges for security in a digitised world.

The Security Section meetings gathers experts presenting on actual topics such as the standardisation landscape on video surveillance. The section liaises towards key standardisation groups in the security field and closely follows technological developments to guide regulation and standardisation. Concerning standards, the section continues informing members of changes and advocacy activities at both national and EU level.

Being a member of Euralarm Vanderbilt will benefit from Euralarm’s representation towards European institutions and standardisation organisations. This includes the monitoring of legislative and standardisation issues relevant to the industry. Vanderbilt will have access to the extended network of national associations and major companies in the electronic fire safety and security sectors, which form Euralarm’s members. The new membership will create opportunities for both sides, as it also strengthens the association.

Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt is a global provider of high-performance security systems across access control and intrusion detection. Vanderbilt is recognised for its future-proof, innovative, and easy-to-use portfolio that contains award-winning products such as access control solutions ACT365 and ACT Enterprise and intrusion solutions SPC and SPC Connect. An advocate of open platforms and integrations, Vanderbilt understands the issues customers face and provides multiple solutions that are designed to meet these needs.

European expertise on markets and opportunities

Companies joining Euralarm get a unique insight into what is happening in European markets and the opportunities that they might offer. They not only tap into the political expertise and understanding of the EU policy but can also make personal connections with technical and political experts and potential business partners.

Being a member of Euralarm enables companies and associations to gain expertise on standardisation. Members have their voice heard in Brussels and can support and direct standardisation and legislative processes.

euralarm.org/

www.vanderbiltindustries.com

Geofire: How can holding open doors prevent the spread of COVID-19?

by Passive

Reducing the spread of germs and bacteria has never been more essential in the current climate. Holding open internal doors provides an easy and effective method of infection control within your building, but it is important that this does not impact your fire safety.

Reducing door handle contact

A study by the New England Medical Journal, which researched the survival of coronavirus on a number of surfaces, identified that the virus was still detectable on hard surfaces such as plastic and stainless steel 72 hours later. While regular cleaning can help combat transmission, the inevitable use of door handles means that they can quickly become a hotspot for the spread of germs.

Improving visibility and aiding social distancing

While lock down restrictions remain uncertain, social distancing measures are expected to stay for some time. Holding open internal doors facilitates social distancing by allowing improved vision when entering or leaving a room, or when travelling through a corridor. Not to mention the post-COVID etiquette of whether or not you should hold the door open for the person behind you!

Increasing ventilation

Workplace guidance published on 11th May 2020 identified ways employers and employees can work safely during the pandemic. One of the recommendations included the requirement for increased ventilation which can be achieved by opening windows and doors. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said: “Good ventilation can help to minimise the risk of spreading coronavirus, so focus on improving general ventilation. Where possible, consider ways to increase the supply of fresh air, for example, by opening windows and doors”

The solution

Geofire’s Agrippa door holder allows a door to be hygienically held open in a fixed position, preventing the need to touch the door handle. The Agrippa door closer’s free-swing feature allows a door to be held open at any angle. Using ‘listen and learn’ technology, the Agrippa suite of products will automatically release the door on the sound of the building’s fire alarm. Wedges or homemade devices should never be used to hold open a fire door and is illegal should a fire occur. Building operators have a legal responsibility to ensure fire doors are not illegally wedged open to ensure that they can prevent the spread of smoke and flames. The Agrippa wire-free fire door holder and closer are fully compliant to the requirements of BS 7273-4 for standard actuation of fire doors, and third party tested and approved to EN1154 and EN1155.

Andy Collinson, CEO at Geofire said: “Wedging open a fire door removes its ability to stop the spread of fire, putting lives at risk. There are legally compliant solutions readily available if ease of movement around a building or increased ventilation is required. “From new builds to listed buildings, we have products to suit every installation; conventional hard wired, radio wire free and the Agrippa fire door holder and closer allow ‘dual mode’ installation, meaning you can install straight from the box and programme our innovative ‘listen and learn’ patent technology at a more convenient time”.

To learn more about Agrippa and how it can help infection control within your building, visit http://www.geofire.co.uk/agrippa-covid19-solution/.

National Standards Programme launched to ‘raise’ competence

by Passive

THE BRITISH Standards Institution (BSI) said that the new national standards programme would ‘raise professional competence in the built environment sector’.

BSI stated that the professional competence recommendations set out by Dame Judith Hackitt in her Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety are ‘set to be fulfilled’ by BSI in the new programme, which will ‘tackle the competence challenges identified’ by Dame Judith, and form part of the ‘package of measures recommended’ by the competence steering group (CGS) set out in the Raising the Bar report from the Construction Industry Council (CIC) last year.

The programme will be funded by the government and ‘designed to support the delivery of regulatory policy’, as well as the ‘new regulated roles responsible for building safety’ that have been ‘set out’ in the building safety bill. It will also enable the ‘large scale, industry led’ programme to raise competency across the sector, and includes an ‘overarching’ competency framework standard for ‘everyone working on a building’.

This standard is ‘intended to be used by key professions and trades including designers, contractors, fire risk assessors, building manager and others in specialist technical or corporate roles’. The framework meanwhile will ‘provide a set of core principles of competence’, including ‘leading and managing’ as well as ‘communicating’ and ‘delivering’ safety, risk management, regulations and processes, building systems, ethics and ‘fire/life safety’.

From this autumn the framework will be ‘made available for use’, and after three periods of public consultation and ‘refinement’, it will be published as a British standard, and include a set of competence requirements for the three newly regulated roles – which include the principal designer, principal contractor and building safety manager.

A number of fast track publicly available standards (PASs) will be produced to ‘meet the urgent need for competent individuals to fulfil these roles’ and ‘ensure the safety of residents’, with the roles having ‘overarching responsibility for the main activities affecting building and life safety at each stage of a building’s lifecycle’ – namely the design, construction and operation stages.

Each role requires ‘enhanced competences in addition to any discipline related competences’, relating to the ‘overarching’ position of ensuring that design intent of a building ‘is maintained’ alongside workers being ‘suitably competent’ to be employed and used in design, construction, refurbishment, maintenance and operation. The programme began in April 2020, and has been overseen by a ‘newly established’ built environment competence standards strategy group (BECS).

This group includes ‘strategic, senior level’ technical and policy experts from a ‘broad range of organisations involved in the design, construction and management of higher risk buildings’, and the programme itself will run until 2022. Scott Steedman, director of standards at BSI, stated: ‘Dame Judith Hackitt’s report asked the built environment industry to change its culture to safeguard people and their properties.

‘In response to the call to put clear responsibility at the heart of the system, BSI as the UK’s national standards body, has launched the professional competence standards programme. The new industry-led standards will support the building safety bill by “raising the bar” across workforce competence.’

Dame Judith commented: ‘The work of the [CSG] has been a “tour de force” and all of those who have been involved thus far are to be congratulated. As the baton is handed over to BSI to lead us through the standards development process, the whole industry needs to keep up the pace – not just to agree on the new standards, but to make them a reality in practice. That will require collaboration and cooperation, and demolition of silos – part of the culture change that is so urgently needed.’

Graham Watts, chair of the CSG and chief executive officer of the CIC, said: ‘This new stakeholder-led national standards programme, under the guidance of BSI, is the welcome and vital next step in raising and setting the bar for enhanced competence standards for all those engaged in ensuring that buildings are safe for their residents and occupants, through the design and construction or refurbishment phases and into the management of buildings in use.

‘It builds upon the framework of occupational competences across all sectors that the [CSG]has developed over the past two years.’

Building Safety Minister Lord Greenhalgh commented: ‘This government is determined to put residents’ safety first by bringing about the biggest improvements in building safety regulations in 40 years. Regulatory reforms alone won’t achieve this – we need to raise skills across the industry, backed by a strong national competence framework, and we are working together with the BSI and industry to make this happen. We welcome the expertise they bring to the vital work of raising standards of competence to make sure all residents are safe, and feel safe, in their homes.’

Chris Auger, head of schemes at BAFE, added: ‘BAFE is actively working on a number of Working Groups including the [BECS] strategy group and the [CSG] to help raise and set the bar of fire safety in the built environment.

‘It is vital that there is both a top down and bottom up approach to competence in order to have competent individuals working on and understanding fire safety in construction and, effective and competent management of life and fire safety which will have a “trickle down” effect leading to the much needed culture change that Dame Judith Hackitt has described.’

www.thefpa.co.uk

FIA publishes new guidance note on fire detection in high airflow environments

by Passive

FIA has just published a new guide that reviews best practice and the Standards underpinning contemporary fire detection systems for use in high airflow environments, including those used to automatically activate fixed gaseous fire extinguishing systems.

It focuses on UK practice, identifying relevant codes, and describing how they are used to achieve effective detection systems in these challenging environments. The document does not consider special hazards with liquid fuel fires and fast flaming fires which may not have a significant and detectable incipient stage.

The document considers detection in high airflow used for equipment cooling with a focus on electronic equipment. However, the principles are applicable to other forced ventilated situations and may be relevant to free or naturally ventilated conditions.

Find out more here – https://www.fia.uk.com/uploads/assets/55bd7faa-a8ac-40bc-9a1f1afd32853bfb/Guidance-Document-Fire-Detection-in-High-Airflow-Environments.pdf

Certification by BSI for the Power Light series OLYMPIA ELECTRONICS S.A.

by Passive

OLYMPIA ELECTRONICS S.A., with exports to more than 72 countries and its primary target quality, has adopted production and control procedures in recent years, which have resulted in the market for products that are fully compliant with European standards (EN). Most of its products have certificates from various laboratories such as LPCB, LLOYD’S, BSI, HEEQAC, EVPU, etc.

OLYMPIA ELECTRONICS S.A. has recently acquired a certificate from the European reputable BSI quality certification laboratory for the products: GRL-29, GRL-29/WP, GRL-29/ADR and GRL-29/WP/ADR. These luminaries belong to the Power Light series which are Self-testing Emergency Luminaires of non Maintained mode with high luminosity twin LED headlights.

The decision of strengthening the certification process for the company’s products, constitutes their top strategic upgrade choice. All the certifications, are the “key” to the competitive advantage OLYMPIA ELECTRONICS S.A. has and resembles the one-way to the increase of  its extroversion.

www.olympia-electronics.com/

Vimpex announces new brochure ‘Door Holders, Closers & Fire Door Accessories’

by Fire DoorsPassiveProducts

The Vimpex range of Wired and Wire-Free Door Holders and accessories offers the installer the broadest choice of mounting styles and holding power. Mounted onto a fixed surface, these door holders ensure retention of the fire door by means of a smart metallic keeper plate and is interfaced with the fire alarm system.

When it comes to building specification, ensuring there are appropriate fire safety measures in place to protect occupants is a top priority.

Wired and Wire-Free Door Holders are arguably the single most important fire safety mechanism, guard against the lethal spread of toxic smoke and fumes – by far the greatest cause of death in fires.

Keeping a fire door propped open is illegal. Makeshift stoppers prevent the closing of the door – allowing smoke and fire to spread throughout the building making it difficult for occupants to escape and become overwhelmed with smoke.

Door Holders are de-energised as soon as the fire is detected thus releasing the door without a potentially harmful delay. This also allows a door to be safely kept open if needed and automatically closed during a fire.

Find out more in the Vimpex brochure ‘Door Holders, Closers & Fire Door Accessories’ on their website – www.vimpex.co.uk

Coopers Fire: Boundary protection solved with the use of bespoke fire curtains

by Passive

Rolling Stock Yard is a new landmark development offering 57,500 sq ft of contemporary office and light industrial space. The building is located just 5 minutes’ walk from Granary Square and Coal Drops Yard in London, UK.

VolkerFitzpatrick were awarded a design and build contract with Deepdale Holding Investments Ltd, to construct a new office development, named Rolling Stock Yard, close to the King’s Cross regeneration area.

The new office building has been built following demolition of the existing early-nineties structure which was in its place. The new build will contain office space, a café, cycle storage, refuse stores and a single basement level. The roof level will include a patio and seating area with an overall floor space of approx. 7,200m2.

As there are potential adjoining buildings to be built within a radius of 5 metres, boundary protection was required to stop the spread of fire between these new buildings. This was accomplished by installing FireMaster fire curtains over the windows to meet the specific needs required under boundary protection fire regulations.

Designed by world-renowned architects Squire & Partners, multiple fire curtains were needed to prevent the spread of fire between buildings, as well as protect the lifts from the spread of smoke.

Fire curtains with smoke control over a lift opening offer fire integrity and prevent smoke from spreading through the building via the lift shaft in the event of a fire on any of the building’s floors. Coopers installed FireMaster fire curtains over the lift door openings over four floors to achieve this.

Boundary Protection was required as part of the fire safety solutions and therefore FireMaster fire curtains and FireMaster Concertina fire curtains were installed to ensure the fire safety requirements were met.

To avoid a post and side guides in the corner of the window, a FireMaster Concertina was installed to fit the shape of the window and drop to prevent the spread of fire to any nearby buildings.

The Coopers Fire large range of products for various applications means that there is an innovative fire protective product to fit the need of various designs and applications whilst achieving the necessary fire safety.

The FireMaster Concertina offers up to four hours fire resistance for heights to 5 metres or two hours for heights to 8 metres.

The FireMaster Concertina can be bespoke to each project and can be produced to fit an array of different shapes and sizes for it to fit any kind of building design in various applications.

Coopers Fire is a turnkey business, offering the customer a product and service with full provenance.

Coopers Fire designs, manufactures, tests, installs and maintains all its fire curtains from the business premises in Hampshire, UK.

www.coopersfire.com/

 

 

 

Firetrace releases new report on Wind Turbine Fire Protection

by Passive

Firetrace manufacture a range of systems that are suitable for the protection of key identified risks such as Transformers, braking systems & electrical enclosures. Their new report, The Complete Guide to Wind Turbine Fire Protection, answers commonly asked questions about wind turbine fires and details the costs associated with installing wind turbine fire protection as well as the break-even point for fire protection on various turbine sizes.

Wind turbines are expensive and highly technical machines. In order to be financially viable, these machines must operate for a number of years without interruption. The last thing an operator wants to happen is a fire of any size breaking out that would put the turbine out of action.

A study conducted by Imperial College in 2014 concluded that wind turbines might catch on fire ten times more often than is publicly reported. Turbines are prone to catching on fire due to their design, which places extremely flammable materials such as hydraulic oil and plastic in close proximity to machinery and electrical wires which can ignite a fire if they overheat or are faulty. The study found the main causes of fires are lightning strikes, electrical faults, mechanical failure and errors with maintenance.

Fire damage can be limited or even prevented by installing an automatic fire suppression system in the nacelle and base of the turbine that would rapidly suppress a fire at the point where it started preventing expensive unnecessary damage.  However traditional total flooding fire suppression systems may not always be suitable for the remote and ventilated risks that wind turbines create.  A better solution is to install a targeted system that uses pneumatics in preference to electronics. This removes the need for any separate backups using batteries or alternative power supplies and helps to make the system autonomous, robust and reliable. 

To find out more, visit www.firetrace.com/

Allegion UK: keeping compliant with fire safety regulations

by Passive

Ensuring compliance when it comes to fire safety isn’t just limited to checking a fire door and its operation. Of course, this is an integral cog in the wider fire safety clockwork, but there’s much more to it than just that, Allegion UK’s Karen Trigg explains.

Keeping staff or employees in-the-know about any evacuation plans could help to save lives – this isn’t just making sure everyone knows what to do in the event of a fire, it’s about educating employees about all workplace fire safety features, like how to use fire extinguishers and ensuring escape routes are kept clear of any potential fire hazards.

Here are some of the most common fire safety threats and what you can do to avoid them.

Fire Doors

Ensuring fire doors are properly maintained will help to contain a fire and buy precious time during an emergency evacuation. Checking a fire door is operating correctly is quick and easy, so there’s no excuse for letting standards split.

Not only are there simple checks to follow with the fire door itself, but employees should also be trained on the improper use of fire doors.

This means steering clear of wedging fire doors open. Not only does this pose legal threats, but it also renders fire doors obsolete. After-all, their primary use is to close in the event of a fire to reduce the spread of fire and smoke.

What’s more, fire doors are often placed in areas that will protect lives and property, such as doors accessing exit corridors or escape routes, so it’s imperative that they aid free passage.

Correctly installed hardware

Potential fire hazards can be avoided and controlled if the door hardware is installed correctly from the outset. This starts with a building’s installer or fitter. When installing door hardware, it’s important to ensure that you’re using either an approved or accredited installer.

The person fitting should be fully trained, as hardware that is installed incorrectly will not function properly, and can be more susceptible to damage and accidents.

Appropriate staff training

According to comparethemarket.com, 54% of people in the UK wouldn’t know what to do in the event of a fire.

History reveals that if the appropriate fire safety plans aren’t in place during a fire, businesses could be faced with severe repercussions. For starters, they’ll have to deal with a large fine on account of breaching regulations.

Then comes the added weight of a fractured reputation, followed by the burden of rebuilding a damaged property and the additional costs that come with that, too.

Not to mention that taking simple measures could be the difference between life and death – the sort of responsibility business owners wouldn’t want hanging over them.

All in all; it’s safe to say that implementing the basic necessary precautions is something every business should be doing. This starts with ensuring staff and employees are up-to-date with fire safety training.

Not only will they be clear of an evacuation plan, but it will also tune employees into how to spot fire doors and door hardware that aren’t working properly. For example, if a member of staff comes across a faulty door closer, they’ll know to report the finding to the appropriate person to get it sorted.

Keeping compliant with Fire Safety Regulations is a requirement for ensuring the utmost safety in any kind of environment. Don’t risk compliance when it comes to fire safety. Rest assured, peace of mind is better than leaving it to guess-work.

www.allegion.co.uk