Protec system will minimise false alarms in Nido building
To minimise the occurrence of false fire alarms and reduce installation time in the new Nido 33-storey student-accommodation tower in London, Protec AlgoTec 6000Plus multi-function loop-driven detector sounders have been used throughout. This building in the Spitalfields area houses 1200 students and also provides retail units, office space, residential apartments and a number of leisure facilities.
The detectors and sounders have been installed as one device to reduce the number of components required, leading to shorter installation time and lower final cost. The system uses 2300 Protec fast-fix installation bases for detector/sounder modules, significantly shortening installation time.
The potential for false alarms include hot showers being left running, excessive use of aerosols or using a hair drier to close to a old type of detector. The 6000Plus achieves this excellent discrimination by incorporating a sensitive optical smoke detector and additional heat-sensing elements.
The sensors are connected to Algotec 6400 interactive digital addressable fire-sensor control panels to provide the input. Sophisticated algorithms are generated and used to match patterns of activity with hundreds of hours of test data. The Nido uses four control panels at the college with another for the tower itself — providing 43 loops in all. Each component is uniquely addressable from the control panel.
