FIRE SAFETY NEIL PARKIN – REGIONAL SALES MANAGER, ADVANCED ELECTRONICS LTD, UK
Role of fire protection in healthcare facilities
Neil Parkin, regional sales manager of Advanced Electronics Ltd, explains why a high- performance fire protection system is essential for keeping patients and staff safe.
When it comes to fire protection, healthcare facilities pose numerous risks. These include the presence of countless fire hazards, difficulties in effectively maintaining fire protection across large and complex sites, as well as a high density of people – many of whom are vulnerable. As ever, the standard of fire safety is determined by the quality and effective implementation of physical fire protection. The standard of fire safety in healthcare
facilities is directly related to the quality and effective implementation of the fire risk assessment as well as the adequate provision of physical fire protection. Central to this is a high-performance fire protection system, with the most sophisticated of these capable of addressing the day-to-day challenges encountered by hospitals, clinics, care homes, and their staff.
Immediate and uninterrupted notification of alarm Hospitals are complex, often combining old and new buildings and spanning tens of thousands of square metres, with numerous departments such as A&E, critical care, specialist treatment centres, operating theatres, and wards. In these settings, networked fire systems deliver the greatest benefits. Networked fire systems can be relied
upon to control evacuation procedures from a central location or various locations and can be programmed to effectively reduce the number of false alarms. They work with third-party systems to control the release of suppressants, operate smoke control systems, manage the closure and release of fire doors, link to graphical control systems, and interact with building management systems (BMS). To do all of this effectively, the fire panels installed on these sites must communicate instantaneously with one
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another across vast networks, with miles of cabling. These systems need to work quickly and reliably, and process large numbers of changing signals in the event of a real fire situation. On larger healthcare sites, seconds count, and fast systems are highly valuable in maximising the time for verification, escape, and firefighting. Fire systems can now be configured to
allow the inter-connection of up to 200 fire alarm control panels (nodes) in a fault- tolerant configuration, relaying fire alarm signals across a complete 200 panel system in a few seconds. Using EN54-13 approved panels will give peace of mind
Neil Parkin
Neil has 30 years’ experience in the fire industry, gaining a wealth of experience firstly in fire system design and sales, before moving
into the arena of manufacturing and product sales. He has spent the last 15 years as sales manager at
Advanced and is responsible for all sales activity in Northern UK and Ireland.
that the system is designed and tested to continuously monitor network activity and ensure each panel performs in a fire situation.
Practical solutions for sensitive notification of alarm Nurse workstations In critical care areas such as intensive care units, patients are often immobile and likely to be connected to medical equipment. In a fire scenario, staff responsible for high-dependency patients need to be able to monitor the situation as it evolves, without causing panic and distress for those in their care. For this reason, sounders and speakers are not always required, and instead, fire system repeater panels can be used. Repeater panels, located in strategic locations such as nurse workstations, provide early notification of any fire detection events as well as system monitoring. Discreet and early notification affords staff time to prepare, and up-to- the-minute system status information enables them to make educated decisions on when it’s best to remain in place, shelter or evacuate.
Flashing beacons and strobes Flashing beacons or strobes provide another valuable way of discreetly notifying healthcare staff of a fire situation in cases where an audible alarm may cause issues. These visual warning devices are intended for use as part of the fire alarm system, but it is important to remember to choose those that have been independently certified to meet the requirements of the relevant product standard for the region. Although full consideration must be
given to any patients and staff who may be photo-sensitive or adversely affected by flashing lights, beacons, and strobes can deliver effective warning of a fire emergency.
Flexible detection options Traditionally, standard wired devices have been the go to option for fire detection. However, the nature of hospital buildings
IFHE DIGEST 2024
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