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Pioneering
Engineering - C-TEC extinguisher panel installed at Coop Headquarters
C-TEC’s powerful EP203 automatic extinguisher panel is now in
operation in the new data server room at United Co-operatives’ prestigious
Headquarters at Rochdale’s Sandbrook Business Park.
As the largest of the Co-op societies in the UK, with a turnover of £2.5
billion and 17,000 staff, the safety of United Co-operative’s
central IT equipment is essential. As computers and electronic equipment
are
particularly susceptible to fire and heat, it is vital they are safeguarded
by the highest
possible levels of fire protection equipment.
C-TEC’s EP203 is at the heart of the fire protection system in
the impressive new IT server room. The panel continually monitors
and controls
an FM200 Halo-carbon Gas Suppression System. In the event of a fire,
the panel will release a fire suppressant gas to extinguish fire
with minimum
damage to the equipment housed within the protected area. Secondary
fire detection is provided in both the room and floor voids by an aspirating
smoke detection system.
Says Liam Ogden, Project Engineer at Solid State, the company
which installed the system: “IT server rooms require the
highest levels of protection - even a small fire can result in
thousands of pounds of damage
and hours of downtime from which it can be difficult to recover.
The EP203 installed at United Co-operatives is configured for both
automatic and manual
operation thus enabling a sensitive and rapid response to fire
conditions within this critical and high value environment”.
One of many of Solid State’s automatic extinguisher projects,
the system has been designed and installed in accordance with BS5839:2002
Fire Detection
and Alarm Systems for Buildings, BS6266:2002 Code of practice
for fire protection for electronic equipment installations and ISO14520-Extinguishing
Systems.
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