Nido is a brand new 33-storey tower, situated in the heart of the bustling Spitalfields district of London, a modern student housing development providing 1,200 student beds as well as retail units, office space, residential apartments and a number of leisure facilities.
This type of high-rise student living demands a fire detection and alarm system that is second to none. Hence, Protec AlgoTec 6000PLUS multi-function loop driven detector sounders have been used throughout, installed as one device to provide a reduction in the total number of components required, leading to reduced installation time on site and a lower final cost.
The Protec system also utilises 2,300 of the company’s new fast-fix installation bases for detector/sounder modules, significantly speeding installation in line with the streamlined construction methods employed throughout the rest of the build.
An important benefit of the Protec 6000PLUS detectors is their ability to drastically reduce false alarms; typically in this environment this might be leaving a hot shower running, excessive aerosol use, or using a hair drier too close to an old type detector. The 6000PLUS achieves this excellent discrimination by using its sensitive, optical smoke detector, together with additional heat sensing elements.
The sensors are connected to Algotec 6400 Interactive Digital Addressable Fire Sensor Control Panels to provide the input, and then sophisticated algorithms are generated and used to match patterns of activity with hundreds of hours of test data. The Nido uses a total of four of these control panels at the college, with one more repeater for the tower itself, providing 43 loops in total. Despite the quantity of devices involved, wiring and commissioning was a relatively straightforward matter, as each component is uniquely addressable from the control panel.
Simon Field, Protec’s Southern Regional Sales Manager said: “The use of Protec’s Fast Fix detector bases was important in securing this project, as they significantly speeded up the installation process in line with the specified schedule associated with an inner city build such as this.”
The new purpose-built Nido student centre at Spitalfields with its state of the art Protec FD&A system sets new standards of excellence for both accommodation and life safety. The project is now complete and ready to take students for the new autumn term.