integration of fire alarm systems with building control systems.
Installation of fire alarm systems in buildings based on a single controller is convenient, economical and practical. This is, so to speak, a typical opinion held by many installers. I will try to argue with it. And give reasoned answers to two main questions:
why is it impractical to install security and fire alarm systems based on a single controller in modern buildings;
and why is it so important to integrate fire alarm systems with the building control system.
Breaking stereotypes
In principle, stereotypes are not such a bad thing. But sooner or later the time comes for changes, caused primarily by the development of technology and technology.
Gone are the days when fire alarm systems in newly constructed buildings were installed on the basis of a single controller and controlled exclusively by the security service. The functions of fire alarms and security systems are seemingly similar: notification of unauthorized entry into the facility or the outbreak of a fire. In essence, these subsystems perform different tasks that are not related to each other in terms of the degree and parameters of response to an incident. Agree that detaining an intruder and extinguishing a raging fire are not the same thing. If the reaction of the security service alone is enough to protect the facility from an intruder, then coordinated actions of all services responsible for the functioning of the building are necessary to prevent a fire.
Today, due to the fact that buildings are equipped with security systems and engineering systems of a high degree of complexity, monitoring of various systems is actually carried out by two separate services: the security service and the service for operating the building's engineering systems. It would seem to be a purely organizational issue. But this is precisely why a special approach is required to the fire safety system, which is borderline and affects all life support systems of the building that are within the responsibility of both services.
We build a building fire safety system and integrate it
A modern approach to building fire alarm systems and their integration with other key building systems, output to the dispatching system.
When we talk about fire safety of a modern building, we assume that this system will not only notify us about the location of a fire in the building, but also turn on all the necessary systems to localize the fire and help people quickly and in an organized manner leave the premises. Fire safety systems of a modern building are complex and multifunctional. They not only signal a fire, but also control the life support systems of the building: they activate smoke removal and air pressurization systems, turn off ventilation, control the evacuation from the building and even start individual fire extinguishing systems in the building. When a fire occurs, the fire alarm system controller fully processes the complex algorithm of the fire protection systems. That is, at this time it is loaded by at least 90%. During a fire, the number of events in the system at one time can exceed tens or even hundreds. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to track the information coming from the fire alarm system. This means that an event such as unauthorized entry into a facility can simply disappear into the flow of other information at the time of the fire.
Agree that this reason alone is quite sufficient to avoid integrating security and fire alarm systems in one controller. But we also need to take into account the fact that separating these two systems allows us to increase their reliability many times over. If one of the controllers fails, we lose information only from one system, and not from two at once, as happens when combining two systems in one controller.
And here we are very close to the answer to our second question, why is it so important to integrate the fire alarm system with the building control system.
For successful fire fighting, it is very important to clearly coordinate the actions of all services responsible for the life of the building. This means that information from the fire alarm system must be sent to the control centers of both services: operation and security. Usually, the central post of the fire alarm system is located in the control room of the security service. It is from here that the location of the fire is determined and information about the fire is transmitted to the fire service. But information from the fire alarm system must also be sent to the control room of the operation service. Firstly, this will clearly determine the reason for the shutdown of ventilation units or the blocking of elevators. Secondly, the operation service will track the correctness of the shutdown of the systems and will be able to effectively monitor the survivability of the building during a fire. For example, monitoring the resistance of the building's supporting structures, switching to backup power supply of systems in the event of a loss of main power, etc.
Leading specialists in the fire alarm system market have already appreciated all the advantages of this approach. Moreover, this approach is becoming a trend. It is safe to say that the familiar abbreviation OPS (fire alarm) is gradually falling out of use. Fire alarms in modern buildings are separated from security systems and at the same time integrated into the building dispatching system.
Installation Features
Modern fire alarm systems are, as a rule, local systems that have their own controller and are capable of integrating with both building security systems and building dispatching systems.
Almost all leading foreign corporations have universal fire alarm system controllers and solutions for their integration in their product line.
For example, the Esser fire alarm system from Honeywell has its own controller that ensures fire safety in the building, but at the same time it can be integrated with the EF-EF security alarm and access control system based on the Winmag unified monitoring program. In addition, Esser has the ability to create an OPC client-server system for integration into the building dispatching system.
And such a large company as Siemens presents a comprehensive solution for automation and security systems, united by a single dispatching system of its own production. And yet, each system is a separate system built on separate controllers.
BOSCH Corporation presents on our market a reliable fire alarm system in German style based on the FPA 5000 controller, which has its own OPC client-server monitoring system BIS, integrated with building security and dispatching systems.
For example, the fire alarm manufacturer ESMI has created a special gateway for transmitting information via the LON protocol. This protocol is often used to build automation systems for modern buildings.
Another large fire alarm system, Simplex, from Tyco has a universal fire alarm controller 4100U, capable of implementing the most complex algorithms for managing fire safety systems and staged evacuation from a building, but, in addition, Simplex 4100U can be integrated into building security and dispatching systems by means of protocol conversion.
There are other examples of successful application of new trends in engineering and new safety concepts.
Conclusion
Fire statistics are depressing. According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, in 2007, 567 fires occurred daily in Russia. Therefore, it is obvious that today's fire alarm systems must be more reliable and smarter, and monitor and control the life support systems of a building, which are becoming more complex every year. That is why we say that a fire alarm system is not only a fire alarm, but also a control system. Integration of a fire alarm system with a building control system, to which the building's engineering systems are connected, is an urgent need.
From all of the above, we can conclude that the use of fire and security systems is advisable at small facilities. There is no security, no control, and the number of events per day barely reaches ten.
As for the systems of medium and large facilities, a structure from simple to complex is more suitable here. This concept involves building fire safety systems, security alarms on separate controllers with subsequent integration of all systems into a common system for monitoring security systems and building control. The use of such a concept will allow organizing a reliable fire safety system and fully monitoring the life support systems of the building in the event of a fire.