Area specific
Because of the diverse environments in hotels, fire safety considerations for each area must be planned individually. The challenge is to build these individual systems in such a way that they can communicate to one central fire and life safety system for overall hotel protection.
The lower floors of hotels are often occupied by meeting rooms, retail areas, ballrooms, or casinos.The fire and life safety approach for these areas may be quite different than the approach used in sleeping rooms.
Typically, the floor to ceiling height is taller and individual compartments are larger on the lower floors of the building. Airflows play a major role in the effectiveness of detection devices, and an exhaust system may be more helpful in smoke control.
Alternatively, lower floors of hotel buildings may have interconnected levels.The design intent for a smoke control system in these areas might be to keep smoke on one floor from traveling to an adjacent floor through the floor opening.This also would be done with an exhaust approach. For example, the commercial kitchen will have a different plan of action than the lobby. One option would be the addition of a beam smoke detector to the addressable panel loop. A beam detector can monitor a large open space, such as a lobby atrium, by using an optical sight to provide an early warning signal. Beam detectors have advanced algorithms to select optimum sensitivity for a specific environment. Remote test stations can facilitate maintenance and NFPA 72 test requirements.
Some of the lower floors may also use a pressurization approach to prevent smoke on these floors from traveling to the noninvolved hotel floors. There is no “one-size-fitsall” approach to protecting the lower levels.The smoke control concepts must be developed to address the particular life safety needs for each unique hotel. The best case scenario is a life safety plan that examines all of the various fire scenarios that could occur in different areas of a hotel and recommends actions to address those scenarios.
Human response
It is also important to note that the best detection technology is worthless unless there is a capable human being who can react to the life safety system data and respond properly to incidents.
A team that includes proper system application engineering, maintenance, and response training responsibilities needs to be incorporated into the fire and life safety plan.This team should involve the system’s designer, vendor, installer, ERT staff, and regulatory agencies. Only then can a hotelier be assured that there are no blind spots related to successful system application, operation, and maintenance.This structure also supports a strong training strategy, which is most effective when it is treated as a team endeavor. Being able to provide very early warning of a potentially hazardous event allows early evacuation of people and minimizes the impact to the hotel.
Addressable technology significantly improves real-time life safety system monitoring. Fully networked addressable systems enable operators to assess the status of detectors dispersed throughout a hotel instantly. An addressable system contributes to potential life saving and property preservation through optimum communication speed, pinpoint accuracy, and enhanced response time. It allows diagnosis, and in some cases even repair, from a central location for improved system maintenance.
Networked addressable fire and life safety systems use one of two types of communication media. An RS-485 network uses a single pair of copper wires to connect multiple buildings’ addressable systems on one network. Fire and life safety systems can also use fiber-optic cable, which is used extensively in telecommunications and data applications, as an alternative.
The choice depends on site conditions, including whether there is an existing utility trench; the environmental conditions within an existing trench system (e.g., copper performs poorly in damp environments); and availability of spare capacity on an existing fiber-optic network, as well as the thoroughness of the hotel’s master plan. For example, if fiberoptic telecommunications networking is planned, allow spare capacity for fire alarm and life safety systems.
There are many interface options for remote system monitoring and control, including elaborate graphical user interfaces (GUIs) on large stationary monitors or small portable ones.Today’s fire and life safety systems offer more flexibility and rapid expandability with the integration of addressable smoke detectors.
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Tags: Smoke detection
Posted in Audible/Visible Notification, Cover Features, Hospitality, Spring 2008
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