Theater Marianske Lazne a 353-seat venue 150km west of Prague in
the Czech Republic is the first European building to be equipped
with Apollo's new range of XPander wireless fire detectors.
Euroalarm Ltd, who supplied the new fire detection system,
recommended XPander specifically to protect the decorative stucco
walls in the theatre, which might have been damaged by hard-wired
devices. The new XPander devices form part of a larger intelligent
fire detection system protecting back-stage, the dressing rooms,
ticket office and café.
Construction of the theatre in the spa town of Marianske Lazne
began in 1865 in the neo-renaissance style. However, war in 1866
stopped all building and it was not until August 1868 with the
performance of Offenbach's operetta "The Beautiful Helen" that the
theatre was inaugurated. During the 20th century, the theatre went
through many changes, including being rebuilt with an art nouveau
appearance in 1905. More recent renovations at the theatre required
a fire system upgrade sympathetic to its heritage.
The client's specification called for an appropriate fire
protection response for the heritage areas of the theatre, plus a
solution to nuisance alarms being caused by the multi-use nature of
the building. Euroalarm was able to select the perfect Apollo
products to match these differing requirements, as Vlastimil
Krátký, senior engineer, fire detection systems, at Euroalarm,
explains:
"All Apollo intelligent fire detectors use the same open digital
protocol, making them forwards and backwards compatible. This makes
our job so much easier, as it widens our choice of fire solutions.
In this case, we were able to specify the new wireless XPander
range for the heritage locations at the theatre, so we didn't
compromise the appearance of the theatre, alongside more
established devices like XP95 for combating false alarms being
caused by smoke during performances and steam in the café. Thanks
to Apollo, we were able to offer the client the most appropriate
fire detection solution for their needs."
The new XPander range of wireless fire detectors is designed for
ease of installation. Devices are connected to the fire system via
an interface which is wired to the loop. No special adjustment or
programming is required. Once connected, the XPander devices are
recognized by the control panel simply as another detector
connected to the system.
The fire detection system at Theater Marianske Lazne
incorporates approximately 80 XPander and XP95 devices in all,
configured around a single loop control panel and programmed to
enable a one-out, all-out evacuation. It is designed to EN54
standards.