New Dawn for Apollo Fire Detection at Sofitel London Heathrow
A flagship luxury 605 room hotel at Heathrow's Terminal 5 has
been equipped with a sophisticated intelligent fire detection
system based on Apollo technology.
Sofitel London Heathrow is one of the largest conference hotels
in the UK, owned and operated by Arora International Hotels. The
hotel has been conceived as an oasis of luxury for discerning
international business and leisure travellers passing through
Terminal 5 at London's Heathrow airport.
Leader Systems, based in Rugby, was appointed by the main
mechanical and electrical contractor Crown House Engineering to
design, supply, install and maintain a comprehensive fire detection
system. Leader had no hesitation in specifying Apollo intelligent
fire detection technology and Advanced Electronics control
equipment to meet the client's exacting standards.
The project
Heathrow's only luxury hotel comprises three below-ground levels
housing car parking and extensive conference facilities, including
a lecture theatre with widescreen cinema and 45 meeting rooms. The
hotel boasts five atria with various public areas such as a tea
salon and a Zen garden; the main reception; and the "Avenue
Sofitel", the central boulevard of the hotel where retail outlets
can be found.
Above the ground floor are six four-storey blocks comprising 605
bedrooms and suites. Among the many unique features of the hotel is
a link bridge that enables guests to walk directly from hotel to
airport terminal in under five minutes.
At any one time, the hotel could be host to several thousand
guests, with its conference and meeting facilities alone capable of
accommodating more than 3,000 delegates at any one time. In
addition to residents and non-residents, the hotel employs several
hundred staff. A comprehensive automatic fire detection system that
would provide reliable and accurate information in the event of an
incident was therefore essential to ensure the safety of guests and
employees alike.
Fire detection requirements
Leader Systems became involved on the project early in the
process. As well as taking responsibility for the automatic fire
detection, the company supplied related services such as the smoke
control system, emergency refuges, nurse call facility and PA
systems.
In addition to the main point fire detection, a fire assessment
identified the need for an aspirating system in the two metre void
above the lecture theatre, which houses the sound and audio
equipment. The lecture theatre's high ceiling means that
maintenance could be an issue, while the five atria presented
another challenge as they are wide open spaces. Beam detection, in
places on different levels, was specified for these areas.
Phased evacuation sequences were also closely evaluated at an
early stage, in conjunction with local fire officers and the
district surveyor. Requirements included stopping the hotel's 20
lifts safely, shutting off escalators, isolating the link bridge to
the airport and activating air conditioning, smoke dampers and door
closers as appropriate.
Due to the complexity of the fire system requirements, Mike
Simmons, Leader Systems contracts manager, was permanently based at
the hotel development site for 14 months to ensure success. He
says:
"The cause and effect sequences for the fire detection system
and related safety and evacuation equipment were extremely complex.
For example, to achieve the interface between the fire system and
the sprinkler system involved the installation of sixty separate
flow switches. We then had to develop a bespoke mimic panel to
enable the emergency services to interpret the sequences correctly
so that resources could be deployed effectively in the event of an
emergency."
The layout of the hotel and the variety of activities it
contains - such as eating, cooking and sleeping - meant that a
range of environmental conditions needed to be taken into account
to ensure that nuisance alarm incidents were minimised. Leader
Systems chose Apollo's Discovery range of intelligent fire
detectors to meet these requirements.
Apollo's Discovery fire detectors can operate in one of five
response modes, any of which can be selected from the control
panel. Each mode corresponds to a unique response behaviour, which
can be broadly related to sensitivity to fire.
Says Mike Simmons: "When you are faced with the type of
complexity we encountered at Sofitel London Heathrow, being able to
use fire detection technology that is proven to be reliable and
accurate in the field is very reassuring. Apollo's open digital
protocol enabled us to link safety-critical systems together
effectively and its Discovery range of intelligent fire detection
devices offered the flexibility of programming and product choice
necessary to meet all the environmental and operational
requirements of this fascinating project."
The hotel's fire detection system incorporates 5,500 Apollo
Discovery devices and is controlled by a network of 21 Advanced
Electronics control panels. The hotel opened in July 2008 - on time
and within budget.
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