Pompey prepared for anything this season, thanks to Apollo Fire Detectors
A fantastic new fire system is just one of the investments
Portsmouth Football Club has made in preparation for this year's
football season. The new fire system, which is installed throughout
Fratton Park, includes more than 450 fire detection devices
manufactured by Havant-based Apollo Fire Detectors Limited, who
have been a major sponsor of Pompey since 2007.
Derek Stone, who is responsible for safety at Fratton Park,
says:
"Our primary concern is to make sure that the 21,000 fans who
attend matches at Fratton Park arrive and go home safely. We also
want them to enjoy the game without unnecessary interruption from
false alarms. It was therefore critical that we had a fire system
which would enable us to investigate any potential incident and
give us total control over evacuation procedures."
Waterlooville-based Christie Intruder Alarms supplied and
installed a fire system to meet these requirements. It features
Apollo Discovery intelligent fire detectors which can analyse the
signals from their smoke or heat sensors and decide whether the
source is likely to be smoke from a real fire or just a temporary
blip caused by, say, cooking in one of the catering outlets.
The new fire system also features a special 'match-day' mode
that gives Derek all the control he needs. During normal operation
on non-match days, the fire system behaves much like any other. It
constantly monitors for signs of smoke or heat that could indicate
the beginnings of a fire. Any incidents are flagged up in the
central control room for investigation or actioning by security
staff who are on call twenty-four hours a day.
In match-day mode, however, the system will instead directly
alert Derek and his team of five fully trained fire wardens so that
one of them can check the cause of an alarm.
Says Derek: "There are some incidents that can raise an alarm
even though there isn't a fire. It could be that someone either
accidentally or maliciously activates one of the manual call
points. We've also had incidents previously where steam from the
showers fooled the fire system into thinking it was smoke. I
certainly don't want to be responsible for evacuating 21,000 fans
just because someone takes an early bath!"
By alerting staff first, Pompey's new fire system will avoid
this eventuality. If the incident is non-fire in origin, staff can
take appropriate action and reset the system. Should a genuine fire
break out, staff can trigger a general alarm throughout the
stadium. They also have the option to relay voice messages via the
stadium's existing PA system to enable a phased evacuation and
direct fans away from the seat of the fire.
Derek concludes: "The new fire system gives me the ability to
manage and control any incident and means that we're ready for
anything. Fans can continue to come and go safely and we're
confident that their enjoyment of the match will be uninterrupted
by false alarms."
Commenting on the completion of the new fire system, Richard
Bramham, Marketing Director at Apollo Fire Detectors, said: "We're
delighted that our fire detectors are now installed at Fratton
Park. It seems very appropriate that locally manufactured products
are now protecting local people as they support their local team.
We wish Pompey every success for this year's football season."
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