A network of Cygnus wireless fire alarm systems has been installed on a major construction site for the University of Cambridge.
The North West Cambridge Development alongside the M11 is a master plan to build a new district to be known as Eddington creating new affordable housing for university staff, as well as student accommodation, academic and commercial space. In addition to housing and infra-structure, an integral part of the new district will be a primary school, a nursery, a doctors’ surgery, supermarket and retail, senior living, a hotel, and sports pitches.
Bull Products’ Cygnus wireless alarm systems feature in the one of the construction sites in the centre of the Development where 349 homes are being built together with a food store, energy centre and health centre. Across this construction site, there are some 170 Cygnus wireless modules that have been installed by BAM Construction. These modules include fire call point alarms, combined fire call point and first aid alarms, heat detectors, smoke detectors, some of these being fitted with PIR intruder sensors, and all are linked wirelessly to a central control panel.
BAM is very pleased with the performance of the Cygnus system, Guy Milton, BAM’s Senior Site Manager made the following comment: “The development is a very large site, covering a lot of areas so we needed to record and receive alarm information at a central location. The Cygnus system is much better than other similar systems we have used, with no loss of signal or false alarms. It is very reliable and we particularly like the aspect that it is user-adaptable so it can be easily moved and re-addressed to suit changing circumstances on site”.
BAM has been using the Bull Products’ Cygnus system on this project since February 2016. The construction group recognised the benefits of the Cygnus wireless alarm system and specified it for installation across the site for floors, roofs and in the corridors and balconies of various buildings.
Intended specifically for use on construction sites, the CE marked Cygnus system has been designed for use in steel structured and dense concrete buildings and areas where there are many other radio frequencies in operation, and so attention has been given to achieving an excellent connection range. Where multiple sites are within range of each other, the Cygnus system is designed to operate on different site addresses so as to keep each system separate and interference-free. The Cygnus alarm system can link as many as 480 alarm and detector units in different zones on a construction site.
A major feature of the Cygnus system is the optional control panel which provides a very sophisticated capability with an event log function which records any events such as an alarm activation, low battery warning, and signal faults, all of which can be viewed if necessary in the history folder held on the panel. The system also has the ability to test all units and has an evacuate function which will act as a call point to the rest of the alarm units.
Each unit in the system can provide the panel with information at regular intervals. This explicit information confirms the unit is still present and what the battery status of each device is. This ‘heart beat’ message is monitored by the control panel where fitted and if the ‘heart beat’ is not heard for several intervals, the control panel logs a full status for that unit.
A PIR option is now available on any of the modules which can detect an intruder and alert off-site personnel for added safety protection.
