System Upgrade Delivers Ship-Shape Fire Protection at HMS Belfast

HMS Belfast, the most significant surviving Royal Navy warship from the Second World War, has been equipped with leading fire protection from Advanced.

Permanently moored as a museum ship on the River Thames in London, the decommissioned Royal Navy warship, HMS Belfast is owned and operated by Imperial War Museum (IWM). As part of ongoing fire system upgrade works taking place across the Museum’s estate, an eight-loop and a two-loop MxPro 5 fire panel, along with a TouchControl touchscreen remote control terminal and repeater, have been installed across six of the battleship’s nine decks, as well as in its on-shore visitor pavilion.

Facilities services company Atalian Servest was responsible for the installation, commissioning and networking of the fire panels in accordance with BS 5839. The panels were integrated with around 700 Apollo Xp95 detectors and interfaced with VESDA aspirating smoke detection.

Shane Robinson, Project Manager at Atalian Servest Fire & Security, said: “Following a number of successful MxPro 5 installation projects across numerous buildings operated by the IWM estate, Advanced’s solutions were our first choice when recommending a fire system for HMS Belfast. The fire alarm control and indicating equipment is both modern and extremely user-friendly for clients to operate, with the added functionality and aesthetics of the TouchControl panel.”

TouchControl is the low-profile, high-resolution touchscreen repeater that makes it easy to check fire system status via interactive maps and zone plans, while complementing a wide range of interiors. When in standby, it can be used to display branding, advertisements and information, but will instantly revert to fire operation when a fire condition occurs.

Responsible for the supply of the fire alarm control panels for the project at HMS Belfast was Advanced’s long-standing partner, ADI Global. Gareth Roberts, Category Manager of Fire for UK and Ireland at ADI Global, said: “It’s a pleasure to have been able to supply Atalian Servest with the MxPro 5 and TouchControl equipment required to protect such a treasured and iconic part of Britain’s maritime history.

“The customer chose ADI due to our excellent value proposition and our commitment to deliver against requirements. We utilised our extensive, industry leading stock portfolio to ensure the customer’s expectations and requirements were met throughout the lifecycle of this project.”

MxPro 5 is the fire industry’s leading multiprotocol fire system solution, certified by FM Approvals to the EN 54 standard. It offers customers a choice of four detector protocols and a completely open installer network, backed up by free training and support. MxPro 5 panels can be used in single-loop, single-panel format, or easily configured into high-speed networks of up to 200 panels covering huge areas. Ease of installation and configuration, as well as its wide peripheral range, make MxPro 5 customisable to almost any application.

Neil Parkin, Regional Sales Manager for the North at Advanced, said: “With around 350,000 visitors to the warship each year, the newly installed category L1 system provides the highest standard of protection to those onboard. Thanks to the work of all involved in this project, I’m confident that Advanced’s solutions will deliver unrivalled protection for many years to come.”

Advanced, owned by FTSE 100 company Halma PLC, protects a wide range of prestigious and high-profile sites across the globe – from London’s Shard to Abu Dhabi International Airport and the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Macau Bridge

Advanced is a world leader in the development and manufacture of fire protection solutions. Advanced’s reputation for performance, quality and ease of use see its products specified in locations around the world, from single-panel installations to large, multi-site networks. Advanced’s products include complete fire detection systems, multiprotocol fire panels, extinguishing control, fire paging, false alarm management and reduction systems as well as emergency lighting.

Halma is a global group of life-saving technology companies with a clear purpose to grow a safer, cleaner, healthier future for everyone, every day.