When leading property company, Bruntwood, acquired 100 Old Hall Street in the £39m Plaza Development in Liverpool, they called on the expertise of Solid State.

The refurbishment of the 15-storey building into luxurious office-space presented a real challenge as it was essential that the life safety equipment functioned throughout. This meant that the fire alarm system needed to be up-graded on a floor-by-floor basis so the existing alarms remained in operation while the new one was installed. Things were complicated further by the fact that, as a phased evacuation system, all new works had to use voice evacuation to comply with current building regulations.

Solid State came to the rescue by offering a cost-effective solution using a series of AVAC voice alarm systems, installing one on each floor as part of a networked fire alarm system. This enabled standard sounder tones to be played through the voice alarm speakers until the whole building was converted to voice evacuation, offering an easy change to voice alarm messages. Using AVAC massively reduced cabling costs as the voice alarm units sit on the fire alarm loop on each floor thus eliminating the need for costly separate voice alarm wiring.

The Plaza’s life safety systems now provide a far more robust system for disaster recovery as the loss of a control panel only affects one floor or part of a floor instead of the whole building. Another cost-saving element of this project is that the entire site is now ‘open protocol’ which means no costly tied-in maintenance contracts for Bruntwood.

Solid State will be exhibiting on Stand E4 at this year's Facilities Show at the NEC, Birmingham.

Running from Tuesday 9 May to Thursday 11 May 2006, the show is billed by organisers CMP International as "a must-attend event" for Facilities Managers and anyone else involved in the management of a working environment.

With over 30 years' experience in the design, installation and maintenance of fire alarms, voice alarms and other life safety equipment, Solid State will be on hand to offer visitors professsional no-nonsense advice on the various products and services it has to offer.

For more details about the show, please click on the logo below.

thefacilitiesshow

Solid State has been short-listed for the prestigious Award of Fire Safety Systems Installer of the Year.

Hailed as the ‘Oscars’ of the Fire Industry, the Awards celebrate best practice and innovation right across the sector and coincide with the UK’s biggest fire exhibition, Fire Expo 2005 (16-19 May, Birmingham NEC).

Says Nigel Thomas, Sales Manager at Solid State: "This nomination comes hot on the heels of our National Security Inspectorate’s (NSI) Gold medal for the design, installation, commissioning, handover, verification and maintenance of fire detection and alarm systems and is yet another string to our bow. We are delighted that our efforts have been recognised and acknowledged in this way".

SOLID STATE has become the first company in the north west of England to be awarded the National Security Inspectorate’s (NSI) Gold medal for the design, installation, commissioning, handover, verification and maintenance of fire detection and alarm systems.

It means we join an elite group of organisations that have had their work approved as meeting the NSI’s premier award scheme.

The objective of the scheme is to provide a means by which employers, building managers, users and regulatory authorities can be confident that the firms they choose to work on their fire protection systems have attained the necessary levels of competence. It involves assessing companies to some of industry’s most exacting standards including ISO 9001 and the new BAFE (British Approvals for Fire Equipment) SP203 scheme.

The NSI’s Chief Executive, Tom Mullarkey, presented the award to Solid State at this year’s International Fire and Security Exhibition, IFSEC.

Commented Graham Bell, Solid State’s Sales Manager: “We are delighted to have achieved this award which effectively confirms Solid State as one of the UK’s premier fire alarm installers.

“In the current climate of risk assessment, more and more onus is being put on employers and building managers to provide appropriate fire prevention solutions to protect staff and visitors. As such, it is important that the systems people put in place have been designed, installed, commissioned and maintained to the required standards and that proof - ideally through certification - is available to confirm this. Our status as an NSI Gold Award winner and BAFE Registered Firm allows us to issue appropriate fire certificates and gives our clients peace of mind that Solid State is a professional, standards-driven company whose work is of a consistently high standard.”

INTRODUCING the latest addition to Solid State's comprehensive range of induction loop equipment - the PL1/K1 portable induction loop system.

Ideal for counters, tabletops, reception desks and interview rooms, it offers an easy and economical way of helping service providers and building managers comply with some of the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.

The unit can be moved easily from location to location and generates a loop listening field of approximately 1.2 square metres, thus allowing the hearing impaired to participate more effectively with people in their immediate vicinity.

Easy and straightforward to use by both staff and members of the public, the amplifier features one simple on/off button and can be ready to use in seconds. It is supplied with an on-board microphone and battery plus a plugtop charger and induction loop available sticker.

Trading at just £149.00 + VAT, the PL1/K1 is ideal for use in ticket offices, reception areas, community centres, schools, colleges and shops. To place an order call our sales desk now on 01257 463018 or, for further information, why not download a copy of our new Induction Loop Equipment brochure via our documents page.