13 Apr False fire alarms reduced on Dubai metro thanks to Hochiki life safety devices
False alarms on the Dubai metro system have been brought under control with the introduction of Hochiki life safety devices.
The Dubai metro is the world’s longest driverless single metro line, and any disruption such as a false alarm could cause widespread problems as well as incurring financial operations significantly. The line is designed to take 13,380 passengers an hour on its green line and 11,675 passengers an hour on its red line at peak times.
Dafoos Fire and Security were commissioned to run the fire detection installation project on the entirety of the Dubai Metro. Trusted as a market leader in the Fire Protection Industry in the United Arab Emirates, Dafoos specialises in providing end-to-end design, erection and commissioning and maintenance of both active and passive Fire Protection Systems, and partners with some of the best OEMs in the world, including Hochiki.
The company’s Marketing Director, Vijay Chandran explained: “It was especially important as part of the life safety system design process to negate false alarms. Hochiki fire detection devices were chosen as they have a reputation for being the best in the market for their quality and their reliability when it comes to false alarm reduction.
“Our selection of Hochiki was confidently backed by the operators RTA and Serco.”
The Hochiki sensors were installed inside the metro and tram coaches, an area that can often be triggered accidentally due to thousands of people commuting at any one time. Any fire alarm trigger was programmed to send a command to the central station, and this would halt the operations within the entire network until the problem is rectified.
The Hochiki technical team also worked closely with the Dafoos team to negate the challenge of frequent dust build up in the chambers. It was advised that periodic maintenance of the sensors was moved from every 6 months to every two instead, which is customary practice for commercial buildings in the region.
Vijay Chandran added: “Hochiki Smoke Sensors have been installed across the entire Dubai Metro and tram coaches; they have been functioning with minimal issues for the last three years. Periodic maintenance has been conducted in conjunction with Hochiki’s technical team recommendation.
“Our team would not hesitate to recommend Hochiki life safety systems and products to be used in other projects within the transport industry.”