Gilberts: Addressing the challenge of protecting a complex building from fire

How do you ensure optimum fire protection for a nine storey, 14,000 square metre building that requires high-end levels of finish, N+1 resilience, is used by vulnerable people and contains highly flammable gases? This was the challenge facing building services specialists Briggs & Forrester Engineering Services – it was answered by Gilberts Blackpool.

The project is the result of team ingenuity in the design of components and the system over the four years from inception to practical completion.

Ultimately, 800 Ductgard smoke and fire dampers, all managed by a bank of Gilberts’ addressable control panels, are delivering high efficiency, reliability, durability and the level of resilience demanded for protection of plant and people.

Gilberts’ Ductgard unit met the stringent project criteria. Certified to latest fire safety standard BS EN1366-2 and CE-marked, the unit features interlocking double skin blades, automatically triggered by a fail-safe electo thermal link release or the fire/smoke detection system. Ductgard can be fitted within a fire barrier wall or floor, in horizontal or vertical positions. 

PLC panels

Each Ductgard damper interfaces with a series of programmable logic controller (PLC) addressable panels, to reduce cabling and satisfy the complex cause and effect strategy demanded by the building owner.

The building services for the project have been very detailed and complex, to deliver robust systems that comply with all the specialist requirements and standards of excellence required by the client. 

Mark Smith, Briggs and Forrester Engineering Services’ Operations Manager, comments: “The building services for the project have been very detailed and complex, to deliver robust systems that comply with all the specialist requirements and standards of excellence required by the client. Gilberts has been very good in its level of technical support to help us design an efficient solution that is compliant with the latest Standards, and to then deliver it. Gilberts’ commissioning of the fire protection system it supplied gives us additional peace of mind going forward towards hand-over.”

Martin Malyon, Gilberts’ National Fire Damper Product Manager, says: “The risk management inherent in the building’s end use meant that design and implementation of the best possible system for containment and evacuation in a fire situation was paramount.

“The Gilberts’ team applied considerable ingenuity in designing, testing and validating the solution, that not only delivers in performance but in ease of installation and maintenance.”

Founded 60 years ago, Gilberts is Britain’s leading independent air movement specialist, and is unique in its ability to develop components for natural or mechanical ventilation in commercial environments.

Be it ‘mainstream’ or bespoke, from initial design through tooling, production, testing and supply, at its 95,000 square foot manufacturing facility. Its state of the art test centre, designed and built in-house, is one of the most technically advanced in the country.

Contact:

Gilberts of Blackpool,
Gilair Works,
Clifton Road,
Blackpool,
FY4 40T

Phone: 01253 766911
Fax: 01253 767941

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