More actions
| System Specifications |
|---|
| FACP: Simplex 4100ES InfoAlarm System Type: Addressable System Line Voltage: 120VAC NAC Voltage:70.7VRMS (audio) 24VDC (visual) Date of last known Upgrade: 2020 Year Opened: 1962/1971 |
The University of Calgary is a public university in Calgary, and it has many educational buildings with many fire alarm systems. This block in the Kinesiology building, Kinesiology A, has the most unique fire alarm system of all the buildings on campus! This building was built in 1962 as the Physical Education Building, four years before the University of Calgary was established. It was then expanded from 1969 to 1971 as the Kinesiology building, which included the swimming pool, laboratories, racquet courts, offices. It would keep its name until Kinesiology B came in 1981, when it got changed to Kinesiology A. The current fire alarm system was installed last year, and was upgraded to be voice-evac.
System Specifications
FACP
The facility is protected by a Simplex 4100ES InfoAlarm fire alarm system. There are three panels at the entrance, and they were installed in September 2020, replacing a variant from 2016. The system appears to have voice-evac capabilities. The permit issued for this was "Fire Alarm Upgrades - U of C Kinesiology Building "A"", probably due to the system being outdated apart from the panel.
Annunciators
There are no annunciators for the Simplex system, but there is an old Edwards 6500 annunciator which was installed in 1971. It is disconnected.
Notification Appliances
The notification appliances are all from Simplex's "TrueAlert" line of products. The notification appliances seen throughout are Simplex 4906-9151 (red, wall mount) speaker/strobes. They replaced the original Edwards "Adaptahorn/Flush Horn" 360 horns, despite them working very well. Outside the entrance, there is a Simplex 4906-9105 (red, wall mount) weatherproof remote strobe.
Initiating Devices
Pull Stations
The pull stations are all Simplex 4099-9001 addressable single-action pull stations, which replaced all the conventional pull stations from the previous 4100ES. The addressable Simplex pull stations from the previous system remain.
Automatic Detection Devices
None seen.
Former System Specifications
| System Specifications |
|---|
| FACP: Simplex 4100ES InfoAlarm System Type: Hybrid System Line Voltage: 120VAC NAC Voltage:24VDC, but horns may be 20VDC Date of last known Upgrade: 2016 Year Decommissioned: 2020 |
FACP
The fire alarm control panel was a Simplex 4100ES InfoAlarm. The fire panel was located in the entrance of this building, and it was installed as the replacement panel, as it replaced an Edwards 6500 or similar, which probably would have been installed in either 1971 when the last phase was built, or in 1981 when the other Kinesiology wing was built. The 6500 panel was upgraded to the 4100ES in 2016 due to code requiring more detectors in the pool area and ductwork, and the 6500 not having enough zones to fulfill that requirement, and due to the age of the panel. The panel is located at the entrance. However, since there were no building expansions, all of the notification appliances and pull stations from the 6500 system were left in place. Even though the Simplex 4100ES is addressable, the system is set up in a non-addressable manner. This system has NO troubles at all, and has been super reliable according to the campus security.
As of August 22, 2021 the 4100ES has been decommissioned and has been replaced with a voice-evac variant.
Notification Appliances
Very surprisingly, all of the notification appliances were original, for both the original part (1962) and 1971 expansion. They were Edwards "Adaptahorn" 360 (red) flush-mount horns, aka "Fire Horns", however, only the 1971 expansion's horns have FIRE HORN on them. These models are 20 volts DC. Despite the age of the horns, none have been replaced, all still in use! Most have the classic shield logo on the label, specifically in the original part. The ones with the post-1964 logo can be found in the 1971 wing. According to security, these horns are very loud and still working excellently. These are probably the longest-surviving notification appliances in Alberta. These horns were unfortunately taken down in 2020 after 58/49 years in turn for Simplex TrueAlert speaker/strobes.
Initiating Devices
Pull Stations
The pull stations in the original part mainly consisted of the original first generation Edwards 270-SPO, with the classic shield and "FIRE ALARM" at the top. In the 1971 expansion, they consisted of 2nd generation Edwards 270-SPO pull stations, with the original shield but no FIRE ALARM. Some had been replaced by Simplex 4251-20 or Simplex 2099-9754 single action, T-bar pull stations(when the Edwards 6500 was in service) or newer Simplex 4099-9001 addressable, single-action T-bar pull stations (when the 4100ES was installed). Other replacement pull stations included newer Edwards 270-SPO from the 1990s. The replacement Edwards pull stations could be found throughout the building, and they were installed when the 6500 was in service. These pull stations were all replaced to be up to code.
Automatic Detection Devices
None noticed, most likely Simplex 4098-9714 addressable photoelectric smoke detectors.
Bonus Information
User YYCsFireAlarmNimrod noticed a printer on the panel, that shows when the system goes into alarm, trouble, etc. The day before he went (March 4, 2020), there was a fire alarm. (the printout said "FIRE ALARM IN SYSTEM")
Gallery
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One of the horns in this block, in the original part. This horn was up for 58 years.
