Fire

Smoke alarm devices in smart buildings

by Mark Rowe

The European product norm 14604 specifies requirements for manufacturers who want to sell smoke alarm devices in EU countries. The current version dates from 2005 – and thus lags behind the rapid technical development by more than a decade, the German fire protection and security certification body VdS points out. The extensive possibilities of modern digitalisation and networking in this large and important market are not taken into account. For example, the standard was published two years before the first smartphone came on the market.

Ulrich Rabe, deputy head of the VdS fire protection laboratories, says: “There is a huge gap here between the relevant standard and the current possibilities of smoke alarm devices. Differentiation, eg. through integration in smart home systems, is crucial for gaining market share, since the typical optical signalling principle has existed since 1976 and is therefore very well-established. In accordance with VdS´ innovation focus, we now support manufacturers with precise ‘Guidelines for Home Protection Management Systems – Fire Detection and Fire Alarm Function’, thereby combining the opportunities of technical development with the demand for maximum safety – at all times in accordance with EN 14604.”

VdS 3438-3 are also the first guidelines permitting smoke alarm devices to sound an alarm in the event of a break-in – with a clearly distinguishable signal. Irrespective of all this, the top priority is, of course, saving lives in the event of a fire. Therefore, the core requirement is that the system always functions autonomously.

The new guidelines for the EN-compliant integration of smoke alarm devices in smart building systems are now available, free, from VdS. The VdS 3438-3en can be found at vds-shop.de/en.

Visit www.vds-global.com.

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