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Protecting UAE superstructure

Xtralis VESDA VLS aspirating smoke detectors will provide fire prevention at the new Abu Dhabi International Airport Midfield Terminal Building (MTB), scheduled to open in 2017. The MTB will be the largest in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and one of the region’s most architecturally impressive structures. Xtralis VESDA and VESDA-E aspirating smoke detectors (ASD) now protect many of the United Arab Emirates superstructures, including the Burj Khalifa, Emirates Palace Hotel, and Dubai and Abu Dhabi international airports. Xtralis VESDA brand is the world’s most dominant aspirating smoke detector, with greater than 65% ASD worldwide market share, according to estimates from IHS Technology.

The new Midfield Terminal Complex (MTC) will have 700 000-square-metres of internal space for a passenger terminal (MTB), cargo facility, and restaurant and retail space. The size of the MTC is so impressive that it will be visible from 1.5 km away. The facility can accommodate 8500 passengers per hour and up to 30 million per year. The central space of the terminal building could hold three full-sized football (soccer) pitches and features a ceiling 52 metres tall at its highest point, taller than the Emirates Palace and will include 28 000-square-metres of retail outlets and restaurants.

Chief among the challenges with protecting the MTB was the massive open space where smoke will be diluted, an effect compounded by air-conditioning systems. VESDA’s early and reliable detection combined with the VLS capability of monitoring the protected space by sectors were key factors that resulted in the selection of the Xtralis solution. Additionally, temperatures in the terminal could range from hot to cold, depending on the weather, and VESDA was the only detector that could ensure early and reliable detection under these conditions.

The VESDA LaserScanner (VLS) is similar to the VESDA LaserPlus (VLP) detector, but also includes a valve mechanism in the inlet manifold and software to control the airflow from the four sectors (pipes). This configuration enables a single zone to be divided into four separate sectors, for example, distinguishing between separate voids within a room. The VLS draws air from all sectors in use. If the smoke level reaches the Adaptive Scan Threshold, the VLS performs a Fast Scan of each pipe to identify which pipe is carrying smoke. If more than one pipe is transporting smoke, the sector with the highest smoke concentration is scanned first. Once Fast Scan is completed and the sector with the highest smoke concentration is identified, the VLS continues to closely monitor all four sectors (pipes) to monitor fire growth and maintain full protection of the area. There are four alarm levels (Alert, Action, Fire 1 and Fire 2) for each sector (pipe) and the sensitivity for each alarm level can be set to ensure the optimum alarm thresholds are applied for each sector

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