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New gas suppression distributor

Sensor Security recently acquired the rights to supply two new product ranges. Henry Brown, Sensor security sales director, says, “Sensor has aligned itself with the INERGEN and ECKOSHIELD gaseous fire suppression systems, specifically the INERGEN IG541 (pre-engineered and engineered) fire suppression systems and the ECKOSHIELD-227 (pre-engineered and engineered) fire suppression systems.

Brown explains, “These suppression systems are based in the principle of oxygen replacement. Gaseous fire suppression, or clean agent fire suppression, uses inert gases and chemical agents to extinguish a fire. The agents discharge as a gas, which is not only quickly and uniformly distributed within the enclosure, but it doesn’t leave any residue that could damage sensitive equipment or be expensive to clean up.”

In the case of the INERGEN system, the oxygen concentration is lowered to between 10-14% by the application of IG-541 (the clean agent) and at this oxygen level common fires will die out. Where other extinguishing agents just lower the oxygen level, INERGEN reduces the oxygen level in the room to below flame threshold, but still retains sufficient oxygen for breathing.

The IG 541 is a gas that’s naturally present in the atmosphere, which means it has no greenhouse effect and its ozone layer depletion potential is zero. When discharged, the IG-541 achieves design concentration in 60 seconds. This makes it ideal for applications such as data processing centres, museum collections, original document storage, bank vault systems, generator and turbine enclosures.

“The ECKOSHIELD-227 pre-engineered fire suppression system is SABS approved and the fire suppression agent used here is HFC227. Brown continues, “It’s fast and effective with low space-to-weight characteristics. HFC227 offers the best overall combination of the properties desired in a Halon 1301 replacement, along with being the most cost effective replacement.”

The NFPA 2001 lists HFC227 environmentally acceptable and safe for human exposure. HFC227 is extensively used throughout the world as a suitable fire protection system and supported by a major service network. ECKOSHIELD-227 HFC227 cylinders are manufactured in South Africa and are approved to SANS 347:2012. The agents are governed by SANS 14520 part 1, the Clean Agent Gas standard for South Africa, with different standards and regulations in other parts of the world.

He adds, “A gas suppression system typically consists of the fire detection system, along with the specific agent used, the agent storage containers, agent release valves, agent delivery piping (if it is an engineered system and not modular) and agent dispersion nozzles. The obvious benefit of a pre-engineered fire suppression system is that there is no need to run pipe work within the area. As a result, the site owner experiences the minimum of interruption and better avoids clashes with other mechanical and electrical reticulation services. Where larger areas need to be protected an engineered system is required to make sure that the gas can be sufficiently dispersed.”

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