Fife Council has begun a roll out to upgrade all of its 32,000 properties with Aico 3000 Series alarms.
Fife Council is fitting Aico’s latest 3000 Series throughout its properties, including the Ei3024 multi-sensor and the Ei3028 heat/carbon monoxide alarm. The Ei3024 features optical and heat sensors which constantly monitor and analyse smoke and heat levels to provide the best response to all fire types and reduced false alarms. The Ei3028 has been designed for use in kitchens and garages and provides protection from both fire and carbon monoxide in one unit, whilst being highly resilient to false alarms. All alarms are interconnected using Aico SmartLINK wireless technology, which is designed to minimise disruption in properties by removing the need for unsightly cabling between alarms and provide greater system flexibility to match the needs of different tenants. Fife Council adopted this technology when it was first introduced under the RadioLINK brand over 15 years ago.
In addition, Fife Council has adopted a number of other alarm accessories by Aico, including the Ei450 alarm control switch which enables remote test, locate and silence facilities across all alarms on a system from one device, relays, and the Ei414 which is an interface between Aico alarms third party systems, such as telecare/warden call devices and sprinkler systems.
Fife Council has also benefitted from Aico’s Expert Installer training, which has been provided free of charge and delivered to a wide range of relevant people, including Direct Labour Organisations (DLO) and external contractors, sheltered housing officers, call centre staff and even tenant association groups.
Expert Installer provides customers with the information they need to install and manage domestic fire and carbon monoxide alarm systems. The training is modular, allowing customers to choose the appropriate topics. Many of the modules are CPD accredited, allowing up to five hours 15 minutes to be earned of CPD time.
Jim Macdonald, Fife Council compliance manager, explained, “We have been installing alarms to LD2 for a number of years as the safety of our tenants is paramount. We take into account social and health issues when conducting risk assessments. We still have a number of smokers who continue to smoke in their bedrooms despite the health and safety warnings we are all familiar with. In these instances, we go beyond LD2 by putting alarms in bedrooms; LD2 Plus, if you like.
“You can’t put a cost on someone’s life, but you can put a cost on the potential damage and the resulting costs and that cost can be over £1 million. That’s a direct cost to the council. If we can avoid just one fire by fitting the best level of protection possible, we have actually saved money and, more importantly, protected lives. Using the 3000 Series alarms provides us with the best possible protection and helps us future proof our fire alarm systems.”
The upgrade to the Aico 3000 Series alarms started in Fife Council’s sheltered housing and is now being rolled out to all housing stock, including new build properties.