Advanced fire systems protect key Sudanese oil pipeline

31 Jul 2014

Intelligent fire systems leader Advanced has been selected to protect critical infrastructure along a 1,600km Sudanese oil pipeline.

Control buildings and pumping stations along the pipeline, which plays an important part in the country’s infrastructure, are being protected by Advanced’s Axis EN intelligent fire systems and ExGo extinguishant control panels.

The Sudanese Petroleum Pipeline Company commissioned Globaltec Security & Safety Systems, who are working with Advanced’s partner AIRfire Worldwide, to install fire protection and suppression control right along the double pipeline, which runs 800km from Khartoum, the country’s capital, to Port Sudan. Advanced products were selected for their reputation for quality, ease-of-use and reliability.

Sergi Andreu, spokesperson for AIRfire Worldwide, said: “This pipeline is vital to the Sudanese economy, and required a fire system that could deliver long-term reliability, as well as helping to ensure the safety of the workforce. We are well aware of the quality and robustness of Advanced’s products and their Axis EN and ExGo ranges were the obvious choices for this project. So far we have completed four installations along the pipeline and we have several more in progress.”

Axis EN is Advanced’s EN54 2, 4 and 13 approved fire system and offers leading performance and flexibility. It is available in 1-8 loop formats as standard, and supports up to 240 devices per loop. The speed and performance of Advanced’s networking is well known and 200 panels can be easily networked together in standard or fault tolerant configurations.

Axis EN includes a full range of modules, peripherals and intelligent field devices, including a complete wireless range, and is one of the few fire systems with full approval to EN54 Part 13. It is configured and maintained with Advanced’s Dynamix Tools fire panel software, making it simple to commission, service and manage.

ExGo is Advanced’s extinguishant and suppression control system, which has been developed specifically for sensitive and strategic assets such as server rooms, historic and cultural attractions and control rooms. It has been installed in high-profile buildings across the globe, including the Khartoum-Port Sudan Pipeline, where it has been linked to AIRfire Inert fire suppression system using IG-100 agent.

Etienne Ricoux, Advanced’s Export Sales Manager, commented: “Advanced is renowned for making things easy, even on more complex installations such as this. We worked closely with the AIRfire Worldwide and Globaltec teams to deliver an integrated system that will help to ensure safety and reliability on the pipeline for many years to come. Both Axis EN and ExGo represent the cutting edge of fire systems technology and they also offer the capacity to be upgraded and expanded in the future.

Abdellal Ibrahim Mohamed Elnohi, spokesperson for the Sudanese Petroleum Pipeline Company, said: “We were looking for a solution that could be applied to all key installations along the pipeline and we were very impressed by the systems that Advanced were able to offer us. This network is vital to the smooth running of the Sudanese oil industry, and to the nation as a whole, so we need to have total confidence in the fire systems installed and our experience has been a very positive one.”

Axis is Advanced’s flagship fire systems brand which delivers fire systems to international and local approvals worldwide including EN54 2, 4 and 13 and UL864. Axis’ device and peripheral ranges make it customisable to almost any application and it’s found in prestigious and challenging locations in over 60 countries.

ExGo is suitable for almost all single-flooding area applications and includes a range of control options and devices. It is approved to EN54 parts 2, 4 and 13 and EN12094-1 and is among the first systems to combine these with EN12094 Part 3 in a single solution. EN12094-3 relates to the integrated manual release on the front of the panel. ExGo can be integrated into Advanced’s Axis EN fire systems or any third party fire alarm system.

Advanced is a world leader in the development and manufacture of intelligent fire systems. Its legendary performance, quality and ease-of-use sees its products used in prestigious and challenging locations all over the world, from single panel installations to large multi-site networks. Advanced products include complete fire detection systems, multi-protocol fire panels, extinguishing control and fire paging systems. More details can be found on the website at www.advancedco.com.