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 | | TRIDONICATCO HELP ST MARY'S TREATMENT CENTRE REDUCE MAINTENANCE COSTS | | | TridonicAtco | | 02/10/2006 | | |
Sophisticated monitoring of emergency lighting using an integrated system supplied by TridonicAtco is helping the new St Mary's NHS Treatment Centre, Portsmouth reduce maintenance costs while achieving full compliance with the new automatic testing standard, EN 62034.
St Mary's was erected in record time, thanks to the use of innovative prefabrication techniques, which reduced on-site construction time to six months, compared with the 18 months that would have been required using conventional construction techniques.
This innovation is also evident in the configuration and management of the emergency lighting, using what is believed to be the only emergency lighting self-testing system that provides full compliance with EN 62034.
At the heart of the system is TridonicAtco's EM winPRO software, combined with proDIM BC9000 TCP/IP DALI gateways, which provide an interface between the DALI system and the TCP/IP network at the hospital. The system also incorporates Tridonic Atco's EM PRO, a unique and versatile intelligent inverter for battery powered emergency lighting that brings a new level of functionality and control to emergency lighting.
A total of 175 emergency fittings have been integrated into a range of recessed luminaires, sourced from various suppliers. One key requirement stipulated by installers Connect 2 was that all of the luminaires would be fitted with TridonicAtco ballasts so they could be easily integrated into the control system.
'Standardising on Tridonic Atco ballasts in all the luminaires enabled us to integrate a range of different luminaires into a single control system with no complications,' explained Mike Clarke of installers Connect 2. 'This provides a better solution for the client and ensures there will be no warranty problems, as could be the case when different ballasts are used from different suppliers,' he added.
Each luminaire also contains a Tridonic EM PRO unit, the world's first DALI operated emergency inverter that provides full diagnostic information on the status of the lamp, battery, inverter and charging circuit. When combined with EM winPRO software, this enables the hospital's facilities management company to ensure full compliance with emergency lighting legislation without the need to check each luminaire visually during testing of the system.
All of the luminaires are linked back to a central PC running EM winPro software via the same structured cabling network that serves the hospital's computer network. Four-port hubs dedicated to the lighting system are used to separate this from the main network, in compliance with the wishes of Mercury Health's IT department.
This configuration means that no extra cabling was required for the emergency lighting system, thus saving on installation costs.
The DALI-based lighting management system is linked to the network through proDIM BC9000 units, supplied by Hayes Controls, which incorporate an interface between the DALI and TCP/IP protocols.
We installed a total of four proDIM BC9000 units in the hospital, with two on each floor,' said Paul Anderson of Hayes Controls. 'Each of these units is linked to around 45 luminaires,' he added.
Once commissioned the system is able to carry out all of the testing of the emergency lighting in compliance with EN 62034. Without such a system in place, the hospital would have needed to carry out tests visually, requiring many hours of technician time.
In addition to the emergency testing, the EM PRO and EM winPRO combination provides a range of monitoring and reporting functions, including lamp failure, integrity of charging circuit, battery failure and failure of battery to sustain output for full duration.
All of these results are recorded in the EM winPRO software, so that proof of testing is available, in compliance with legislation.
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