West Sussex Hospital protects Data Room with Nobel’s cost efficient Stat-X

Let there be no doubt that fire damage in a Data Room can have devastating consequences for any organisation. When the data room is located within a hospital environment the requirement for effective and reliable fire suppression becomes even more essential.
The West Sussex Hospital data centre situated in the original part of the hospital at Bury St Edmunds is primarily related to patient care and it was therefore vital that the company chosen to supply and fit a new data protection fire suppression system to protect the server room had the skills and experience to be able to handle such a complex and mission critical project. The Hospital wanted advice on the best system to install and the initial thinking was a traditional inert gas system.
Nobel Fire Systems looked at the situation and quickly realised that being in the original part of the Hospital complex, the server room would have proved difficult and expensive to seal for the required integrity test on an inert gas system. While all NHS hospital budgets are constantly under scrutiny, the protection of business critical areas such as data rooms remains essential. Securing a totally effective system at the right price was therefore part of the challenge facing the Nobel team.
Recent world wide shortages of raw materials have prompted dramatic increases in the cost of chemical gases, FM 200 in particular. This in turn has affected the cost of new fire system installations and that of service and recharge, up to 40% in some cases, making them far less competitive on price. This fact has forced buyers of fire suppression systems to widen their search for equally reliable but more cost effective alternatives.
In the case of Data Room protection there is now a system that not only beats the performance of chemical and Inert gases it also provides a superior, environmentally friendly fire suppressant. Not only that, the system known as Stat-X allows easier and more cost-effective installations for all these types of challenging applications.
The Stat-X family of fire suppression systems is a second generation Condensed Aerosol technology manufactured to ISO 9001:2008 standards with many internationally recognised approvals and standards such as UL in the USA. It’s a patented potassium-based aerosol that’s ecologically safe, up to ten times more effective than any current halon alternative with zero ozone depletion and no global warming potential.
And if that’s not enough, the Stat-X application technology requires no pressure vessels, manifolds, nozzles or pipe work. All factors which result in significant installation and maintenance savings and making it potentially ideal for the West Sussex Hospital project.
Stat-X is only available throughout Europe from Nobel Fire Systems and when the company carried out a direct Stat-X versus Inert Gas comparison, Stat-X was far less expensive with the potential to save the Hospital thousands of pounds.
Another great benefit was the fact that fitting this large space with a Stat-X system cut the installation time versus the Gaseous system by approximately two thirds and at the same time eliminated the requirement for sealing the room.
Nobel fitted Stat-X units in the main server room including the ceiling void. Throughout the process Nobel worked closely with the Hospital’s air conditioning and BMS contractors to make sure everything functioned perfectly stage by stage.
Installation took place during the Hospital’s normal working week and was greatly assisted by being able to liaise directly with the Hospital’s IT Infrastructure Manager.
Commenting on the Stat-X fire suppression installation the Hospital stated, “this was a critical project for the West Sussex Hospital and it was important to obtain advice from an experienced supplier so that the correct balance between absolute protection and resultant associated costs could be obtained. Nobel Fire Systems has a policy to always investigate and share a complete understanding of the overall risk and only on that basis is it possible to take a fully informed approach to providing the most appropriate and cost-effective solution. We’re delighted with the service and the result”