Smoke and Natural Ventilation Controls Systems News | SE Controls en Helena.Preston@secontrols.com Copyright 2013 2013-05-08T09:01:42+00:00 Charity fundraising by SE Controls raises over £6,500 for St Giles Hospice http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/charity-fundraising-by-se-controls-raises-over-6500-for-st-giles-hospice/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/charity-fundraising-by-se-controls-raises-over-6500-for-st-giles-hospice/#When:08:01:42Z For the past year, staff at Midlands based smoke and natural ventilation specialist, SE Controls, have been raising funds totalling £6,504 for local charity St Giles Hospice, which provides specialist care for patients with cancer and other serious illnesses.

The SE Controls staff found a variety of fun ways to raise money including fancy dress days, unwanted item sales and the hotly contested annual SE Controls cake baking competition that saw the Operations Director triumph for the second year in a row with his famous lemon cake.

The fund raisers joined up with Walsall Rugby Club to host a family fun day with a rugby match and balloon release. The Walsall Vets gained victory over the Bloxwich team and whilst age and athleticism wasn’t on their side the weight advantage meant they won every scrum. The balloon release was a great success with the winning balloon making it all the way to The Netherlands.

“Being able to help support a great charity like St Giles is always rewarding” said Mark Soleil, who recently helped present the cheque to head of fund raising for St Giles Helen Relihan, who commented “It really is a fantastic amount and the money raised will go a long way to helping support those who need it most”. ]]> UK News, PR 2013-05-08T08:01:42+00:00 A fresh solution from SE Controls for Birmingham City Council offices http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/a-fresh-solution-from-se-controls-for-birmingham-city-council-offices/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/a-fresh-solution-from-se-controls-for-birmingham-city-council-offices/#When:10:49:18Z Birmingham City Council’s award winning office development at Woodcock Street is using an advanced natural ventilation solution from SE Controls to create a comfortable environment for staff and visitors while enhancing the building’s sustainability credentials by reducing energy consumption.

Designed by Associated Architects, the £38 million five-storey building provides a flexible working environment for around 3,000 employees and forms part of the local authority’s plans to rationalise its office portfolio and generate more an £200 million of savings by reducing its occupancy of leased buildings.

A key focus of the building’s design was the use of a wide range of sustainable technologies to minimise energy consumption and reduce its carbon footprint. In addition to rainwater harvesting, a ‘brown roof’ wildlife habitat and photovoltaic panels, SE Controls’ natural ventilation solution also played an essential role in helping achieve the energy reduction targets.

SE Controls supplied, installed and commissioned the extensive natural ventilation system, which involved 562 TGCO chain and tandem type actuators together with 101 OS2 type 22 controllers to ensure the precise operation of automatically opening windows and vents within the workspace and four atria, which are managed by the building’s integrated BMS.

The natural ventilation system's operation is also enhanced by the construction methods used with the building. Using steel framed construction and steel floor beams with 200mm thick hollow cellular core concrete floor planks, the design optimises the building’s thermal mass to enable the temperature to be managed without additional external cooling. The natural ventilation system is also used to ‘night purge’ the building, allowing cooler air to enter and cool the hollow beams.

SE Controls’ Project Manager, Darren Wainwright explained: “The Woodcock Street building epitomises current thinking on sustainable building design particularly in commercial workplace structures.”

He added: “Our natural ventilation system provides a highly energy efficient ventilation solution and its effectiveness is enhanced by many of the other sustainable technologies used within the building, such as solar shading and even details such as energy saving automatic lighting, which limits the heat energy being put into the building.”
]]> UK News, PR 2013-04-17T10:49:18+00:00 Indoor Air Quality In Schools – Is It Making The Grade? http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/indoor-air-quality-in-schools-is-it-making-the-grade/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/indoor-air-quality-in-schools-is-it-making-the-grade/#When:07:45:39Z The new Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) Facilities Output Specification, launched last October by the Education Funding Agency, proposes some significant, positive and welcome changes to school ventilation specifications, when compared to the existing BB101 standard.

Alongside ventilation and carbon dioxide levels, it also provides clear guides on specific performance standards for thermal comfort while recognising that indoor air quality, ventilation strategy, temperature, humidity and energy efficiency are all intrinsically linked.


However, given that the PSBP is aimed at renewing, repairing and refurbishing some of the country’s most dilapidated schools, the question has to be asked about what happens to those schools that are not especially out of date or in poor repair? Will schools that fall outside the scope of PSBP and its associated funding find that their pupils suffer as ‘legacy’ classroom designs struggle to meet the new standards, particularly for CO2?


Classroom carbon dioxide levels exceed BB101



In the last quarter of 2012, we ran a pilot test with a small number of ‘non-PSBP’ primary schools in the Midlands and Northern Home Counties to gauge the actual level of CO2 in classrooms.

Using our NVLogiQ room controller’s integral CO2 sensor and data-logging function to monitor and record carbon dioxide levels for later analysis, it’s front panel display also acted as a ‘traffic light’ system for teachers, alerting them that the levels were increasing and they should manually open windows to improve ventilation.

When the initial data was analysed in January this year, the headline results raised some significant concerns and were as follows:

• For most days, the daily average occupied CO2 level exceeded the recommended 1500ppm figure in BB101.

• In some cases the CO2 figure was between 2500ppm and 3700ppm on every day of the week.

• BB101’s maximum 5000ppm level was breached four times per week in some cases.

• A maximum reading of 7200ppm was recorded, resulting in the CO2 levels exceeding 5000ppm for almost 3 hours in one case.

While this is a relatively small pilot programme, the results appear fairly consistent and suggest that air quality in schools is probably not as good as it should be. It also raises some general questions about verifying the performance of building ventilation systems in schools.

Clearly the new PSBP output specification sets out to address the issue of CO2 levels, but as some schools are already struggling to comply with the less stringent existing standards, it is evident that any PSBP compliant system must be designed correctly and controlled effectively.


Control is the key



In ‘post-test’ de-briefings, teachers said they were too busy to constantly monitor and respond to ‘traffic light’ signals, so relying on manual opening proved to be unviable due to the intrinsic lack of precise control

Unless automated ventilation solutions are adopted, such as window automation linked to dedicated monitors and controllers or a hybrid mixed mode system to provide additional backup, then it’s likely that children and teachers will continue to work in poorly ventilated and non-compliant schools with the inevitable result of reduced learning performance.

By utilising devices such as NVLogiQ, which can be configured to operate either as a networked system or be dedicated to individual areas, classroom CO2 levels, temperature and energy efficiency can be managed as an integrated set of parameters to provide optimal ventilation while saving energy and money.


Performance monitoring and ‘Soft Landings’



While the value of effective monitoring and logging of CO2, energy efficiency and other parameters provides a constant source of information for analysis and system ‘tuning’, the real benefits come from long term building performance and environment monitoring. This information allows consultants, contractors and school facilities mangers to understand and refine a building’s overall performance.

This facility has even more value within the framework of BSRIA’s Soft Landings programme, which formally establishes a process of managed and extended handover from contractor to owner or occupier to help create a culture of ‘shared responsibility and co-operation’.


A learning environment



PSBP provides a tremendous opportunity to bring our schools up to date with quality facilities and better, more comfortable energy efficient buildings.

It’s evident that the ventilation industry and the education sector have learned a lot since the original introduction of BB101, yet the issues identified in our classroom CO2 pilot study suggest that while there are still some lessons to be learned, the ventilation solutions are already available.

SE Controls’ 30 years of experience in creating and installing natural ventilation solutions in a diverse range of sectors, alongside an ongoing commitment to rigorous academic research, equips us with skills and technologies that can help make PSBP work, while helping improve building performance overall. ]]> UK News 2013-04-10T07:45:39+00:00 Exclusive smoke ventilation solution from SE Controls for London’s Marconi House http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/exclusive-smoke-ventilation-solution-from-se-controls-for-londons-marconi-h/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/exclusive-smoke-ventilation-solution-from-se-controls-for-londons-marconi-h/#When:10:20:36Z London’s prestigious Marconi House apartment and hotel development, which is already set to be one of the capitals most sought after addresses, is using an advanced SHEVTEC® smoke and heat exhaust ventilation system from SE Controls to provide smoke free escape routes for residents and staff in the event of a fire.

Located on The Strand, the building has a long and varied history, originally housing the Gaiety Theatre’s restaurant before being redeveloped as the headquarters of the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company and being chosen the location for the BBC’s first landmark radio broadcast in 1922.

The latest phase in its evolution, which has been designed by Foster & Partners includes the construction of a five star 157-bedroom hotel linked to and exclusive development of 86 apartments behind the original stone façade that still bears the Marconi name. Alongside this, the five star hotel development provides 157 bedrooms, which is served by a separate and completely independent SHEVTEC smoke ventilation system.

As each building has different layouts and specification, SE Controls worked closely with Lloret Fire and Security on the hotel development and Nomico on the apartments to create smoke ventilation solutions dedicated to the apartments and hotel while integrating fully with their fire alarm systems.

SE Controls was responsible for the supply, fitting and commissioning of the North and South stair smoke shaft control systems, involving the installation of SHEVTEC automatically opening smoke shaft door actuators on each of the apartment block’s eight levels, primarily to provide pressure relief to the stair core pressurisation systems and passive smoke extraction to the communal lobbies when activated by the fire alarm.

The actuators are controlled by OS2 control panels, which are located on each floor together with tamper proof manual control points (MCP) for use by fire service personnel. Two repeater panels are also installed in the concierge area and the fire control room to provide a constant display of status and activation in the event of a fire.

Within the hotel, smoke ventilation is handled by two smoke shafts with one located in the North stairs and the other dedicated to the ten floor bedroom corridors, which also provides natural ventilation to the building in normal operation.

The extensive SE Controls’ solution incorporates SHEVTEC automatic multi-blade dampers on each floor, including basement levels, together with 28 OS2 Type 21 controllers, 31 fire service tamper proof MCPs and reset points two repeater panels to provide full status monitoring. All systems used within the SE Controls system are CE marked and conform to the latest legislation requirements for performance, fire safety and operation including the EN12101 and BS9999 standards.

In normal operation, all dampers are open to provide natural ventilation, but automatically close when activated by a signal from the fire alarm system except for the damper located on the floor where the fire has started. This provides pressure relief to the staircase system and enables smoke to be vented from the fire floor, while stopping any cross contamination onto other floors and allowing smoke free escape to be possible on all floors.

Fire service manual control points are located next to each damper to enable control of the vent by fire officers. If a fire should occur on any non-bedroom floors, the system is configured so that all dampers will close to allow evacuation, while still allowing Manual Control Point override.

SE Controls’ Managing Director, Will Perkins, commented: “The developers have not only focused on the quality of the facilities, services, construction and finish within Marconi House, but also on the fire safety strategy and its vital role in ensuring the safety of residents, staff and hotel guests. Smoke ventilation is a vital element in this process and I’m delighted that we were able to put our extensive experience in residential smoke ventilation systems to use on this prestigious development.”

SE Controls Core Competencies


]]> UK News, PR 2013-02-05T10:20:36+00:00 SE Controls helps provide the perfect environment at Audi Leicester http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-helps-provide-the-perfect-environment-at-audi-leicester/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-helps-provide-the-perfect-environment-at-audi-leicester/#When:08:24:14Z Sytner Group’s state of the art Audi dealership in Leicester is using advanced natural ventilation technology from SE Controls to ensure that a comfortable environment is maintained for its customers and staff.

Constructed to Audi’s ‘Terminal Concept’ dealership template, originally designed by Allmann, Sattler, Wappner Architekten GmbH, the extensive new showroom and workshop complex replaces Sytner’s previously facility, which it had occupied since 2007.

As part of the energy efficient design, the dealership uses natural ventilation to ensure the carbon dioxide levels and temperature are managed effectively within the entire building to create a comfortable environment for staff and customers within the large open plan showroom as well as for its technicians in the pristine workshops.

SE Controls supplied, installed and commissioned the complete natural ventilation system, which involved the supply of two SCCO Schuco 500mm stroke chain actuators and a precision OS2 controller to provide automatic operation of the sloping vents in the showroom atrium. Manual operation of the vents also formed part of the showroom system, operated by tamper-proof key operated switches.

Audi Leicester’s workshop area is split into six separate areas, each with its own localised ventilation, control and manual over-ride system. To actuate the Schuco AWS 55 vertical vents, SE Controls installed 18 of its new 24 Volt SECO N 24 40 chain actuators together with six OS2 controller and key operated switches to give accurate and flexible control over the system.

SE Control’s Project Manager, Darren Wainwright, explained: “The strength of the natural ventilation solution at Audi Leicester is its simplicity, versatility and effectiveness. By using well designed vents in the showroom and workshops, coupled with our energy efficient actuators and OS2 controllers, the overall system not only provides effective ventilation and temperature control, but also allows a high degree of flexibility in its operation, particularly in the workshops.” ]]> UK News, PR 2013-01-24T08:24:14+00:00 SE Controls’ smoke ventilation provides safe environment at flagship research laboratory http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-smoke-ventilation-provides-safe-environment-at-flagship-researc/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-smoke-ventilation-provides-safe-environment-at-flagship-researc/#When:13:42:52Z The Medical Research Council’s new £200 million Laboratory of Molecular Biology (LMB) is using an advanced smoke ventilation solution from smoke and natural ventilation systems specialist, SE Controls, to provide smoke free escape routes for scientist, staff and visitors at the recently completed facility in Cambridge.

Designed by RMJM architects and constructed by BAM construction the LMB provides 27,000m2 of usable space and is located adjacent to Addenbrookes Hospital as part of the expanding Cambridge Biomedical Campus, a renowned global centre for excellence in biomedical research.

Within its construction, the LMB uses a number of energy saving technologies and innovative solutions to provide heating, ventilation and solar shading as well as cooling through deep bore closed loop geothermal system to meet the laboratory’s 1600kW peak cooling demand.

Within the extensive smoke ventilation system, SE Controls supplied 197 chain actuators with a 603mm stroke length to operate smoke vents located throughout the building together with controls for eight staircase smoke hatches. The system included five SE Controls’ 60 Amp power supply unit (PSU) panels as well as eight OS2 OS2 Type 21 controllers and manual control points (MCP’s). As it was essential that the system complied with latest legislation, all actuators are CE marked and were tested to the stringent EN12101-2 standard.

SE Controls not only supplied, installed and commissioned the smoke control system, but also the building’s automatic venetian blind solar shading, which are part of the LMB’s energy efficient operation strategy and are operated by solar radiation sensors located on the roof.

SE Controls’ Project Manager David Sawyer said: “The LMB not only houses some of the world’s most advanced biomedical research facilities, but is also contains some cutting edge technologies as part of its energy efficient design, and safety systems including the smoke ventilation and solar shading solutions with which we were delighted to be involved.” ]]> UK News, PR 2013-01-14T13:42:52+00:00 Honorary Graduate receives SE Controls award at Winter Ceremony http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/honorary-graduate-receives-se-controls-award-at-winter-ceremony/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/honorary-graduate-receives-se-controls-award-at-winter-ceremony/#When:10:08:24Z Loughborough University student Tom Davis is the latest recipient to be awarded the ‘SE Controls’ prize for best overall performance on the MSc course in low carbon building design and modelling.

The course, which is accredited by CIBSE and The Energy Institute, covers concept design, renewable energy technologies and energy consumption as well as advanced thermal, airflow and lighting modelling, to ensure students have a complete understanding of the principles and practice of low carbon design.

SE Controls originally created the prize as part of the company’s highly productive relationship with Loughborough’s School of Civil and Building Engineering. The School is one of the largest multi-disciplinary engineering faculties in the UK. It aims to develop and nurture the skills required to face the challenges of an increasingly complex built environment. Its world-class teaching and research are integrated to support the technical and commercial needs of both industry and society.

On presenting the award, Will Perkins of SE Controls commented “The school’s graduates are extremely sought after by industry and commerce, and its undergraduate and postgraduate programmes are consistently ranked as excellent in both student surveys and independent assessments”.
Prior to completing the MSc, 25-year-old Tom graduated Nottingham Trent University with a 2:1 in Building Surveying. Tom is currently employed as an Energy & Sustainability Consultant and aims to work towards CIBSE chartered status in a building services design consultancy.
]]> UK News, PR 2013-01-07T10:08:24+00:00 SE Controls ventilation technologies improves safety and saves energy at HMP Oakwood http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-ventilation-technologies-improves-safety-and-saves-energy-at-hm/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-ventilation-technologies-improves-safety-and-saves-energy-at-hm/#When:10:37:54Z The £150 million HMP Oakwood in Staffordshire is using advanced smoke and natural ventilation solutions from SE Controls to not only improve safety in the event of a fire, but also save energy at the prison, which has achieved a BREEAM excellent rating.

Located on a 50 acre site adjacent to the existing Featherstone Prison near Wolverhampton, HMP Oakwood was designed by architects Pick Everard and comprises of 17 buildings including a healthcare unit, first night unit and training centre alongside three ‘star’ shaped secure accommodation blocks, each providing 480 places.

Designed and developed by WSP Group with additional specialised input from SE Controls, the combined smoke and natural ventilation system was tailored to meet the specific criteria and configurations of the individual buildings to ensure they not only complied with the relevant natural ventilation standards, but also met strict smoke ventilation performance specifications.

In addition, all of the components, systems and solutions provided by SE Controls were fully CE certified and complied with the relevant European standards including EN12101 and BS9999.

The complexity of the smoke and natural ventilation system varied depending on the size and nature of the seven individual buildings, ranging from a relatively straightforward installation within the healthcare block, to the complex multi-zoned solution used in the each of the main accommodation blocks, which would need to allow the safe evacuation of more than 500 people in the event of a fire.

Each four-storey accommodation block is designed with five ‘arms’ radiating from a centre access core, with four of the five providing accommodation and the last one dedicated to housing services to the building.


In natural ventilation mode, AOVs and roof actuators open to allow stale hot air to escape, with fresh air being drawn in through automatic glazed vents at the gable end of each prisoner wing, which operate as two separate zones serving the lower two and upper two floors. Air intake is also provided through additional glazed vents in the curtain wall screens on the centre core between the wings.

When smoke ventilation is required, the system provides both natural and mechanical smoke ventilation to ensure the smoke can be vented quickly and effectively to keep corridors and communal areas clear to aid evacuation. In the event of a fire, natural smoke ventilation is provided by the core’s glazed vents with the addition of ducted dampers, while mechanical smoke extraction is handled by high level louvres together with duty and standby fan sets located at the end of each accommodation wing.

To enable the natural and smoke ventilation systems to monitor the air quality and operate effectively, SE Controls supplied and installed a 32 zone BMS and fire alarm interface panel for each accommodation block together with all necessary actuators, vents and over-ride switches as well as smoke extract fan starter systems and pressure monitoring.

SE Controls’ Commercial Director, Martin Oates, explained: “We have undertaken a number of smoke and natural ventilation projects within the prison sector and they each have their own specific demands. The distinctive design of the accommodation blocks at HMP Oakwood not only provide a secure custodial solution, but also enabled us to create a highly effective natural ventilation systems that improves safety and evacuation in the event of a fire.” ]]> UK News, PR 2013-01-04T10:37:54+00:00 SE Controls passes 100th employee landmark http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-passes-100th-employee-landmark/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-passes-100th-employee-landmark/#When:14:48:12Z The appointment of four new trainees sees international smoke and natural ventilation solutions specialist, SE Controls pass the 100th employee landmark, as the company continues to grow to meet sustained demand for its products in UK and overseas markets.

The four new recruits are aged between 19 and 22 with George Geary, Josh Nolan and Danny Scotcher joining SE Controls as Trainee Window Fitters in its Northern and Southern regions, while Chelsea Beard takes on her new role as Business Apprentice at the company’s head office near Lichfield.

SE Controls’ Managing Director Will Perkins, explained: “To be successful, it’s not just about developing innovative products, expanding into new markets and clear strategic thinking, it’s also about having the right people with the right skills and committing to invest in those individuals. I’m convinced that much of our success is down to our approach of supporting our products services with high quality people that can deliver beyond expectations.”

He added: “We have a firm commitment to formal apprenticeship schemes as well as recruiting trainee’s in a range of positions at SE Controls. This not only helps us develop, design and deliver our smoke & natural ventilation solutions now, but allows us the opportunity to invest in the future success of our business. Passing the 100 employee mark is a major achievement and the fact that we have achieved it with four new trainee and apprentice roles underlines our commitment to the future of our business and the development of our team.”
]]> International News, UK News, PR 2012-12-10T14:48:12+00:00 SE Controls solves corridor overheating in multi-storey buildings http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-solves-corridor-overheating-in-multi-storey-buildings/ http://www.secontrols.com/news/item/se-controls-solves-corridor-overheating-in-multi-storey-buildings/#When:10:50:24Z An effective solution to overheated corridors and communal spaces in multi-storey residential buildings has been developed by SE Controls, which exploits the versatility and performance of the company’s smoke ventilation systems, allowing the controlled ventilation of hot air to maintain comfort for residents.

With the increasing focus on energy efficiency, the use of centralised boilers and distributed heating are common solutions in many multi-storey buildings for both new build and refurbishment projects. While routing hot water pipe work through corridors provides a simple method of distribution to feed individual apartments, it can make the corridors uncomfortably hot for residents as well as service and maintenance teams working within the building.

To combat this issue, SE Controls has designed a solution, which allows its smoke ventilation systems to also operate as a precisely controlled passive or mechanically assisted natural ventilation system to help maintain comfortable temperatures and energy efficiency.

By using sensors to monitor the temperature on each floor, the smoke ventilation system’s control panels automatically manage the proportional opening of end of corridor vents, smoke shaft doors and roof vents, which allows the controlled venting of hot air to cool the corridors.

SE Controls’ combined smoke ventilation and natural ventilation solution not only enables the integrity of the fire safety system to be maintained, but also provides an effective answer to corridor overheating, which has already been proven on a number of new build and refurbishment projects.

Kevin Deane, SE Controls’ Maintenance and Supply Commercial Manager, explained: “As most multi-storey buildings with more than three floors require smoke ventilation to aid escape, our systems exploit the automatic ventilation capabilities to control the cumulative thermal gain. In new build projects, we’re finding that consulting engineers, architects and developers are well aware of this issue and are incorporating this solution into building designs.”


He added: “However, one of the main advantages of the system is that it can be retro-fitted to existing smoke ventilation installations. This also enables residential managing agents to address concerns from residents and service teams over high corridor temperatures, which can often reach 30°C, by providing an effective automatically managed solution.” ]]> 2012-11-09T10:50:24+00:00