- Fire safety systems to protect gas turbine
- A supplier that was certified by Alstom-Baden (Switzerland) for the GT firefighting system
- A supplier with advanced technologies and an understanding of fire risks
- A company with the capability to provide several related services, such as engineering,
manufacturing, support during construction, commissioning and start-up
Alstom-Baden, a global leader in equipment and services for power generation, needed fire protection for one gas turbine in its test facility in Birr, Switzerland. In 2009, the company awarded Silvani, a UTC Climate, Controls & Security company, a contract to install a safety system that will integrate fire detectors from Det-Tronics and a water mist system from Marioff. The work is scheduled for completion in September 2010.
Fire safety is a critical issue for power plant operators, and there are many regulations in place to ensure that a facility is protected from fire. With an extensive history in gas turbine protection, UTC Climate, Controls & Security is well positioned to meet those requirements. For the facility at Birr, Alstom-Baden selected UTC Climate, Controls & Security to provide a fire detector and water mist system, based on its engineering expertise, its knowledge of fire safety, and its technologies.
Alstom-Baden, which develops and constructs components and systems for the power generation industry, needed fire protection at its test facility for gas turbine generators. Alstom uses the facility to test gas turbines under extreme “real-world” conditions, and it can do the testing near the research center and manufacturing plant. The test facility also offers training for power plant operators.
The company needs fire protection for a GT26, the first turbine to be built under a new, higher Alstom standard. It produces 400 megawatts of power, enough to provide energy for 500,000 people. The company wanted a supplier that was accredited with Alstom-Baden, that had extensive experience with gas turbine protection, and that had an international scope. Alstom-Baden needed a firefighting supplier with advanced technologies and a deep knowledge of firefighting methods and fire risks. A gas leakage or an oil leak within the gas turbine enclosure can ignite a fire. Fire can start during maintenance activities and during welding, brushing, and painting work.
So in 2009, it invited Silvani to design and develop the firefighting and fire alarm engineering for the turbines, and UTCFS sister companies Marioff and Det-Tronics were brought in as important partners.
Silvani installed a CS400 integration panel that can manage the firefighting system. It can collect all detection indicators, whether they are temperature, smoke, or alarm signals (from alarm lamps, an alarm horn, or manual call points). When a fire is detected, a signal travels to the integration panel, and its software activates the response sequence. The system discharges CO2 or water spray, both of them “total flooding systems,” which means they saturate the area and decrease the oxygen concentration in the air.
A Silvani project manager, two engineers, and a quality control specialist are working on the project.
Silvani is the leading firefighting company in Italy. In addition to being a regular supplier to Alstom, Silvani works with Mitsubishi, Ansaldo, Siemens, Samsung, Kellogg, and the other major EPC contractors globally. It works in the oil and gas, power, and marine industries in Africa, the Middle East, the Persian Gulf, Kazakhstan, and the UK.
Silvani also makes firefighting monitors, which are water-and-foam cannons found on loading docks, in aircraft hangars, and at helicopter landing areas and power plants. The Silvani plant in Como, Italy, which became a new Centre of Excellence in 2008, is the largest manufacturer of monitors in the EMEA region.