Fife Council to Install 30,000 AICO Fire/CO Alarm Interfaces

Fife Council, awarded the Council of the Year in Service Delivery 2014 by the Association for Public Service Excellence, is undergoing a programme to install 30,000 Aico Ei414 Fire/Carbon Monoxide (CO) Alarm Interfaces throughout its housing stock.

The Ei414 is a flexible device that provides a dedicated connection between Aico RadioLINK Smoke, Heat and CO alarms with most new and existing Telecare/Warden Call Systems, enabling an emergency signal to be transmitted directly to that system if fire or CO is detected.

Previously Fife Council had been using different components which did not ‘talk’ to each other, resulting in a potential safety issue. The new Ei414 overcomes this, directly interacting with the different systems fitted within the properties to ensure the safety of the Council’s tenants.
Fife Council played an important role in the development of this innovative product, working with Aico and parent manufacturer Ei Electronics. Jim Macdonald, Lead Officer Specialist Services, Communities/Housing Services explains: “Following an incident within a property I met with the management of Ei Electronics and discussed our requirements to have a user friendly product which makes better use of the RF [RadioLINK Radio Frequency wireless alarm interconnection] to integrate different appliances and detection systems installed in Fife Council’s properties i.e. sprinkler systems, warden call, community alarms, extruder alarms, etc. I found Ei Electronics to be very helpful and willing to listen to the requirements of their clients and not force their agenda on us.”

The Ei414 Fire/CO Alarm Interface is the result of this collaboration and was tested by Fife Council from September 2014. It has been developed to enable connection to Telecare/Warden Call Systems wirelessly or via hard wiring directly between the two devices.

Fife Council has been so pleased with the results of the test that the decision was made to not only install the Interface into its sheltered housing properties and complexes but, due to the nature of its tenure, throughout its entire housing stock, which equates to approximately 30,000 units. Due to the flexibility of the Ei414, a property’s smoke and CO alarms can be connected with sprinkler systems, warden call, panel systems and community alarms.

Fife Council is a long standing Aico customer, very forward thinking in its approach to tenant safety. “Fife Council have always had a good working relationship with Aico and found them very helpful when discussing the products available and their uses” states Jim, “as well as planning and training not only Fife Council Operatives but also our partners.” Fife Council also had bespoke hands on training at Aico’s Centre of Excellence in Oswestry.

The Ei414 can be powered directly from the mains or from a 12-24V DC supply, from the Telecare/Warden Call Systems for example, and has built-in tamper-proof rechargeable Lithium Cells which will power the device in the event of any mains failure.

Exceptionally easy to use, the Ei414 features a removable key with three positional settings: On, Off and Test. When ‘On’ the Ei414 responds to an alarm signal generated from a House Coded RadioLINK Aico Smoke, Heat or CO alarms, and switches the relevant ‘Fire’ or ‘CO’ relay contact to trigger the Telecare/Warden Call Systems. The ‘Off’ position prevents any Aico House Coded RadioLINK Signals, be they Fire, CO or Service Alarm triggers, being sent to the Telecare/Warden Call Systems, which is particularly useful should a property becomes vacant or the tenant not require the assisted living function enabling. Finally, the ‘Test’ setting allows a responsible person such as a local authorised Warden or Fire/Maintenance Engineer to functionally test the entire system, which would include a signal being transmitted to the Telecare/Warden Call Systems. LED indicators provide visual confirmation of mains power and fire or CO alarm activation.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Ei Electronics, Aico is a market leader in residential fire and CO protection in the UK. All alarms are designed and built in Ireland specifically to meet the UK standards and regulations. 2015 sees Aico’s 25th anniversary. With more mains powered domestic smoke alarms installed in the UK’s social housing than any other manufacturer, Aico is tried, tested and trusted. Aico has a dedicated team of Regional Managers to support specifications and supply of products. Aico also offers technical support over the phone and an internal sales team to help with any enquiries.

For more information please contact Aico on 01691 664100 or enquiries@aico.co.uk