Newcastle Central Library, now reopen after a £40 million renovation and a three-year closure, has been fitted with a fire protection system installed by Swift Fire and Security.

The landmark building, which dates back to the 1480s and holds 150,000 new books and several antique collections, has been fitted with a Vigilon fire alarm panel and S-Quad multi-functional sensors.

Swift’s regional sales manager, Gerald Watson, said: “False alarm management was a critical requirement, therefore having a system that could significantly reduce the risk was essential. We also needed to install effective fire suppression measures and alarms to minimise the risk of damage to the collection."

Installed over six levels, Swift commissioned one, six-loop Vigilon panel with repeater panel and 114 S-Quad multi-function devices with dual angle optical sensing technology designed to recognise the distinction between fire-like occurrences such as steam and an actual fire, as well as loop powered sounders and high intensity strobes. The large atria, which is a key architectural feature of the library, was installed with three pairs of S-Quad beam sensors.

A spokesperson from Gent by Honeywell said: "The S-Quad sensors can be programmed so that the type of detection in the sensor best meets the environment in which it is operating. The advanced sensing technology and powerful software processing ensures the Vigilon system identifies false inputs that do not match a real fire pattern and as a result are ignored or flagged up.

The Vigilon control panels have a user interface with LCD screen designed to provide information in an emergency. The S-Quad offers four different functions in one device, combining sensor, sounder, voice alarm and strobe capability.