The original fire system was upgraded to a more advanced digital one

When the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham undertook a £29 million redevelopment of its concert arena, ADT Fire & Security upgraded the existing fire alarm and extinguishing systems, as well as its intruder alarm system.

The work on the fire detection and alarm system at the LG Arena involved upgrading the existing Minerva system installed in 1989 with ADT’s digital MX mutli-sensor technology, to help cope with conditions during live performances.

The panels control hundreds of devices and interface with a public address/voice alarm system. The intelligent programming, says ADT, allows for thousands of event action groups, which determine alert and evacuation procedures depending on the location and type of any incident.

“The upgrade has enabled the LG Arena, formerly NEC, to move to a digital addressable system, providing more advanced technology,” said Roger Harrison, fire sales consultant at ADT Fire & Security. “Digital systems offer a superior robustness and reliability and can support a higher number of devices on one loop, giving increased flexibility, whilst allowing for the system to be readily extended if required in the future.”