Our Client’s Requirement

For over 200 years Greenhill Methodist Church has been serving the community of Greenhill on the southern edge of Sheffield. Greenhill Methodist Church is a large and lively community and there is always a lot going on during the week, from toddler groups to line dancing. These activities are not uncommon for modern day churches as they are the heart of the community and therefore the fire risk becomes an important consideration.

The Main Issue

When researching into an appropriate system for the church, our client really started with the end in mind. The church has plans for some major building works in the future to extend the church and once completed an automated fire alarm system would be required. They were also undertaking some improvement works currently and turned to the Fire Officer for advice, where a phased approach was discussed and thought to be the right solution. Our client then came to us in order to establish if this was possible.

Our Solution

From the initial meeting with site SS Systems put forward an EMS Firecell system. This is a wireless fire alarm system that would offer them the flexibility they need as they change the use of the church, no disruption to the running of the event/groups they have in and of course can be easily extended as building works progress. It was clear that budget was also important so we worked with the church to ensure that the phasing met with their budgets. Initially it was agreed to design and install a L5 category of system covering all escape routes and high risk areas such as kitchens and boiler room.

Our engineer was fully aware that the church would be occupied in certain areas at certain times of the day during the install and this was carefully managed on site as not to cause any disruption. The EMS firecell system was installed and commissioned in 1.5 days and the client left with a fully compliant automated fire alarm system.

Our Client’s words

“The Church has seen a significant increase in footfall throughout the week in recent years, with a demand for use of the whole building by church members of the local community. The safety and well being of users is of paramount importance and the installation of the first phase of the fire alarm provides protection for the highest risk areas of the building. We are grateful to SS Systems for designing and installing a system which meets the Fire Officer and Building Control requirements and aim to upgrade the installation to an L3 category in the next financial year when further funding is available.”