Innovation in fire detection Gent

INNOVATION IN FIRE DETECTION

Long-established fire detection and alarm specialist, Gent, continues to grow as part of the global Honeywell portfolio. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to the sales director of Honeywell Life Safety Systems UK and Ireland, John Lewis, to find out how this is being achieved.

The Gent reputation has been built on more than 140 years of quality and innovation in the field of fire detection and alarm systems. Founded by John Thomas Gent in Leicester, UK, in 1872, the company was acquired by technology giant Honeywell in 2005, when it bought the Novar Group of which Gent was an integral part. The company, now known as Gent by Honeywell, sits in the Life Safety Division of Honeywell’s international business. Positive profile

Sales director, John Lewis, explained to Industry Europe how Gent’s acquisition by Honeywell helped to further boost its profile. John Lewis has worked for Gent for over ten years, so has seen firsthand the positive impact the changes have had on the company. “Honeywell is a focused company with a clear long-term strategic plan, and Gent is positively influenced by the Honeywell family.”

Gent’s dedication to developing and manufacturing fire and smoke detection products, and its reputation for technically sophisticated solutions has continued throughout the company’s long history. Its products remain at the forefront of the industry, with a core range centred around its renowned S-Quad multi-sensing devices.

The innovative S-Quad was launched in early 2005 and Lewis explained the unique design behind the ground-breaking device

ensures that it remains firmly at the top of Gent’s best selling products list. The S-Quad is synonymous with Gent’s philosophy of providing products and solutions that ensure that customers have superior value offerings with specifiable technology. The detector range covers optical, heat, CO2, as well as sounder, strobe and speech in a single unit that sits on the fire detection loop. It’s ideal for areas where there is a high risk of false alarms as the system has the ability to filter unwanted alarms. Another of Gent’s products, the Vigilon panel, has a sophisticated set of patterns and rules that work in conjunction with the unique S-Quad range of sensitivity that allows the system to discriminate between a real fire alarm and an unwanted false alarm situation.

Dedicated to innovation

While the S-Quad and Vigilon are still industry-leading products, Gent is continually looking for the next industry-defining solution and its commitment to innovation remains at the forefront of the company’s strategy. Mr. Lewis continued, “Honeywell invests heavily in R&D and Gent has certainly been able to benefit from this. We have a strong team of innovative development engineers who are committed to taking the challenges faced by our end users and creating fresh new products that adhere to the industry’s very strict quality and performance standards. We are currently working on developing the next generation portfolio where we see a future network of smart system devices that integrate seamlessly into the types of buildings where our solutions are used.”

Gent by Honeywell’s products are ideal for a wide range of buildings from those which provide accommodation right through to larger commercial buildings such as shopping centres. The vast majority of Gent’s products are currently installed in hospitals, prisons, hotels, care homes and student accommodation as well as specially tailored solutions for airports. The Gent range of products are available to customers through a network of approved system integrators which have been carefully selected and trained in every aspect of the Gent by Honeywell systems.

Gent’s largest sales region is the UK and Ireland, accounting for more than two-thirds of the company’s global sales. The company is strengthening its market presence in regions such as South East Asia, Brazil and India, and has already seen considerable opportunities. Gent also plans to continue to maximise its potential by working with local resellers known as Gent international partners.

Geographical growth will be supported by the considerable investment in innovation and technology from Gent, which will lead to some exciting additions to its product portfolio in the coming months. The company was set to launch the new wireless system, Plexus, in September 2011. The ‘quick to install’ radio-based system will be an ideal solution for buildings that require a reliable fire and smoke detection provision which will not damage the building fabric in locations such as heritage, listed and temporary sites.

A new integrated voice alarm system with loudspeakers will also be released. The voice alarm systems provide clear direction to people in a building. So, crowds are more likely to evacuate a building if a human voice is heard rather than an alarm. Mr. Lewis concluded, “We’re inventing the future, creating voice, video and fire solutions that not only suit the needs of our customers, but meet with the stringent safety standards essential in our industry.” n

John Lewis, sales director