BULTEX99 Logistics Centre

 

 

Based in Bulgaria, BULTEX 99 have been serving customers for over 28 years through 22 shops with 24,000 clients needing personal protective equipment. With their logistics site in Radinovo recently expanding, BULTEX needed an upgraded life safety system to enhance the protection of all assets that reside in the centre.

 

 

The facility spans across 270,000 square feet, consisting of one main building divided into three primary warehouses each containing racking storage systems. The sheer volume of flammable clothing material present within the building, increased the risk of a major fire outbreak, endangering business continuity and assets within the warehouses.

 

The building houses a wide range of spaces, including administration offices, a showroom, a screen-printing area, a dining room, and smaller storage areas, which all require comprehensive fire protection to ensure the safety of every part of the business.

 

 

 

 

To complement their brand, it was essential that their new life safety system completely protected their busy logistics site. MCM Engineering was called upon to protect BULTEX’s centre and having entrusted Hochiki with their life safety systems for over 20 years, their significant familiarity with Hochiki’s range of detection devices, tied with single-partner accountability, guaranteed a streamlined installation with complete accuracy and precision.

 

 

MCM Engineering installed Hochiki’s ESP intelligent fire detection range connected to their Latitude fire control panel to ensure the highest level of protection for the large volume of assets present on site.

 

 

Georgi Georgiev from MCM Engineering said of the project,

 

 

“The application required multiple solutions to ensure all aspects of the site were thoroughly protected.  We chose Hochiki’s ESP intelligent range because of its open protocol technology. This means third-party products can easily be integrated within the system, which gives us the flexibility when dealing with such a large and complex facility”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MCM installed 350 ESP intelligent devices, most notably Hochiki’s optical smoke sensors and loop-powered sounders.  Hochiki’s audio visual products are EN 54-23 certified, providing inclusive and compliant fire notification for all occupants on the site. The range’s addressable technology provides meticulous identification of a sensor’s activation, ensuring that appropriate evacuation procedures occur. To maintain consistent aesthetics in a listed structure, white sensors were installed to complement the site’s interior.

 

 

 

 

At the core of the installation, Hochiki's 6-loop Latitude fire control panel was chosen for centralised fire management with a repeater panel located in the security office. With its open protocol and innovative software, the Latitude panel delivers lightning-fast response times for comprehensive fire detection. The sophistication of the system’s cause and effect programming ensures the panel can deliver a personalised fire system for any demanding application, with adjustable device sensitivity and operating modes.

 

 

A key benefit of the Latitude panel is its ability to record 5000 events at any one time, stored within its event log. This provides detailed operational data, streamlining panel and system maintenance for maximum efficiency. The installation of the Latitude panel ensured comprehensive and widespread fire management across the main building and rooms.

 

 

Hochiki’s CHQ range of input and output modules were also installed to control, monitor and perform different active functions within the system. Approved by LPCB and VdS, MCM Engineering installed various types of modules such as the CHQ-MRC mains power relay controller and the CHQ-DRC dual relay controller, both featuring an integral short-circuit isolator for system security.  The CHQ-POM and SIM “mini” modules were used to integrate third-party devices and systems onto the ESP loop for comprehensive operation, fixture shutdown and system regulation.

 

 

 

One of the biggest challenges MCM Engineering faced was the warehouses’ racking storage system.  A key consideration for BULTEX was implementing a system that could protect such a large space, but with reduced false alarms to minimise downtime. Hochiki’s addressable beam smoke detector FIREbeam Xtra was chosen as the perfect solution, however, the racking system created physical obstructions to the infrared beams, increasing the likelihood of false alarms and unnecessary disruptions.

 

 

But by carefully repositioning the beam detectors and reflectors, as well as increasing the number of detectors, MCM managed to attain full coverage across the building. The FIREbeams were strategically placed along the corridors between the racking systems within the warehouse to provide protection across all open spaces and walkways. The FIREbeam Xtra’s addressable connectivity with the Latitude panel’s detection loop creates a large-scale fire detection system that is easy to manage.

 

 

 

Georgi Georgiev continues,

 

“Through Hochiki’s ESP open protocol providing device connectivity, BULTEX 99 now have a centralised fire detection system that is simple to monitor, guarantees reliability and is designed to support the future expansion of the business”.

 

 

 

 

Download the PDF Case Study