This AA four-star hotel was once home to the world's biggest band The Beatles whilst they filmed their now-iconic movie The Magical Mystery Tour in 1967. To protect the rich heritage of this hotel, Hochiki partnered with Action Fire Southwest to deliver a comprehensive fire safety solution.
Set in 10 acres of breath-taking headland, steeped in magical history, with sensational views of the North Cornish coast, sits one of Cornwall's best-kept secrets, The Atlantic Hotel. The hotel is located just a short stroll to the centre of Newquay, and minutes from some of the UK’s finest surf beaches, including the world-famous surf mecca Fistral Beach. This AA four-star hotel was once home to the world's biggest band The Beatles whilst they filmed their now-iconic movie The Magical Mystery Tour in 1967.
Opening 125 years ago The Atlantic Hotel has retained many of its original features such as the glamourous marbled entrance to its historic sweeping staircase and chandeliers. Another original feature is that the original building is built of granite, meaning traditional fire cable installation would be almost impossible. Luckily for the hotel, life safety installers Action Fire Southwest had a magic trick up their sleeve, Hochiki’s hybrid wireless range of devices - Ekho, to ensure this iconic building was safe for its staff and guests.
Recognising the existing life safety system needed a complete upgrade, Andrew Berry owner of Action Fire Southwest said:
“This project was a big one, we had close to 200 devices to install, and with the size of the building and the fact that the hotel was made of granite meant that cabling was going to be tricky so we knew we needed to use wireless devices. Wireless is quicker to install minimising the impact on the hotel, we knew that Hochiki’s Ekho devices were the best for the job because they are incredibly quick and easy to install.”
In many public buildings, there may be dozens of different types of audible warning devices; fire alarm systems, emergency exit alarms, lifts/elevators, intrusion alarm systems, and each can have their own audible warning device.
With so many different types of audible devices, it can be confusing to the occupants when an alarm sound – especially for hotel guests who might be fast asleep in their rooms. Is it a real fire alarm or a false alarm? To counter these conflicting responses, voice sounders are now an established and effective solution. Research has shown that voice alarm messages result in quicker reaction times than when sirens or bells are used, in fact 75% of people react in a timely manner to voice messages. This has resulted in VA Systems becoming more commonplace as the primary means of evacuation in public buildings.
As part of the install at The Atlantic Hotel, staff training was provided on how the new system and devices operated, and what to expect when an alarm sounded.
