- October 12, 2024
Imen Datis Asia Co
Imen Datis Asia Co
What is the server room fire alarm and extinguishing system? To answer this question, it is better to first understand the meaning and concept of server room.
A server room is a place that is used to maintain, provide energy and run computer servers and related equipment. This space is part of a data center that typically houses a large number of physical servers in various formats such as rack mounted or in tower and blade enclosures.
A data center may consist of several server rooms, each used for different applications and services. This article examines what a server room is and then introduces its components and design standards. The server room provides facilities and operational and environmental services for running enterprise-level servers. Generally, a server room may house 10 to several hundred servers.
Servers located in a server room usually contain the main CPU components and do not have any displays or input devices. All these servers are centrally accessed and managed through a server management system, usually located outside the server room.
Server rooms are mainly designed to run enterprise applications that require extensive computing resources at runtime, such as banking software, search engines, or social networking applications. These spaces are designed to provide continuous and redundant power, backup power, lighting and air conditioning and are under the supervision of one or more server administrators.
In addition, server rooms are usually built to withstand earthquakes, fires, and other natural disasters and to accommodate future expansions.
The fire alarm and extinguishing system of the server room is one of the essential components of this space. Server room and data center is the place where our critical information is stored. The loss of this information for any reason can lead to serious financial and moral losses for us. The servers located in this room are providing services to people inside and outside the organization.
In centers like Mobile First Data Center, these services help the organization generate income, and their interruption can cause great losses to the organization. The equipment installed in these centers also has a high financial value; Servers, switches and other accessories are available at high prices. Server room equipment generates heat and the presence of electrical appliances in the room increases the possibility of fire. For this reason, this room should be equipped with a fire alarm and extinguishing system so that in case of an accident, the fire can be contained quickly.
Servers are valuable and often critical to business, but that’s not the only reason to install a fire protection system in these buildings. These rooms have special risks that require extra care so that the fire does not only damage your valuable servers, but also prevent it from spreading to other places and threatening more assets and lives.
Faulty wiring, overheating, overloading, or shorting can quickly lead to a fire in a room that contains a lot of electrical equipment, such as a server room. Businesses need a solution that quickly extinguishes a fire without damaging servers. A trained fire safety technician can help design a system that will reduce this risk and limit any potential risk of injury.
Electrical failure of equipment: Overloading of outlets is a common problem that is often overlooked. Short circuits in electrical components such as switches or power inverters can also lead to similar problems.
Overheating of electronics: If cooling systems fail or the room is not properly ventilated, electronic components can overheat and this can lead to ignition.
Underfloor wiring problems: When subfloors are not strong enough, underfloor wiring can become damaged, which can lead to overheating or dangerous sparks.
Proximity Fires: Server room walls are more vulnerable to nearby fires because they typically have multiple holes and conduits for cables to pass through to adjacent rooms and offices. When the fire reaches the server room, it quickly engulfs it and then becomes a dangerous source of harmful gases.
Accumulation of dirt and dust: Cooling fans and other equipment parts easily attract dust, and when this dust accumulates, it insulates the components and causes them to overheat, which can eventually lead to a fire. to be
To design any project, there is a need for a series of basic rules and standards; These standards are reviewed by experts and then implemented in specialized software. In this section, we are going to mention the most important ones:
– Room or building dimensions based on cubic meters (length, width and height)
– Provide height in case of ceiling or false floor
– The method of arranging the racks
– Types of heating and cooling systems
– The passage of electric cables (false ceiling or floor)
– Geographical location of the server room and its distance from the sea
– Areas that need a fire alarm and extinguishing system
– Server room temperature status
– Ambient concentration based on specified standards
First of all, we are going to deal with the piping of the fire alarm system in the server room. In this system, galvanized pipes with standard size PG 13.5 should be used.
But the important thing is that in some places, due to limited access, it is not possible to use galvanized pipe. In this situation, flexible pipes are used.
When wiring fire alarm systems, fireproof, noise-absorbing and flexible cables should be used so that the cables are not damaged during a fire.
The use of these types of cables makes them maintain their performance and continue working even at high temperatures.
In the following, we will examine and introduce server room fire extinguishing systems:
The central controller or the main panel of the command circuit of the server room fire alarm and extinguishing system
This control panel includes different sections with different functions and uses the addressable model.
This circuit gives a fire alarm command to different zones, and in the same way, the zones are responsible for extinguishing the fire of the server room.
In server rooms, due to high air flow, conventional detectors are not very effective; For this reason, they use heat, smoke and multi-sensor detectors that can act as a fire alarm system after 5 to 8 seconds.
This suction can measure about 0.005Obs/m at any point. If this size is more than normal, the system will automatically alarm and declare a fire.
This cable is available in two types, addressable and conventional, which is able to detect fire at different temperatures.
These cables are used at temperatures of 68, 86 and 108 degrees Celsius. Now suppose your racks are located near a very high heat source and the cooling system cannot cool them completely. In this situation, the cable is connected to the fire extinguishing control panel from one side and helps in detecting the location of the fire.
From the group of warning systems, we can mention the fire alarm and the fire extinguisher alarm.
The fire alarm works in both audio and visual ways (flasher) and warns people about the occurrence of fire.
On the other hand, the alarm sounds continuously when the fire extinguishing agent is discharged.
The best preventive measure to prevent a fire in the server room is to use an emergency power system. This system will not only help keep your server up and running in the event of a fire, but will also ensure that your fire alarm and extinguishing systems are working properly.
Fire extinguishing gas: FM200 gas is used for the fire extinguishing system of the server room.
Fire extinguishing cylinder or capsule: This cylinder is the storage place for fire extinguishing gas. Cylinder quality is critical; Using low-quality capsules may lead to gas leakage or bursting.
Electric valve: This valve is installed on the capsule and releases the gas electrically by command from the control panel.
Piping: We follow the NFPA standard for piping and we consider Mannesmann seamless steel pipes suitable. Connections are made by welding and without thread. Welds must be done properly to avoid leakage or gas pressure cracking.
360 degree spray nozzle: it is installed at the end of the pipes and the gas is spread evenly in the room through it.
Manual fire extinguishing: In case of fire, the user can activate the system manually.
Manual Stop Thumb: If the system is automatically activated, it can be manually deactivated within 30 seconds.
At the end, warning signs are installed and necessary training is provided to users.
The dimensions of the room include its length, width and height, and the volume of the room is calculated using these dimensions.
The presence of false floor and ceiling, the equipment passing behind them and the height of these parts should also be checked.
The height of the city where the server room or data center is located must be specified.
The general temperature of the server room and data center should be checked.
The type of arrangement of racks and the analysis of hot and cold aisles should be considered.
The cooling system and its performance should also be specified.
The route of the power cables in the server room must be determined.
Server room fire alarm and extinguishing systems should also be checked.
In this system, the set of detectors and analyzers are connected to two or three different zones and these zones are transferred to the control panel. After detecting fire, these devices send a message to the control panel. If the control panel receives a signal from a zone, the alarm systems are activated. After receiving the second signal, the secondary warning systems are also activated and after 30 seconds, the gas is released into the environment. This delay is due to providing an opportunity for people to leave the room and the possibility of shutting down the system if there is no fire.
One of the main advantages of this system is the need for fewer cylinders, which reduces the need for storage space.
Also, the ability to identify and extinguish a fire in less than 10 seconds is another advantage that can help prevent significant risks.
Imen Datis Asia Company is recognized as one of the top companies in the private sector in the field of safety and fire fighting, relying on modern knowledge, continuous activity and the cooperation of highly specialized forces. This group is always trying to continuously and dynamically expand the safety and firefighting infrastructure of our beloved country Iran and take great steps in order to achieve goals such as the development and industrialization of new technologies.
