i-Sprink kit. A fire hydrant with an automatic water spray system

Not only for car parks. Other applications
The device is intended for automatic fire protection of selected spaces, in the event of a fire, in buildings of various purposes, e.g. residential buildings, public buildings, industrial buildings e.g.:

• parking spaces equipped with charging stations for electric and hybrid cars in underground garages (primary use),
• parking spaces equipped with parking platforms in underground garages,
• parking spaces and charging areas for battery-operated forklift trucks,
• warehouse storage spaces,
• selected parts of production lines in industrial buildings,
• hazardous materials storage areas e. g. battery rooms.

Structure and key components of the i-Sprink kit

• fire hydrant module
• control valves module (electromagnetic or motorized ball valves)
• control-power supply module
• set of water spray nozzles mounted on the sectional pipelines (dry – not filled with water)
• local smoke/heat detection system
• innovative, contactless infrared temperature and car presence sensor (early fire hazard detection)
• audio-visual signalling device (option)

Principle of operation

The principle of operation of the i-Sprink kit is based on an automatic use of a local water spray system to suppress electric or hybrid car fire in its initial stage. Water supply is provided by means of standard internal hydrant installation. The early fire detection system consists of two smoke and heat detectors and one contactless, infrared temperature and car presence sensor per parking space. If a fire has been detected, the controller automatically opens a specific section valve located in the control valve module to enable water supply to the correct water spray section pipe and two water jet nozzles installed above the protected parking space. The i-Sprink kit enables standard use of the internal hydrants and extinguishing a fire using a hydrant hose. The hydrant valve is fitted with a limit switch which, when opened, automatically closes an appropriate section valve in the control valve module. In case many i-Sprink kits are installed in a common space, they are integrated and communicate with each other by means of data transmission loop.

Automatic fire suppression mode (the excess temperature limit or detection of smoke or/and heat)

• fire detection (alarm) – coincidence of two smoke/heat detectors located in a protected space e. g. parking space in the underground garage, (depending on the programmed algorithm, including pre-alarms based on information transmitted by the charging station)
• automatic shutdown of electric vehicle charging station (optional),
• transmission of the fire alarm to the fire alarm system (FAS) and/or building management system (BMS),
• opening an appropriate section valve in the control valve module and activation of water jet nozzles installed above the protected space (automatic fire suppression), where fire has been detected e. g. parking space in the underground garage,
• activation of the audio-visual signalling device (optional).

Manual fire suppression mode (normal use of the fire hydrant hose)

• manual opening of the hydrant valve (limit switch opening),
• automatic closure of specific section valve and cutting-off water supply to water jet nozzles,
• use of the hydrant hose to extinguish the fire.

Note: After the extinguishing is finished, it is recommended to drain the water from the used hydrant by opening the drain valve in order to dry the unheated section pipes led outside the kit cabinet.

Benefits of using the i-Sprink kit

• fire suppression in its initial stage
• control of heat release rate before the start of the rescue operation and firefighting (slower development of the fire)
• effective cooling of the burning vehicle, vehicles parked at the adjacent spaces, and building structure (lower temperatures and control of the fire spreading)

Formal and legal basis

The issues of ensuring sufficient water resources for purpose of firefighting and necessary technical means for its use in the event of a fire are defined by the Regulation of the Minister of Interior and Administration of June 7, 2010 on fire protection of buildings, other structures, and areas. According to §18.1. Regulations: in buildings, the following types of water supply are used for firefighting purposes:

• internal fire hydrants with a semi-rigid hose with a nominal hose diameter of 25 mm and 33 mm, hereinafter referred to as “25 hydrant” and “33 hydrant” respectively,
• internal hydrant with a flat-folded hose with a nominal hose diameter of 52 mm, hereinafter referred to as “52 hydrant”.

Pursuant to the Regulation, in multi-parking garages, internal hydrants 33 are commonly available, using the guaranteed water resources in the amount of 90 l/min, or optionally 52 hydrants with a capacity of 150 l/min provided for 60 minutes, with a minimum supply pressure of 2 bar.

The i-Sprink kit, operating in automatic or manual mode, has the same efficiency, and water consumption equivalent to the expenditure of one hydrant, i.e. 1.5 l/s = 90 l/min = 5.4 m³/h, the spraying intensity is 5 mm/min∙m². Regardless of the mode of operation, the full functionality of all internal fire hydrants in the building is maintained in accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Interior and Administration of June 7, 2010 on fire protection of buildings, other structures, and areas.

Harmonized product and relevant design standards

The i-Sprink kit is a combination of a DN33 internal fire hydrant with a local water spray system. The hydrant 33 meets all requirements of EN 671-1 Fixed firefighting systems – Hose systems – Part 1: Hose reels with semi-rigid hose and has a Certificate of Conformity issued by CNBOP-PIB No. 1438 /CPR/0227. Assumptions regarding the required intensity of spraying were adopted on the basis of the European standard EN 12845+A1:2020-05 Fixed firefighting systems – Automatic sprinkler systems – Design, installation and maintenance, the required spraying intensity is 5 mm/min∙m². The same assumption regarding the fire hazard category of parking lots is defined by the German standard VdS 2109en: 2021-01 “Guidelines for sprinkler systems”.

Complete technical on the use of the i-Sprink kit is available at “Support” tab or in the link “Design documentation i-Sprink”.

For more details feel free to contact us. We would be happy to answer your questions and advise you on how to choose the right solution for your application. We are here to provide comprehensive support and solve your problems!