Wellington Higher Education Institution - Fire Sprinkler Quake Proofing |
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The Situation In Wellington New Zealand, an education institution’s old fire sprinkler systems were installed by different contractors and did not meet NZS4541:2003. The institution administrative staff was concerned that in an earthquake the system would move independently rather than with the structure of the buildings. In particular unrestrained range ends (the sprinkler head fixtures) could move with a whipping effect and cause them to snap off, draining the system and reducing pressure to all other range ends. |
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The Impact With the outbreak of fire after an earthquake a very real possibility, it is vital that the sprinkler system is working effectively. |
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The Solution Sinclair Knight Merz Engineers were commissioned to manage the remediation project, and Seismic Restraints NZ was the obvious choice of contractor to get the job done. Yoked pipe clamps were connected with either 12mm or 16mm rods to custom made braces bolted to the ceiling using M12 Spatec bolts. The seven-storey building had as many as 1200 braces installed. In addition, all non- secured range ends and riser and distribution pipes were clamped to meet NZS 4541:2003 (403). |
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Overcoming Challenges
Short cuts, however, were unaffordable and all issues were worked through to completion.Thousands of students studying in the ten multi-storey buildings requiring work meant there were challenges to overcome. Work had to be done after hours, and installation provided its own challenges. With most of the pipe work above suspended and fixed ceilings access was difficult, and other services in the ceiling cavity made it almost impossible to reach desirable fixing points. |
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