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Fort Knox is the home of the Army Armor Center, and theU.S. Army Recruiting Command. Encompassing 109,000acres in four Kentucky counties, Fort Knox has a population ofover 23,000 soldiers, family members and civilians. TheArmor Center and the Recruiting Command School, the largestorganization on Fort Knox, performs the mission of bringing

men and women into the U.S. Army.These military personnel and other residents are housed in14 barracks at Fort Knox. In 2003, Fort Knox called onFreedom Communications of Louisville, Kentucky to com-pletely upgrade the fire alarm systems in a number of keybuildings at the base, including the 14 barracks.

Brian Banta, vice president of Freedom Communications,had many responsibilities as the provider to the base for suchprojects, including specifying the equipment for specific pro-jects, ordering that equipment, overseeing the installations andacting as a liaison with the fire inspectors. Banta explained thethinking at the initial stages of the Fort Knox project:

We got our feet wet working with the electrical installeron a small job at the base in 2003. While doing that, theyinformed us about the bigger project, which included installa-tion of fire control panels and mass notification systems in 14barrack buildings.

They told us that they were looking for non-proprietarycontrol panels that they could easily work on, and order partsfor, after the install. We looked at a number of different brandsthat were out there, and the Fire-Lite panel quickly rose to thetop of the list.

Freedom Communications winning project bid incorpo-rated the installation of 14 Fire-Lite MS-9600 control panels in

11OCTOBER/NOVEMBER/DECEMBER, 2006 VOL. 4

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the different barracks. The Fire-Lite MS-9600 addressable fire alarm control panelis a compact system manufactured withsurface-mount technology and designedfor easy installation and programming.The Fire-Lite system includes advancedfire protection features like MaintenanceAlert, Automatic Detector Test, andsmoke detector sensitivity printout.

The units can also come with theconvenience of an optional Digital AlarmCommunicator Transmitter (DACT-UD)which allows for remote siteupload/download and remote monitoringand diagnostics.

The impetus for the entire project,

continued Banta, was a need to stay upto speed with post-9/11 codes. Since thattime, and the sharper focus on terrorism,there has been a big push for militarybases around the country to install anti-terrorism mass notification systems inconjunction with compatible fire alarmsystems. The flexible non-proprietarynature of the Fire-Lite system made it aperfect partner for the two types of massnotification systems we were using.

The new fire alarm system was along time coming and much needed atFort Knox. The previous system wasconventional, as opposed to addressable,so pinpointing a source point for analarm posed a challenge. The new 9600panels have completely overcome thisproblem, while addressing all of Fort

Knoxs needs. Said Banta, Not only canthe Fire-Lite panels easily hook-up withthe mass notification panels, but theycompletely meet the facilitys specifica-tions and budgetary needs.

The Fort Knox project managerswere extremely pleased with the way theinstallation went and the fact that theFire-Lite project and our companypassed the inspection the first time withzero problems. They also appreciated thefact that we easily completed the projecwithin their deadlines.

In fact, Banta and his team had fourmonths to complete the entire project; theinstallation of the fire alarm systems wasbeing done in conjunction with manyother building upgrades, includingrewiring, new windows, new roofs, and

Electrical Sourc12

The new fire-detection system was needed to meet the post-9/11 needs for anti-terrorism mass-notification systems.

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13OCTOBER/NOVEMBER/DECEMBER, 2006 VOL. 4

overall interior remodeling. The flexibil-ity and ease of installation of the MS-9600 panels certainly played a big role inspeed of the installation.

Everything goes together seamless-ly now, continued Banta. From theFire-Lite control panels to the smokedetectors, duct detectors, heat detectorsand System Sensor speakers and strobes;

it all works together extremely well.The versatility of the Fire-Lite prod-

uct made it an easy choice when FreedomCommunications was tasked withinstalling fire alarm control panels in anumber of other locations around thebase, including the regional correctionalfacility, two elementary schools and anofficers club.

Banta explained how the officersclub project, although a smaller projectthan the barracks installation, posed itsown unique challenges. He said, With

the officers club, we were set with thetask of providing a system that could shutdown the audio on the dance floor, turnon all the lights and initiate a mass noti-

fication message. We were able to put incontrol modules and relay modules thatwork with the MS-9600 so that all ofthese unique events could be easily con-trolled and monitored. The Fire-Lite sys-tem has the kind of versatility to workwith a smaller building like the officersclub, or a warehouse that has just 10smoke and/or heat detectors, all the wayup to bigger facilities like the barracks

buildings.Both Banta and Fort Knox are

extremely pleased with the results of thelife safety system installation in the bar-

racks, so much so that FreedomCommunications has many other projectsin the works on the base. These upcom-ing projects include providing fire pro-tection for The Patton Museum of Armorand Cavalry, as well as for an ammuni-tion building.

The recruits who live and sleep inthe barracks are undoubtedly pleased aswell, resting easy with the knowledge

that they and their families are protectedby one of the most advanced fire safetysystems available.

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