Custodian chooses Fireworks Fire Protection for new 10MW data centre

Fireworks is the UK’s leading expert in water mist fire suppression and has been pioneering the use of water mist in data centres for many years. In 2021 alone, Fireworks protected over 100,000m2 of data centres.

Optimising fire protection for mission-critical services

Custodian’s DA2 data centre has been designed to exceed Tier III standards, and once complete, will be ISO 27001 accredited, PCI DSS, and Cyber Essentials Plus certified. Ensuring 24/7, 365 business continuity is crucial to both the company’s reputation and those of its clients, therefore, the choice of fire protection supplier for the new 10MW facility was key.

“Through our diligent design, engineering and specification process, we knew that only a water mist fire protection system could provide the level of fast, efficient, and localised fire suppression needed to ensure resilience and continuity” said Callum Woodhouse M&E Manager Custodian Data Centres. “Fireworks’ water mist solutions rapidly reduce heat and the spread of smoke – the biggest causes of damage during data centre fires – and we chose Fireworks because of their great reputation, service-driven ethos and extensive experience. Further, their compact systems free up valuable whitespace, and the solution can scale easily as our customer demands grow.”

From conception to installation

“Fireworks’ teams worked closely with Custodian Data Centres on the best fire system design for their project requirements and we are now ramping up the installation phase with our engineering teams on site” said Derek Killaspy, Managing Director of Fireworks Ltd. “We are very happy to have been entrusted by Custodian Data Centres for this mission-critical facility and to be working with a company whose core values very much echo our own – quality, expertise, reliability and sustainability”.

Reducing the carbon footprint

Custodian Data Centres are passionate about contributing to a more sustainable future. Its data centres use five times less energy per kW of IT load than the average UK facility. Fireworks’ water mist fire protection solutions support Custodian’s environmental objectives, with low energy use, very low water requirements and zero chemicals. Compared to traditional sprinklers, around 30% fewer metal resources are required to protect the same area and the systems are extremely durable.

How It works

Fireworks’ fire protection solutions for data centres are based on a powerful, compact pump connected via small-diameter 316-grade stainless steel pipes to a network of strategically located water mist nozzles. The range of detection systems provided by Fireworks include heat sensitive water mist nozzles, very early smoke detection (VESDA) and conventional point detection. In the event of fire, data centre’s HVAC systems can continue operating as usual and only the water mist nozzles located at the point of fire are activated. Unlike sprinkler nozzles, water mist nozzles emit only very small amounts of water in the form of fine mist. Each water particle is approximately 1000th the size of regular drop of water. The mist is drawn directly to the base of the fire, where it rapidly reduces the heat., suppresses the fire and prevents reignition.