The new S3 Series fire alarm control panel from Gamewell-FCI by Honeywell is a small, addressable system that features a touch screen display. The display is aimed at simplifying system use for facility managers as well as emergency first responders. This helps to ensure straightforward operation of the system, particularly during stressful emergency events.
Evolving past fire alarm systems’ common rows of potentially confusing buttons and cryptic text displays, the S3 Series’ full color, touch screen interface centers around three main operations:
System Status: Provides information on any system faults, detector dirt-levels, and voltage levels, for example.
Event Details: Displays real-time information on all emergency events, including alarm location, type of devices (i.e. pull stations, smoke or gas detectors, etc.), and total number of devices in alarm.
Service Mode: Allows users access to various system controls for certain functions like temporarily disabling devices, output bypass, and acknowledgements of alarms.
The S3 comes standard with five additional physical press-buttons, which are located under the touch screen display. These physical press-buttons can be customized for the facility so users can quickly access specific fire alarm information and control various system functions.
Gamewell-FCI designed the S3 Series’ touch screen display to be removable from the full panel and installed up to 3,000′ from the S3 Series panel in an accessible area such as a lobby or entryway. Serving as a remote annunciator, the touch screen display can provide facility managers and first responders access to critical fire alarm information and controls during emergencies.
Only a single pair of wires is required to support a network of S3 Series systems—from one standalone panel to as many as 122 panels. This scalability allows the fire alarm to be expanded over time to meet the needs of a facility or campus. The same single pair of wires can be used to connect S3 Series systems to a Gamewell-FCI’s E3 Series fire alarm and emergency communication systems currently protecting a facility, or when the ability to provide voice messages and emergency communications is requested.
The S3 Series provides a breadth of functions, including smoke, carbon monoxide, gas and multi-criteria detection; elevator recall; fan control; and graphical workstation monitoring interface.
Exclusive to the S3 Series is a built-in Ethernet port (standard at no extra cost), which can enable S3 Series systems to be connected to the Internet. Facility managers and fire alarm service providers can use this connection to view system status, review diagnostics, and troubleshoot events.
