“We provide one central system giving full control over water, gas and electricity in a school lab, for example,” says Andrew Dickenson, Managing Director of Intelligas. “There are other systems that do that, but what makes the Intelligas version unique is that it is the first of its type to deal with the requirements of BB101, a new standard which requires schools to monitor CO2 levels in classrooms.”

 

Intelligas’s new Multi-Services Controller, MSC 101, can also work with a Building Management System, for example, to ensure that all water, gas and electricity systems are shut off at the end of the day.“ It’s a fully modular system for the classroom environment,” says Andrew Dickenson.

 

“Even though BB101 was originally published in July 2006, many people are not yet fully aware of its effects,” he says. “Anybody who is planning work on school buildings needs to make sure they are getting the right equipment to deal with the CO2 controls it requires.”

 

“It has been shown that increased CO2 levels can affect children’s concentration,” he says. “We have come up with a system that can be hooked up to a CO2 monitor so that, for example, ventilation fan speed is increased to deal with increased levels.”

 

Under “Building Bulletin 101 Ventilation of School Buildings” issued by the Department for Children, Schools and Families, CO2 levels must be monitored and controlled in any situation where there are CO2 sources adding to what is normally produced by the children’s own breathing.

 

“The solid state technology we use can be adapted to meet changes in legal or safety requirements,” says Andrew Dickenson. “That means our systems will be able to deal with any future tightening of the rules. The speed with which we’ve been able to provide something to deal with BB101 is a great example of the advantage of that approach. This system, as with all Intelligas systems, is open protocol, which means that virtually any carbon dioxide detector will interface with it.”

 

“It’s always better to have a system which is designed to do the job needed, rather than have engineers construct something on-site,” he says. “The installer’s job is easier, which means quicker and cheaper installation and the system itself is likely to be more reliable.”

 

The new system will be available from April onwards. “Anyone who is specifying or installing systems in schools should talk to their suppliers about Intelligas, if they want to make sure they’re getting kit that deals effectively with the latest requirements,” says Andrew Dickenson.