Maintenance of closed protocol alarm system

[ahmedh]

Hi,

the maintenance contract for our closed protocol system is up. My current understanding is that companies don't disclose its protocol to other manufacturers, and access to the software is restricted to manufacturer approved installers and engineers.

Does this mean that i am stuck over the proverbial barrel and have to use the manufacturer or one of their agents?

thanks

[kurnal]

Is it closed protocol or managed protocol such as Gent? Many independents can offer a choice eg under the Gent 24 or integrator schemes.

[ahmedh]

I believe it is a managed protocol and is in fact with gent.

[kurnal]

You should have plenty of choice of companies that can maintain it for you. Gent offer a range of levels of training courses for companies to qualify them to service,  install or engineer their systems.

[AnthonyB]

If it's a Gent then it's 'managed' and as said you have a wide choice.

Anyone can carry out basic servicing and maintenance even on fully closed systems, but when it comes to programming, other top access level items and obtaining compatible parts invariably it's back to the manufacturer, had an ADT system with a problem and the client used Protec for routine servicing and ended up paying for a Protec engineer to come and stand watching an ADT engineer (subbed in by Protec) resolve the fault.

Gent systems are particularly easy to mess up big style if you are not very au fait with the system (even if you've managed to get the access codes and kit) so treat any firm who is not a Gent 24 approved integrator but says they can fully service, alter & extend a Gent system with a mountain of salt!

[ahmedh]

If it's a Gent then it's 'managed' and as said you have a wide choice.

Anyone can carry out basic servicing and maintenance even on fully closed systems, but when it comes to programming, other top access level items and obtaining compatible parts invariably it's back to the manufacturer, had an ADT system with a problem and the client used Protec for routine servicing and ended up paying for a Protec engineer to come and stand watching an ADT engineer (subbed in by Protec) resolve the fault.

Gent systems are particularly easy to mess up big style if you are not very au fait with the system (even if you've managed to get the access codes and kit) so treat any firm who is not a Gent 24 approved integrator but says they can fully service, alter & extend a Gent system with a mountain of salt!

So anyone can carry out the servicing and maintenance or would you insist on a gent approved integrator? The reason i am a bit wary is that it is quite a large complex system with s-quad loops, dozens of panels and a few thousand detectors.

thanks

[AnthonyB]

A lot of firms, both big and small, happily carry out the basic maintenance regime in BS5839 even if it's closed or a managed one they aren't an agent for. It just gets very difficult when it comes to faults, additions, C&E programming etc.

For any Gent addressable system it is very important to use an integrator as although the systems are very versatile to many uses and configurations it's very easy to mess them up - they are a beast of their own and it is very easy to loose all your programming by a simple error in how you approach the job, even with addressable experience.

I would strongly advise based on the extent of your system you go direct to a Gent approved integrator, the few quid you may save by leaving the basic PPM to a non approved contractor is nothing compared to the damage and disruption they could cause!

[kurnal]

I would fully agree with all Anthony says. Especially networked systems such as you describe, its so easy to mess up the design cause and effects some of which are network based commands and some local to the panels.

[ahmedh]

thanks guys.

[Allen Higginson]

If you have no immeadiate plane to change the system then any competent (note my wording - competent) fire alarm engineer should be able to carry out test/report with fault finding. Changing like for like shouldn't be an issue if a device view faulty..........it's all closed protocol by the way,it's the software that's the issue!!