The new Honeywell VESDA AIR can provide smoke detection and indoor air quality monitoring to serve property owners as a multipurpose device.
ATLANTA — Honeywell has launched a first-of-its-kind solution that combines early warning smoke detection with advanced indoor air quality (IAQ) monitoring to further its efforts to create safer and healthier buildings.
The global security company points out that its latest product is built on its flagship VESDA-E line of aspirating smoke detectors. Among the features included in the VESDA Air solution, Honeywell says the combination home safety solution employs a five-in-one IAQ sensor within a single box, which can help improve building safety by identifying life safety, asset protection or IAQ issues before they escalate into problems.
“The emphasis on indoor air quality isn’t going away — and that’s a good thing as more organizations work to create safer, healthier environments that help boost occupant well-being and productivity,” comments Udaya Shrivastava, vice president and chief technology officer, Honeywell Building Technologies.
“We challenged our engineering teams to find a way to complement the capabilities of our aspirating smoke detection systems with highly sensitive IAQ monitoring. The system identifies not only the minute presence of smoke, but also the presence of air quality contaminants of concern — allowing building operators to react and respond to out-of-bounds parameters quickly, before they escalate into unsafe situations.”
Honeywell VESDA Air solution Complements Smart Building Initiatives
Honeywell notes the VESDA Air complements Honeywell’s ready now Healthy Buildings solutions that can help improve occupant well-being, meet energy efficiency goals and change the way occupants experience a building.
The VESDA technology actively samples air — rather than passively waiting for smoke to reach traditional spot sensors — to identify trace amounts of smoke and enable early intervention before it disrupts operations.
Honeywell emphasizes that its engineers have integrated into the same VESDA system a highly sensitive IAQ sensor that measures critical IAQ parameters, including volatile organic compounds (total VOCs) listed by ASHRAE as ‘contaminants of concern’ fine particulate matter of 1.0 micron (PM1.0) and PM2.5 or larger with unprecedented accuracy, CO and CO2 concentration, temperature and humidity.
Some of the applications for the VESDA Air solution include commercial buildings, healthcare facilities, hospitality, manufacturing and schools.
Honeywell says the plug-and-play cartridge-based IAQ sensor works in the same manner as replacing a printer’s ink-jet cartridge, to help property owners avoid costly calibration and other associate maintenance issues. According to Honeywell, this convenience helps to reduce total cost, minimize waste and provide accurate IAQ data.
In addition, Honeywell stresses the scalable solution can be used in both new construction and existing buildings. In new construction, installation of an integrated VESDA Air solution can reduce the total cost of installation (TCI) and total cost of maintenance (TCM) as compared to installing and maintaining standalone smoke detection and IAQ monitoring systems. In buildings with a fully functional smoke detection system, a “smokeless” IAQ-only system can be installed to provide accurate, actionable data to adjust ventilation parameters.
