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Many owners of large commercial and industrial projects are capitalizing on the benefits of shorter construction cycles thanks to sandwich panels wall systems. The light, prefabricated panels can be easily transported to site and quickly erected, allowing other trades to begin their work immediately. In facilities such as data centers where every additional day of uptime counts, these fast-track construction methods are helping to improve and accelerate the return on their construction investment. 

Unfortunately, the existing standards for fire testing penetration seals in sandwich panels have frustrated many designers looking for solutions in these types of walls. Firestop manufacturers cannot compare results across panel types or manufacturers, making widespread testing cost prohibitive and leading to an industry-wide lack of tested systems in these wall construction types. 

To meet the current market demand, Hilti Firestop & Fire Protection (Liechtenstein), Paroc Panel System (Finland) and Rf-Technologies have recently signed a contract to jointly develop a wide range of applications for certified fire protection solutions in sandwich panel construction. 

This partnership will offer European certified solutions to engineering offices, construction companies and installation companies. With large span widths, unique fire-door support testing and a wide range of panels for various situations, Paroc sandwich panels are increasingly being specified for the construction of data centres. Hilti is the partner providing a portfolio of solutions for the most common mechanical, electrical and telecoms penetrations in industrial facilities. Rf-Technologies fire dampers products are making the system complete. Rf-Technologies was selected because of its expertise, direct approach and reliability. Our products have already been used or provided in several data centers.

Major providers in data storage and management, search engines, web shops and social media, such as Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc…, are rapidly expanding their server capacity worldwide. This is to enable the strong growth of data and services. In Europe, several of these ‘hyperscale’ data centers are under construction or planned. 

Due to the growing usage of mobile data, consumption of rich internet content and data storage demand from a variety of industries, our lives now rely on data centres. These data centres host and manage the data that makes our day-to-day activities possible – from energy and lighting to urban traffic and even security systems. 

Data centres are one of the fastest-growing categories of real estate asset in our cities. London alone has over 300 data centres. The US and EU currently have the most, and the number in the Middle East and Asia are also growing rapidly. 

Data centres are large, complex, mission-critical facilities. The high value equipment contained within them needs to be running 24/7/365 with uninterrupted electricity and a constant flow of cool air to secure IT equipment and information. Any interruptions to its operation can have enormous knock-on effects and the operational risks around any disruption are high, in terms of time, money and reputation. 

One of the key operational disruption risks is from fire. The threat of fires at data centres is higher than people might imagine, with electrical fires a significant risk given the vast networks of cabling and electronic equipment used. To avoid severe consequences, it is important to prepare for a fire by properly designing, building and operating data centers, as well as equipping them with modern fire protection systems. So fire safety solutions are crucial considerations for those building and managing data centres. 

Whether you’re trying to get a hyperscale data center built at speed or looking for solutions to meet stringent cleanliness standards in pharmaceutical or food plants, we have the expertise to help you meet your goals. Take advantage of the combined knowledge of Hilti, Paroc and Rf-Technologies to get solutions to your most technically complex challenges. Coordinating densely packed services in tight technical areas always presents a challenge. However, by combining the engineering power of three leading manufacturers, we can consider the structural requirements of sandwich panels alongside the spacing limitations of these certified fire penetration solutions. To ensure you enjoy the most cost-efficient design, contact us early in the design process. This is especially important when it comes to firestop and fire dampers: by considering the parameters of tested systems at any early stage, you can help avoid the need for time-consuming engineering judgements and costly rework, delays or problems during commissioning. For more information about the Hilti/Paroc/Rf-Technologies certified fire protection solution for data centers, you can contact our business development team.