In 2022, Ultima suffered a small fire in one of their manufacturing hubs. Although the blaze was quickly brought under control, the word from their insurance provider made the situation worse. Ultima had the news that their fire and security provider was not BAFE accredited.
To remedy the situation, Ultima sought a fire and security provider to upgrade their fire detection systems to a P1 standard for fire, and their intruder alarms to grade 3 for security. First, they needed a partner that was recommended to them by their insurance provider. One that was BAFE recognised. As it happens, we were among the three names that their provider recommended.
Our work with Ultima started out as taking over the maintenance of their existing systems. Naturally, Ultima didn’t want to have any period of time where their facility wasn’t covered by fire detection and alert systems. On the 1st of January 2023, we began our window to take over all 12 sites in as little as two weeks. This started as initial inspections, asset capture, system health assessment, and connecting existing assets to our monitoring station. We then put plans in place to upgrade the systems on site starting with their fire alarms.
After which, we began the upgrade. Initially the facilities were fitted with Kentec fire alarms and Apollo fire detection, we aimed to keep as much of this intact as possible to reduce costs and waste, and to prevent a complete system reconfiguration.
We weren’t afraid to make changes when we saw upgrade potential though. One aspect of Ultima’s setup that required a fresh approach was the nature of their detection system. We changed Ultima from a beam detection method to an Aspirating system that stopped the multiple false alarms they were having per day by eliminating the false alarms caused by dust from the workshop. This meant Ultima didn’t have to switch off their fire detection during operations to stop false alarms, and they were protected at all times.
On the security side, Ultima originally had Orisec intruder alarms installed, a system that the client wanted to keep installed. Orisec was not something we had worked with a lot in the past, but as the client comes first, and as they didn’t need changing, we changed instead! We became Orisec partners to provide the best maintenance service for Ultima
Your Choice were brilliant, I couldn’t fault their meticulous attention to detail, and their engineers were dilligent and thorough with their installation.
We assessed the rollout and understood that 10/12 sites were going to be no issue, and a fast rollout. The last two presented unique complexities.
To get Ultima up and running with upgraded fire and security solutions quickly, we started with the easy 10, and got these rolled out first. After which we got to work on their two biggest and highest output factories, in Sherburn-in-Elmet and at Unit 30. We needed meticulous planning to navigate their dense floorspace with our cherry-pickers, and ensured that we kept disruption to an absolute minimum during installation.
It was absolutely worth the difficult installation, as during the process we found many faults and issues that were caused by a lack of regular maintenance. Now Ultima have a bug free, clean fire and security system that is fully accredited and ensures their insurance remains valid.
We have since formed a very happy relationship with Ultima, as the client came out with a much higher level of protection and a solution that was fit for their purpose for their business operations. Not an out of the box quick-fix. They can rest assured that their facility is assured at the highest level, and compliant in the eyes of the insurance provider.
It didn’t end there though, Ultima have since instructed us to support with their two new facilities, where we have installed the same P1 fire protection and grade 3 security systems to maintain the integrity of the entire estate at all times.
