Emergency alarm system industrial plant

The Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Villigen is Switzerland’s largest research center for natural sciences and engineering. As part of the ETH Domain, the PSI operates highly complex research facilities, including particle accelerators, research reactors, and chemical laboratories. Due to the associated potential hazards, a high-performance emergency warning system is essential for the PSI. Precise and rapid emergency alerting ensures that personnel, emergency services, and authorities are immediately informed in the event of incidents and that appropriate measures can be taken.

The importance of a professional emergency warning system stems, among other things, from the legal requirements of the SEVESO III Directive (2012/18/EU), which regulates the safe handling of hazardous substances in industrial and scientific facilities. In Switzerland, this directive is implemented with the involvement of the Federal Coordination Commission for Occupational Safety (EKAS), which requires risk-oriented protection concepts and redundant emergency alarm systems, particularly for large facilities such as the PSI.

As part of a comprehensive safety concept, PSI opted for an emergency warning system from Kockum Sonics: a Delta 4 electronic siren. It offers the following advantages in the area of emergency warning systems and emergency alarms:

• Scalability: The emergency warning system can be adapted to different building structures and hazard zones.
• Flexibility: Multilingual announcements and situation-specific alarm signals significantly improve emergency alerting.
• System integration: Connection to existing infrastructures such as fire alarm or control systems.
• Redundancy: Maximum operational reliability thanks to backup power supply and self-monitoring.
• Cost-effectiveness: The system is low-maintenance, durable, and therefore a cost-efficient solution for demanding requirements.

With the introduction of this modern emergency warning system, PSI has been able to strengthen its security architecture in a targeted manner. The reliable emergency alarm system makes a decisive contribution to protecting people, the environment, and research infrastructure.

Photo: Canton of Aargau