Hochiki Italia devises bespoke emergency evacuation regime for Campeggio del Garda

Offering a range of bungalows and mobile homes as well as camping and mobile home pitching areas, it’s clear why the Campeggio del Garda campsite has become a must-visit attraction for tourists. With on-site facilities such as swimming pools, a restaurant and sports courts, the 3,000 guests accommodated on site at any given time are able to enjoy a luxurious stay.

Given that the site was in need of an updated emergency evacuation system, Italian-based designer Studio Albertini was brought on board to specify a suitable range of life safety devices to protect guests and employees alike.

Paolo Albertini, the site’s owner and lead contact for the project, said: “It was essential for Campeggio del Garda that the solution would be complex enough to deal with the scale of the facilities, but also waterproof to accommodate for outdoor protection. Understanding the high level of expertise that would be required for such a project, we worked alongside life safety solutions manufacturer Hochiki Italia to realise the best and safest solution possible.”

Going the distance

Studio Albertini and Hochiki Italia wanted to specify a life safety system that could be installed across the expansive accommodation facility. Mirko Corsini, project manager at Hochiki Italia, observed: “Due to the sheer size of the camping area itself, we decided to manage the system through two networked panels by using the master/slave function of the device. Combining this intelligent system with the 31 Totem Call Points that were installed throughout the campsite, we were able to provide a fully-integrated and accessible network that covered the entirety of the park.”

Corsini added: “Each Totem is fully waterproofed to allow for year-round operation. They contain a CHQ -WSB2 sounder beacon, offer warning signs, harbour multilingual fire safety instructions and a UNI ISO 7010 signal Call Point as requested by Ministerial Decree.”

Hochiki Italia’s Totem system is ideal for large-scale projects. Being able to work from multiple networked panels, the system can be divided into zones to make the connection and detection more secure and reliable. This means it can then be operated and monitored from a singular control panel that includes a digital display screen for complete visibility of the status of the various Call Points. From this panel, duty holders can test, activate and identify any incidents for 24-hour safety, while at the same time reducing operational costs.

Accessibility for all

The Totem’s Call Points are placed evenly across the facility to make sure they’re accessible for all guests and are within a reachable distance at all times. The Call Points can be activated by guests or members of staff and also act as a beacon to communicate with guests.

Totem is fully complaint with Italy’s aforementioned Ministerial Decree 28.02.2014 and Circ.Prot.n.0011002 (12.9.2014) in relation to the safety of guests in open air tourist accommodation. The Ministerial Decree states that all existing accommodation facilities must adopt the appropriate method of fire detection and firefighting in spaces able to accommodate more than 400 people.

A clear part of the guidance is that Call Points should be distributed within 80 metres of each other, be well lit and offer multi-lingual fire instructions. At the same time, the alarm signal coming from any of the detectors or Call Points must determine the optical and acoustic fire alarm signal at a manned place during hours of activity. The signal and Call Point functionalities of Hochiki’s Totem system work perfectly in line these requirements, rendering them perfectly suitable for a range of outdoor environments.

Commenting on the end result, Paolo Albertini concluded: “We’re very pleased with the installation and the level of life safety that we can now offer to the campsite’s guests. We’ve been able to adapt the system to suit our exact needs and ensure that fire detection was not only present, but also accessible to staff across the whole site.”