International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection

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Live Webinar: A Focus on the Next Generation of Open-area Smoke Detection Technology

Free Live Webinar
Thursday, July 28, 2011
2:00pm ET / 11:00am PT
Duration: 60 Minutes

A Focus on the Next Generation of Open-area Smoke Detection Technology

Register now for this live webinar

Infrastructure with large open spaces presents unique challenges for fire detection systems. Buildings such as stadiums, airports and rail stations, hotels, convention centers and warehouses demand a fire detection solution that is sensitive to diluted smoke, is non-intrusive on the space and operates reliably without frequency of nuisance alarms. Optical beam smoke detection systems have commonly been applied in these applications due to their cost effectiveness and simplicity. However, the perceived issues with traditional beam detectors have primarily been their difficulty to align and proneness to nuisance alarms. The industry strives to improve methods to reliably and economically identify false stimuli such as dust, steam, obstructions and misalignment while ensuring a safe response to real threats. Technology innovations known as Open-area Smoke Imaging Detection (OSID) have emerged which improve on the fundamental basis of optical beam detection.

This webinar will discuss technological advancements of smoke detection for large open areas.

Earn CEUs: The Society of Fire Protection Engineers will award attendees 0.1 CEUs for participating in the entire webinar.

Register now for this live webinar

Moderated By:

Morgan J. Hurley, P.E., FSFPE
Technical Editor
The Society of Fire
Protection Engineers

Presented By:

Sue Sadler
Vice President Sales
Xtralis

Wes Marcks
Regional Sales Manager
Xtralis

Last Updated (Wednesday, 20 July 2011 12:11)

HI-FOG® Passes Seismic Test, Demonstrates Water Mist Fire Protection Can Withstand Earthquake of Up to 1G of Force

ASHLAND, MA, USA, June 14th – Marioff North America announces that its HI-FOG System with a SPU-6 Sprinkler Pump Unit has passed a seismic qualifying test. The test demonstrated that the 7,500-pound system can withstand the effects of an earthquake of up to 1G of force and continue operating. HI-FOG water mist fire protection uses high pressure to force pure, potable water through specially designed and patented sprinklers, creating a mist that suppresses or extinguishes fire. Marioff is a business of UTC Fire & Security, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX).

The qualifying test for the HI-FOG System was performed by independent laboratories in Pittsburgh that simulated an earthquake. The system consisting of spray heads, tubing, valves, the pump unit and all other material to be installed was mounted on a shaker table that exerted the 1G forces of a sustained quake. “Independent testing has proven and affirmed that this HI-FOG System is rugged enough to make it through a seismic event and remain fully functional. This successful test gives safety officials confidence that HI-FOG will control or suppress fire in an emergency resulting from an earthquake,” said David L. Sibiga, Director of Project Engineering and Technical Support at Marioff North America. As a result of this test, HI-FOG is expected to be installed at four nuclear power plants in Canada.

The test data and documentation can also be used to demonstrate that HI-FOG is capable of operating in the Northeast and Midwest sections of the United States and select regions of Canada that experience earthquakes of up to 1G force. Power generators, hospitals and prisons in these regions are expected to begin requiring emergency equipment to achieve seismic qualification. “They’re starting to implement a similar program to that used by the nuclear industry and in the future will be demanding that equipment be seismically qualified,” said Sibiga.

Last Updated (Friday, 30 March 2012 12:03)

The Road From Cicero to Marion True: What "Chasing Aphrodite" Reveals About the Getty's Notorious Antiquities Trafficking Controversy

By Noah Charney

Published: July 8, 2011

In the current issue of the New York Review of Books, Hugh Eakin reviews the recently-published "Chasing Aphrodite: The Hunt for Looted Antiquities of the World's Richest Museums" by James Felch and Ralph Frammolino. The Review is the kind of publication where its reviews are as much Op-Ed pieces as critical commentaries, and to a great extent they summarize the key points of the books they cover. That is the case with this review as well. But this review is of particular interest to me, as is the book in question, because it features a number of individuals who have collaborated with the Association for Research into Crimes against Art (ARCA), the nonprofit research group on art crime and cultural heritage protection of which I am the founder.

The review begins with a mention of the Verrine Orations, a famous trial begun August 5, 70 BC, in Rome (at 1:30 p.m. in the afternoon, if you're keeping score) in which the young Cicero lead the prosecution against a corrupt former governor of Sicily, Gaius Verres, who was charged with extortion and misrule. Since 212 BC Rome had been fascinated with Hellenistic art, thanks to their introduction to it after the sack of Syracuse — then a Greek colony — in Sicily. Cicero himself was a voracious collector of Hellenistic art. In addition to laying out various charges of general corruption, wrongful imprisonment and execution, embezzlement, and general nastiness, Cicero focused his accusations on Verres's looting of Sicily's art and monuments. As Eakin quotes:

"Ancient monuments given by wealthy monarchs to adorn the cities of Sicily… were ravaged and stripped bare, one and all, by this same governor [Verres]. Nor was it only statues and public monuments that he treated in this manner. Among the most sacred and revered Sicilian sanctuaries, there was not a single one which he failed to plunder, not one single god, if only Verres detected a good work of art or a valuable antique, did he leave in the possession of the Sicilians."

Verres didn't stick around for the trial — he fled and never returned to Rome. Cicero published his trial notes, and became praetor two years after.

This is probably the first legal case wherein the right of a people or nation to retain their own cultural property was asserted in a court of law. According to Cicero, Verres should have left these valuables in "the possession of the Sicilians." At the time, Sicily was a Roman colony, with its cities primarily of Greek origin, with a smattering of other ancient peoples, like the Phoenicians, in the mix. It was certainly a multi-ethnic hub. So whose cultural heritage was Cicero referring to? He was associating cultural objects with a geographic location. The possessions belonged to whoever was living there. And there they should remain, he implied. (For more on the subject of looting art in the ancient world, I recommend Margaret M. Miles's "Art as Plunder: The Ancient Origins of Debate about Cultural Property Cambridge."

Last Updated (Friday, 30 March 2012 12:03)

Xtralis and HeiTel joining forces to develop the Intelligent Remote Monitoring Market

Xtralis New Update

Xtralis Solidifies its Position as the Premier Provider for the Fast-growing Global Intelligent Remote Monitoring Market

Xtralis is pleased to announce the acquisition of Germany-based HeiTel Digital Video GmbH. This acquisition enhances significantly Xtralis’ position as the premium manufacturer of video surveillance and central monitoring solutions globally.

HeiTel is based in Molfsee, near Kiel in northern Germany. The company was founded in 1990 and has developed into the dominant central monitoring solutions provider in Germany and a significant player in the European security market. There are more than 70,000 HeiTel systems installed worldwide.

The HeiTel team is engaged in the design, development and sale of video monitoring technology including:

Digital video remote transmission via computer networks
Digital recording integrated into their video transmission concept for local long-term storage
Integration of video receiver technology into security monitoring centres, emergency call and serviced centres

HeiTel’s executive team will continue to manage the HeiTel business reporting directly to Samir Samhouri, CEO Xtralis.

The Intelligent Remote Monitoring market is one of the fastest growing segments of the maturing video surveillance market due to quickly advancing technology and industry standards. Intelligent Remote Monitoring provides proactive protection through video verified alarms and controlled response at much lower annual costs than alternative solutions.

Like ADPRO by Xtralis, HeiTel has a very strong presence with Central Monitoring Stations. By joining forces Xtralis and HeiTel will provide a complete Intelligent Remote Monitoring platform including video verification, analytics and perimeter protection to the global market. The addition of HeiTel will help the Xtralis group of companies excel and expand in the early detection marketplace in both geographic areas and market segments. The HeiTel and ADPRO product offering, channels, and geographic presence complement each other. This acquisition will not impact the current operating model, channel or go to market strategy of HeiTel. The HeiTel management team will continue to manage and direct the operations and strategy of the business for the foreseeable future. Xtralis intends to help HeiTel improve the services provided to the HeiTel customers through additional investment that Xtralis will be making over time in the infrastructure of HeiTel. Xtralis and HeiTel will both work to expand the awareness of the intelligent remote monitoring technology but will operate as two separate business entities working with their respective channel partners.

We look forward to continuing to provide you with the reliability and quality you’ve come to expect from Xtralis and together grow our businesses.

For more information about HeiTel, visit the Web site – www.heitel.com.

Have a question about Xtralis or HeiTel? Contact us for the answer.

APAC | EMEA | Americas

Last Updated (Wednesday, 06 July 2011 10:58)

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