According to the MarketsandMarkets report, the global fire protection market is expected to grow from $53.7bn in 2020 to $92.1bn by 2027 - an increase in demand due to the ever increasing demand for safe buildings and the need to comply with constantly evolving local, national and international regulations.

There are many companies exhibiting at SICUREZZA, presenting globally, interfacing on an ongoing basis with this vast panorama of regulations and practices. We interviewed three of them, who have clients on five continents: EATON INDUSTRIES, Inim and NSC Italia.

How do you interface with such different markets? What is appreciated globally about your products?

According to Alessio Peron of EATON - Field Product Manager Emergency Lighting & Fire, "when we have to protect the lives of people and our property, there is no room for compromise. The solutions and services offered by EATON are recognised by a wide range of accreditation bodies globally, enabling our clients to rely on high quality fire and emergency lighting system products that comply with the main national standards, and to be supported from the initial design through to monitoring, commissioning and maintenance of the system by the technical expertise of local resources".

Inim, too, has always operated in the international fire prevention market and, as Inim's R&D Fire Manager Enea Galiffa told us, this entails constant attention both to the product standards adopted in the various countries and to the standards that regulate the design, installation and commissioning of systems, which in each individual country have a different interpretation: "To name the most important ones, we could mention the EN54 series in use in Europe and accepted in many non-European markets, the UL standards required in Middle Eastern and Latin American countries, the British Standards in Anglo-Saxon countries, etc. In addition to these regulatory requirements, there are specific needs imposed by the different markets, one example being Scandinavian countries where fire detection ‘systems’ are also adopted in the residential sector, and specific functionalities have become necessary for this application. With twenty years of experience accumulated through ongoing collaboration with the most prestigious international institutes, such as BRE (owner of the LPCB brand), UL, IMQ, ANPI, CNBOP, etc., continuous dialogue with its international distribution network and clients, and active involvement in the technical tables where the sector's reference standards are written, Inim can now boast a portfolio of products that encapsulate the needs of such diverse markets and are covered by a series of certifications that make them suitable and appreciated in each of them. With this focus, furthermore, the company has been able to pioneer a long series of innovations by applying the most modern technologies to fire prevention and alarm systems, one of which is Cloud and APP technology, and has been able to respond to the needs of all operators in the sector, gaining such broad acceptance that it is now one of the leading manufacturers in the sector”.

Carlo Ficano, Sales Director NSC Italia, also reports on a company that is well established in the global market thanks to EN54 and Vds certifications: "Our company", says Ficano, "has been producing smoke detection systems for 25 years and has had the ambition to become a leader in our sector throughout Europe since the early years of its foundation. Accordingly, from the outset, all our products have been certified to EN54, a series of European standards that includes product standards and application guidelines for fire detection and alarm systems and voice alarm systems (VA/PA). The process of obtaining certifications according to Vds standards, a certification that characterises products of high quality and reliability, began immediately. It was therefore an excellent basis for being viewed as a premium supplier in the market for fire and security technology in general. Vds certification, itself difficult to obtain due to the strict regulations, is essential and required for the German market. In other European markets such as ours, although not required as standard, it becomes a source of pride and prestige, as it guarantees the safety and maximum efficiency of high-quality products even under the most unfavourable conditions of use. In recent years, the certification process was also started for the Russian market, which, for reasons unfortunately known to all of us, stopped about a year ago. The certifications mentioned so far relate to the quality and performance standards of all our products, but for the past few years, Solution F1, a 2-18 loop power plant, has also managed to obtain SIL2 certification (Safety Integrity Level) of second level. SIL approved systems may be required in projects where high reliability is a key requirement, e.g. in oil and gas markets, petrochemical plants, food processing plants, large buildings, industrial parks, railway applications, toxic and/or explosive gas processing plants.

With regard to regulations governing smoke detection systems, each company or, as in our case, each branch follows the reference standards of its own state. In Italy, the regulations that govern our sector are, for example,  the UNI9795, which dictates the guidelines for the design and installation of smoke detection systems, and the UNI11224 on system maintenance. On the latter, NSC created an application, 'NSC Smart Revision APP', for tablets or smart phones, to support professionals during the maintenance phase: with this support, the maintenance technician receives, in real time on his/her smartphone, a voice alert of the activated detector. This is just one of the many innovations that NSC Italia will present during the next edition of SICUREZZA from 15 to 17 November 2023”.