By Consulting Specifying Engineer Staff

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In 2003, the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc. was asked by the U.S. National Park Service to raise funds necessary to make a number of critical improvements to the statue. The planned improvements included

On 9/11/2001, the National Park Service closed the Statue of Liberty National Monument due to direct terrorist’s threats.ass ceiling, guided by a park ranger, an enhanced lighting and new video system. 

The foundation engaged architects and engineers to provide a variety of design solutions, andUnited Fire Protection, N.J., was chosen as the contractor to install a new high-sensitivity smoke detection system.

The high sensitivity smoke detection (HSSD) application itself is inside the stairwell area of the statue, which is largely off-limits to the public now after increased security was established post 9/11.A demonstration system was shown to be effective in this area as part of the preliminary design portion of the project, witnessed by both the engineering firm and the National Park Service.

The HSSD system utilizing air-aspirating technology. The fundamental theory is to actively bring the smoke particulate matter to the detector—rather than passively waiting for the smoke to drift to the location of the detector. The system does this by a series of tubing networks with small holes, attached to a central detector unit with a fan, drawing the air from the monitored space, back through the tubing network, to the detector.

The detector utilizes a laser-based particle discrimination technology to determine both the number of particles and the size of the particulate in order to determine and discriminate between smoke levels and other contaminants like dust or pollen. The result is a magnitude more sensitive than standard spot detectors. Additionally, because the equipment uses the particle discrimination technique, no filtering is required and thus maintenance of the unit is minimal.

The result, says the contractor, was a project that finished ahead of schedule in July 2004.“We saved between 20% and 30% in labor costs at least,” said Joe Savino, United Fire Protection. “We have been using the system since 1999 and find it extremely efficient.”

The Statue of Liberty is more than a monument. She is a beloved friend, and a living symbol of freedom to millions around the world. The exhibits are a tribute to the people who created her, to those who built and paid for her, to the ideals she represents, and to the hopes she inspires. Viega, FenWal and United Fire Protection are partners who are proud to be a part of her history.

For more about Propress from Viega, click here . For information about HSSD from Fenwal, click here .