Eurotech Fire Systems & Alphatrack Systems Recognised for Excellence at NRS Berkeley

Winners

1st December 2025

Eurotech Fire Systems and Alphatrack Systems have won Active Fire Project of the Year at the Security & Fire Awards for Excellence 2025, held at Grosvenor House, London.

The award recognises the delivery of a wireless fire detection system at NRS Berkeley, a nuclear decommissioning site in Gloucestershire.

A Sensitive Site, A Different Approach...

NRS Berkeley presented several difficulties. Spread across 27 hectares, the site houses active radioactive waste vaults alongside ageing infrastructure and temporary portakabins. The existing fire alarm system had become unreliable, dating from before current EN 54 standards and plagued by persistent faults and false alarms.

This unreliability proved particularly disruptive during radioactive waste handling operations, where false alarms caused delays to critical decommissioning work. Staff confidence in the system had eroded. Engineers faced the additional burden of visiting 15 separate control panels scattered across the site just to conduct routine maintenance and diagnostics.

The Solution

Working together, Eurotech and Alphatrack installed a Sygno-fi wireless fire detection system across the site. The wireless approach minimised disruption to critical operations while allowing rapid installation in sensitive areas.

The system connected 682 wireless devices to four advanced fire panels, integrated with a Drax graphics interface. This provides complete site visibility from a single control room—the first time in the site's history that all buildings and zones have been connected this way.

Before full deployment, the team conducted radio frequency scans and a two-hour feasibility test to ensure reliable performance. A comprehensive two-week survey mapped the complex site access routes and identified where specialised installations would be needed.

Site-Specific Adaptations

Several areas required particular attention. Where drilling was prohibited near nuclear waste storage, the team developed push-fit mounting solutions. Outdoor portakabins received weatherproofed detectors with rubber gasket protection. In areas with dust and environmental factors, control panels were housed in IP-rated enclosures.

The system allows zone-based activation rather than site-wide alarms, matching the site's evacuation protocols. Each detector has three sensitivity settings, tailored to the specific fire risk and environmental conditions in different areas.

The Outcome

Since installation, false alarms have dropped significantly. The centralised system has reduced maintenance time, and the wireless infrastructure can easily expand as temporary structures are moved or added during the ongoing decommissioning work.

The Site Fire Safety Manager at NRS Berkeley noted that staff working in radioactive zones report increased confidence in the system, and that there have been no false activations since the new system went live.

Mitchell Rose, Head of Sales at Alphatrack Systems, commented: "Eurotech's extensive knowledge of their Sygno-fi system and consistent technical support were vital in delivering a robust fire detection solution for this complex site. Their input gave us confidence in addressing the unique challenges of a live nuclear decommissioning environment.