“We want to make overnight stays in our huts even safer,” says Thomas Gesell from the Munich section of the German Alpine Club (Deutscher Alpenverein, DAV). “If the worst happens and a fire breaks out, we want to save lives – that’s our number one aim!”  And so the DAV took on the mammoth task of fitting all their huts with fire protection technology, one after the other.

PROJECT INFORMATION

Built in 1855, the Knorr Hut is a category I hut situated at an altitude of 2051 metres in the Wetterstein Mountains. It lies right on the edge of the Zugspitzplatt plateau, to the south-west of the Brunntalkopf summit. It is the closest mountain hut to the Zugspitze in Bavaria – the highest mountain in Germany.

ABOUT THE FIRE PROTECTION INSTALLED

The SRC 3000 wireless fire alarm system from Detectomat was put to use in the Knorr Hut. “The reason we opted for this system was that we wanted to offer maximum safety to our guests at all times,” explains architect Stephan Zehl, who is responsible for overseeing construction work at the Munich section of the DAV. He also tells us that the radio-networked smoke detectors can be read via a wireless FACP, while additional elements such as strobes and alarm devices can be controlled too. “Here we get several people sleeping in a single room – so we have to assume that at least some of our guests may be wearing earplugs and will therefore need an additional, visual alarm.” Another advantage of the SRC 3000 is that the hut keeper has been trained to use the Detectomat system, meaning that he can carry out regular functional tests himself. For instance, he can explain the emergency fire procedures to all guests, show them the escape routes, and even demonstrate the warning tone of a smoke detector. During the peak season, the hut keeper is on site at all times and makes sure that the system is operational.