A conference session at the Transform 2026 event in Manchester gave visitors an insight into connected fire safety and how it is paving the way for autonomous buildings.
The product showcase was part of an extensive programme presented at Transform, a biennial two-day event from Siemens which saw more than 10,000 square metres of technology on show. This year the focus was on industrial AI and how Siemens can assist in bringing AI into the real world across the Digital Enterprise and the industrial value chain, including across building and energy infrastructure.
The session took the form of a Q&A, with Pete Colverd, Head of Partner Management for Siemens in the UK and Ireland posing the questions to Malav Bhatt, Head of Fire Safety (Global), Siemens EMEA.
Colverd began with an overview of how buildings are changing, how they are increasingly more connected, more intelligent and more autonomous. Through a series of questions and answers visitors then heard how the Siemens next-generation detection portfolio can contribute to this trend. Topics covered included 24/7 self-checks via disturbance free testing (DFT), real-time monitoring through features such as Smoke Entry Supervision (SES), remote diagnostics, predictive maintenance and sustainability. This is all achieved through a fully IoT-connected portfolio which is laying the foundation for truly human-centric autonomous buildings.
Bhatt used a case study of a project across eight prisons in Ireland featuring a cloud-enabled Siemens fire safety system to illustrate the benefits of rapid situation assessment and early decision-making effectively achieved through an app on a phone – “…a panel in your pocket.“ This includes determining whether evacuation is necessary and how to best manage a planned, phased evacuation – a particularly important factor given the significant disruption invloved in evacuating a prison.
As Bhatt said in his conclusion – “…we keep thinking about how we make buildings more human-centric and autonomous and fire safety has already started to pave the way for it. So we should be able to make life easier for all of our customers now and make it even easier as we go forward.”
The product showcase was part of a packed programme presented across three stages over two days, with keynote speakers, panels and interactive sessions focusing on what is shaping industry right now. Visitors gained an insight into how to accelerate their digital and sustainability transformation faster, easier and at scale by combining the real and digital worlds. There was much discussion, ranging from operational efficiency and supply chain resilience to sustainability, skills and digital readiness.
For further information on Siemens fire safety: www.siemens.com/fire
For further information on Siemens Smart Infrastructure, please see
www.siemens.com/smart-infrastructure
About the Author
Siemens
Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a leading technology company focused on industry, infrastructure, transport, and healthcare. From more resource-efficient factories, resilient supply chains, and smarter buildings and grids, to cleaner and more comfortable transportation as well as advanced healthcare, the company creates technology with purpose adding real value for customers. By combining the real and the digital worlds, Siemens empowers its customers to transform their industries and markets, helping them to transform the everyday for billions of people. Siemens also owns a majority stake in the publicly listed company Siemens Healthineers, a globally leading medical technology provider shaping the future of healthcare. In fiscal 2023, which ended on September 30, 2023, the Siemens Group generated revenue of €77.8 billion and net income of €8.5 billion. As of September 30, 2023, the company employed around 320,000 people worldwide.
