Helsinki Metro installs public address and voice evacuation systems from Bosch Security

Helsinki rapid transit network adds large-scale expansion with eight new stations and Bosch Praesideo technology to improve passenger safety.

Metro de Helsinki It is the largest transit hub in the largest region of Finland, that connects the center of this city with the suburbs and neighboring cities. An essential railway traffic artery for citizens and workers who use 63 million passengers a year.

La red ferroviaria del Helsinki Regional Transport Authority (HSL) has spread even further since November 2017 with a massive expansion project – el Länsimetro (‘Western Metro’ -, that has added 14 kilometers of track and eight new stops to reach the city of Espoo.

For this project, public address and large-scale voice evacuation had to be added, and the Praesideo digital system of Bosch Security for its scalability, high level of redundancy, Interference-free audio and operational versatility, which is currently installed in more than 20.000 apps from around the world, including the existing Helsinki metro network.

With its unique optical network, Praesideo has been the ideal solution to extend the system and integrate the 5.580 nuevos altavoces del Länsimetro, which are installed in twelve colors and an equal number of different speaker designs to adapt to the avant-garde interior aesthetics of the subway.

Precisely because each of the new eight metro stations features a unique architectural design and different construction materials, Extra measures had to be taken to ensure consistent audio quality. Using Bosch speakers, sound experts carried out 3D acoustic tests in all stations, which provided the basis for fine-tuning the audio controls, station by station, through twenty-four amplifiers on six hundred channels with 91kW of total amplification power.

Ensuring interference-free audio on these new stations, regardless of acoustic variations, Praesideo now provides passenger safety according to the highest specifications: Länsimetro has obtained certification according to the SFS-EN sound standard 50849, as well as the SFS-EN fire protection standards 54-16 and SFE-EN 54-24.

In response to a key requirement set by HSL, Bosch Praesideo is installed as a distributed system to enable controlled transmissions to the eight new metro stops on an individual basis. Besides, The system also interacts with other security systems of the Helsinki Metro to provide passengers with maximum safety.

A direct interaction with the fire detection system allows the Bosch Praesideo system to activate automated evacuation messages, in case of fire alarm, to guide passengers to the nearest exit or tunnel. Interacting with the video surveillance system, This system plays automatic warning messages and alerts operators when passengers wander dangerously close to the tracks..

Construction Phase 2 of the Länsimetro is already underway to add seven kilometers of new track, with the comprehensive hand passenger safety of Praesideo from Bosch, for the year 2020.