Free Article: Simplex Fire Alarm

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What Are The Simplex Fire Alarms?
By Arthur Sneddon

The Simplex fire alarm that you see today on the market is the product of a merger of two largely successful companies, i.e. the Simplex Time Recorder Company and the Grinnell Fire Protection Company. The former was founded by Edward G Watkins in 1958. At that time, it was solely concentrating on manufacturing time clocks – hence, the name. In fact, Edward G Watkins was the one who invented and patented such clocks. The diversification into fire alarms and security systems came about ten years later, in 1967. In 2001, Tyco International bought this company at $1.2 billions.

The Grinnell Fire Protection Company was constituted in 1919 after the death of its founder who had manufactured and patented automatic sprinklers under the aegis of General Fire Extinguisher Co. In 2001, these two companies merged and SimplexGrinell came into existence.

The Simplex Fire Alarm - A Simple Yet Exceptionally Effective Device

The Simplex fire alarm is an active fire protection device, which is normally mounted on a wall. In case of a fire, the handle of the Simplex fire alarm needs to be pulled down, to activate it by completing the circuit inside. This, in turn sends a signal to the fire alarm control panel for the required action. This handle is often in the shape of the letter T, which gave it its name, i.e. T-bar fire alarms.

Some models need the person to shatter a glass panel to reach the lever/ handle while yet other types need to have these pulled, lifted or pushed before activating the alarm. Among all the models available, the T-bar fire alarms manufactured and launched by Simplex are the most common and popular.

The Simplex fire alarm can be reset easily with the help of a key, which will permit the lever to go up and hence, the alarm may be used again in the same manner. Normally, the resetting is done by people specially qualified to do so and the key used is either a hex key or an older version. The resetting of the fire alarm station means that it is reset from the fire alarm control panel as well.

The Simplex fire alarm has been and is popular because it is simple to use, exceptionally durable and dependable. Among all the other products, though not automated yet, this type of fire alarms are still selling well. People prefer it to other models and designs because it always delivers what it promises – value for money.

Author Details:
Arthur Sneddon, writes for various web sites, such as The A to Z of Home Improvement, about home security, fire alarms etc.

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