Gebze Şekerpınar Factory of Anadolu Isuzu became operational in 1999. The manufacturing facilities, which almost employ 1000 employees and are established on a land of 300 thousand square meters, bear an indoor area of 100 thousand square meters and a horizontal architecture. The fire detection and alarm systems of the factory were installed by EEC Integrated Building Control Systems. Auxiliary Operations Manager of Anadolu Isuzu talked about their 25 years of solution partnership experience with EEC.
When I started working for the company, the fire detection systems were installed by EEC. In our facility, there is satisfaction with EEC due to the quality of the products and their smooth operation, strong service network and accessibility.
We also worked with them on different subjects. We have a good cooperation with EEC in terms of project design processes, technical support and professionalism of the team. We follow our processes, but in the end, they also follow such processes closely. I can say that they have a capable technical team. The technical knowledge of both the site team and the project team is maintained at a high level. They also inform us about different products and help us choose the right products from among them.
There are a range of fire detection products available on the market with various quality and price differences. We do not experience any issues with Edwards products we use. Because they are quality products, and even though we have been using them for many years, we can get the same performance from these products. Maybe if we used other products, we would have to replace them soon, but we do not experience such a situation with EEC products. This is an advantage for us.
Now we have started to work on in-panel extinguishing systems as a different field and we are satisfied with the working process of such systems. We use Aerosol extinguishing systems to prevent in-panel risks. For this purpose, EEC team came to the site, performed inquiries, suggested products, and provided detailed information in this regard. We were both technically informed about this subject and enjoyed a good project design process.
One of the most important features of the product is that it is easy to use them. After all, everyone here should be able to use the product on a 24/7 basis and easily. It has a user-friendly interface, and the panels are easy to use and easy to understand.
It is a system that operates in a stable manner, and we know that we can detect risks without any issues. The existence of the system gives us confidence as it will quickly notify us of any issues.
We have never had any “near misses” where we experienced serious risks. An event occurred due to the detection of steam in connection with the activities performed at our test laboratory. We determined that this was due to the process, and we fixed the issue by providing extra ventilation in the working environment.
I would definitely recommend them. First of all, service and spare parts availability are important issues. In terms of stocks, EEC does not lead to any problems since they have enough stocks. We had no shortage of stocks when we needed spare parts. We can get quotations for the products quickly and we can procure them immediately. In addition, choosing the right products for the required areas of use, determining the right sensors, and integrating the system into the processes are important factors. Here, too, engineering solutions are very important. In terms of these engineering solutions, EEC has a competent staff. I recommend them in this respect.
The products are of good quality, and we experience no problems with the products. The prices are not cheap, I can say that. If we consider the prices together with the quality, we can say that the prices are normal, but if we consider the prices alone, there are more affordable products available in the market. Still, we are trying to progress through the same system. This is one of the reasons why we prefer extinguishing systems, because we can easily integrate them into the same system. Thus, we can follow up via a single system.
The product range meets our expectations as they have products for very different needs.
EEC delivers their assigned jobs at the designated times. They comply with deadlines and our working system. For example, when necessary, we also worked on panel extinguishing systems in the evening. The assembly and commissioning activities were performed at the times we requested. The service teams adapted to us in a way that would not disrupt our processes.
Sales staff maintains a close communication with us. If they are on the site, they would definitely call us and make a visit if we are available. In addition, when we want to examine samples of other systems or products, they would make an organization with their other customers to allow us to visit their facilities and examine the products. This is a plus for our evaluation processes.
We can easily communicate with the technical team. They respond fast and intervene quickly. We can get support quickly over the phone and remotely, and we do not have any issues with the site team coming in when needed.
We perform our periodic maintenance activities regularly. The maintenance team comes with the necessary equipment for service activities. Each time they arrive, the relevant zones are checked one by one and section by section to the smallest detail. System problems are checked. The detectors installed in the zones are checked one by one. The process is completed within the specified period of time. In fact, any issues that are detected other than maintenance issues are eliminated during the performance of maintenance activities, such as a malfunction. In this way, we check again that the system is working accurately.
During the pandemic process, they always complied with the rules of our factory. Since we had already established these processes, we did not experienced any problems issues with respect to entries and exits, hygiene and paperwork, or works done. Likewise, we managed to maintain our fire safety as usual.
The system is very important to us, because fire safety, and especially life safety, is our sine qua non. That's why we will have it installed, whether there is any legal obligation or not in this regard. We also have additional investments. For example, panel extinguishing is not a legal obligation, but we are working on this as an additional security measure.
