VIGILANT QE20

Grade 1 emergency warning and intercom control equipment for medium-to-large buildings, networkable to 64 nodes.

The two core subsystems

The Emergency Warning System generates and controls audible warning signals through dedicated amplifiers and loudspeakers covering each level or zone. It is normally connected to the fire alarm system so detection automatically triggers evacuation, with visual alarm devices available as supplementary flashing beacons for high-noise areas or hearing-impaired occupants.

For high-rise and special buildings an automatic phasing sequence evacuates areas in immediate danger first, then other areas at predetermined intervals until the building is cleared. Authorised wardens or fire-fighting personnel can take manual control at any point, with an emergency PA microphone broadcasting to all or selected areas. Under normal conditions the same system distributes background music and routine PA announcements.

The Emergency Intercommunication System provides dedicated emergency telephone communications between the main phone and the Warden Intercommunication Points in each zone — the hard-wired warden phone network that lets emergency personnel talk between floors and the control point.

Operator interface

The front panel groups controls and indications into five functional areas: evacuation zones, warden phones, controls, user buttons and the touchscreen LCD. Auto and Manual buttons on each ECP set the operating mode, and individual zone controls can be configured to match the building layout — grouped per floor, or as separate zone and WIP control groups.

• Up to 128 audio zones per 40U cabinet
• LED indicators for at-a-glance system status
• 4.3" colour graphic touchscreen for operation, history log, diagnostics and service

Audio architecture

Each amplifier can be fed independently from the four common audio inputs on the controller module, the local PA microphone, PA from another networked panel, the local audio inputs on the amplifier module itself, or stored digitised audio files. Up to eight channels of live audio stream to amplifiers over the internal QBus, and each amplifier carries four general-purpose programmable 24 VDC outputs.

Additional tones and complex speech messages can be added per zone or grouped across zones, and messages on multiple zones can play simultaneously — which is what supports lockdowns, bomb threats, testing and fire drills. Activation is automatic via software or manual through eight user-programmable keys or separate inputs. Custom voice messages can be provided on Alert as well as Evacuate, in multiple languages, with extra storage for non-evacuation audio on plug-in Micro-SDHC cards.

Non-emergency background music, local paging and general paging can be directed to selected areas, and paging areas need not match evacuation zones. An optional 30-zone paging console or PC-based console can be added where remote paging is required.

Networking and resilience

Multiple QE20 panels network over paired copper cable or multimode / single-mode fibre, distributing amplifiers, WIPs and other I/O across floors or buildings for large high-rise or spread-out sites. Up to 64 network nodes are supported.

Two resilience characteristics matter on a fire job. Multiple control points can be added for redundancy — either full EWICIE duplicated with amplifiers and WIPs, or shallow EWICIE controls only. And each networked panel or rack retains local control of its own facilities and keeps operating if network communications are lost.

Cabinets, power and capacity

Figures on this page are the manufacturer’s published specifications, taken from the VIGILANT QE20 EWCIE datasheet distributed by FlameStop Australia (2024). They are reproduced for reference and are not design, compliance or engineering advice. Confirm every figure against the current datasheet and installation manual, and design to the edition of the standard that applies in your jurisdiction.

Further reading

Frequently asked