Control room
Encyclopedia
- in television production, the master controlMaster controlMaster control is the technical hub of a broadcast operation common among most over-the-air television stations and television networks. It is distinct from a production control room in television studios where the activities such as switching from camera to camera are coordinated...
is the technical hub of a broadcast operation common among most over-the-airOver-the-airOver-the-air has several meanings, depending on context. *Generally, over-the-air is synonymous for wireless.*Specifically, over-the-air can have the following meanings or is used in the following contexts:...
television stationTelevision stationA television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
s, television networkTelevision networkA television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
s and color suiteColor suiteColor suite also called a Color bay or a Telecine suite or Color correction bay. Color suite is the control room for color grading video in a post production environment. The video source could be from: a telecine, a Video tape recorder , a motion picture film scanner, virtual telecine or a Direct...
s. - each recording studioRecording studioA recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
typically has its own control room where the recording is actually made; - a NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
flight controllerFlight controllerFlight controllers are personnel who aid in the operations of a space flight, working in Mission Control Centers such as NASA's Mission Control Center, or ESA's Operations Center. Flight controllers sit at computer consoles and use telemetry to monitor in real time various technical aspects of a...
works in a "flight control room" in a mission control centerMission Control CenterA mission control center is an entity that manages aerospace vehicle flights, usually from the point of lift-off until the landing or the end of the mission. A staff of flight controllers and other support personnel monitor all aspects of the mission using telemetry, and send commands to the...
; affiliated facilities such as the Jet Propulsion LaboratoryJet Propulsion LaboratoryJet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
have their own control rooms; - Nuclear power plantNuclear power plantA nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
s, Particle acceleratorParticle acceleratorA particle accelerator is a device that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to high speeds and to contain them in well-defined beams. An ordinary CRT television set is a simple form of accelerator. There are two basic types: electrostatic and oscillating field accelerators.In...
laboratories, and other power-generating stationsPower stationA power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
, many oil refineriesOil refineryAn oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt base, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas...
and chemical plantChemical plantA chemical plant is an industrial process plant that manufactures chemicals, usually on a large scale. The general objective of a chemical plant is to create new material wealth via the chemical or biological transformation and or separation of materials. Chemical plants use special equipment,...
s have control rooms, sometimes also serving as an area of refugeArea of refugeAn area of refuge is a location in a building designed to hold occupants during a fire or other emergency, when evacuation may not be safe or possible. Occupants can wait there until rescued by firefighters...
; - Various military facilities, ranging in scale from a missile silo to NORADNorth American Aerospace Defense CommandNorth American Aerospace Defense Command is a joint organization of Canada and the United States that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and defense for the two countries. Headquarters NORAD is located at Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado...
, have control rooms. - Call centers use a control room to monitor incoming and outgoing communications of customer service representatives and provide general oversight of the call center.
- Fire service control rooms (UK) see: FiReControlFiReControlFiReControl was a project, initiated in the UK in March 2004, to reduce the number of control rooms used to handle emergency calls for fire services and authorities. Presently there are 46 control rooms in England that handle calls from the local public for emergency assistance via the 999 system...
for article about nine new regional control rooms to handle emergency calls in England.
Special hazards and mitigation
A control room can, at times, be designated as an area of refugeArea of refuge
An area of refuge is a location in a building designed to hold occupants during a fire or other emergency, when evacuation may not be safe or possible. Occupants can wait there until rescued by firefighters...
, particularly in high risk facilities, such as a nuclear power station or a petrochemical facility, as an accidental fire can have severe repercussions to the surrounding environment. As is typical for all areas of refuge, occupants must be provided with guaranteed life support and guarantee of functionality of the items they are intended to control
Circuit integrity
Circuit integrity refers to the operability of electrical circuits during a fire. It is a form of fire-resistance rating. Circuit integrity is achieved via passive fire protection means, which are subject to stringent listing and approval use and compliance.-Fireproofing:Providing fireproofing for...
for the anticipated design-basis fire event.
It is not unusual to provide control rooms with gaseous fire suppression systems to safeguard its contents and occupants.
The primary equipment in control rooms is housed in multi-function cabinets. Since the control equipment is intended to control other items in the surrounding facility, it follows that these (often fire-resistance rated
Fire-resistance rating
A fire-resistance rating typically means the duration for which a passive fire protection system can withstand a standard fire resistance test. This can be quantified simply as a measure of time, or it may entail a host of other criteria, involving other evidence of functionality or fitness for...
) service rooms require many penetrations
Penetration (firestop)
A penetration, in firestopping, is an opening, such as one created by the use of a cast-in-place sleeve, in a wall or floor assembly required to have a fire-resistance rating, for the purpose of accommodating the passage of a mechanical, electrical or structural penetrant. The penetration may or...
. Due to routine equipment updates, penetrant
Penetrant
Penetrants, or penetrating items, are the mechanical, electrical or structural items that pass through an opening in a wall or floor, such as pipes, electrical conduits, ducting, cables and cable trays, or structural steel beams and columns...
s, such as cable
Cable
A cable is two or more wires running side by side and bonded, twisted or braided together to form a single assembly. In mechanics cables, otherwise known as wire ropes, are used for lifting, hauling and towing or conveying force through tension. In electrical engineering cables are used to carry...
s are subject to frequent changes. It follows that an operating control room maintenance program must include vigilant firestop
Firestop
A firestop is a passive fire protection system of various components used to seal openings and joints in fire-resistance rated wall and/or floor assemblies, based on fire testing and certification listings....
maintenance for code
Building code
A building code, or building control, is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for constructed objects such as buildings and nonbuilding structures. The main purpose of building codes are to protect public health, safety and general welfare as they relate to the...
compliance and for gaseous fire suppression systems to work as well. Gaseous suppressants must occupy the space that is to be protected for a minimum period of time to be sure a fire can be 100% extinguished. Openings in such spaces must, therefore, be kept to a minimum to prevent the escape of the suppression gas.
Due to the nature of the sensitive equipment inside control room cabinets, it is useful to ensure the use of "T-rated"
Fire-resistance rating
A fire-resistance rating typically means the duration for which a passive fire protection system can withstand a standard fire resistance test. This can be quantified simply as a measure of time, or it may entail a host of other criteria, involving other evidence of functionality or fitness for...
firestops, that are massive and thick enough to absorb penetrant heat
Heat
In physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
in an effort to reduce heat transmission to the inside of the control room. It is also not uncommon to place control rooms under positive air pressure
Pressure
Pressure is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the local atmospheric or ambient pressure.- Definition :...
to prevent smoke
Smoke
Smoke is a collection of airborne solid and liquid particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwanted by-product of fires , but may also be used for pest...
from entering.
See also
- Fire protectionFire protectionFire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of fires. It involves the study of the behaviour, compartmentalisation, suppression and investigation of fire and its related emergencies, as well as the research and development, production, testing and application of...
- BromotrifluoromethaneBromotrifluoromethaneBromotrifluoromethane is an organic halide with the chemical formula CBrF3. Alternative names are Halon 1301, R13B1, Halon 13B1 and BTM.- Table of physical properties :- Uses :...
- FirestopFirestopA firestop is a passive fire protection system of various components used to seal openings and joints in fire-resistance rated wall and/or floor assemblies, based on fire testing and certification listings....
- FireproofingFireproofingFireproofing, a passive fire protection measure, refers to the act of making materials or structures more resistant to fire, or to those materials themselves, or the act of applying such materials. Applying a certification listed fireproofing system to certain structures allows these to have a...
- Circuit integrityCircuit integrityCircuit integrity refers to the operability of electrical circuits during a fire. It is a form of fire-resistance rating. Circuit integrity is achieved via passive fire protection means, which are subject to stringent listing and approval use and compliance.-Fireproofing:Providing fireproofing for...
- Passive fire protectionPassive fire protectionPassive fire protection is an integral component of the three components of structural fire protection and fire safety in a building. PFP attempts to contain fires or slow the spread, through use of fire-resistant walls, floors, and doors...
- Active fire protectionActive fire protectionActive fire protection is an integral part of fire protection. AFP is characterised by items and/or systems, which require a certain amount of motion and response in order to work, contrary to passive fire protection.-Fire suppression:...