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Back in 2006, officials in Poland mandated that all new buildings — residential, commercial, and industrial — have hydrant or firefighting water systems that maintain pressure in the event of a fire. To help building owners meet that mandate, engineers at Danfoss Poland widely distributed an application note explaining how their solenoid valve, the EV220B, could serve as a firefighting shutoff valve. Properly installed, it can prevent water from flowing in the general-use plumbing to ensure there is pressure in the hydrant or firefighting line. The note also mentioned that the company’s larger flanged valve, the DN65-DN100, which handles pressures to 10 bar, would probably be the best choice.
The cast-iron valve can be closed in one of three ways: manually via a remote switch, automatically after receiving a signal from the building’s firefighting system, or by using a Danfoss pressure switch that detects the pressure drop in the hydrant line when firefighters open that line and begin drawing water from it.
The application note caught the attention of construction companies and sales of the valve climbed 500% between 2006 and 2010.