Yishun Community Hospital opens with TOA

SINGAPORE: Aesthetically resembling hotel façades, Singapore’s new breed of community hospitals bear few hints from the outside that they are in fact providing valuable rehabilitation services for long term patients. Situated adjacent to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Yishun Community Hospital is one of Singapore’s latest and largest community hospitals with a total of 428 beds.

Electrical contractor Shinryo Corporation and systems integrator Willowglen Services were awarded the contract to design and install a substantial TOA sound reinforcement system into the newly constructed 10-storey development. An SX-2000SM System Manager lies at the heart of the TOA matrix for the hospital’s public address paging, BGM and voice evacuation requirements.

Specified for its safe, reliable and easy operation, the SX-2000SM assigns six input channels fed by a single SX-2100AI Audio Input Unit with an 8-channel audio input matrix. The CD player, AM/FM tuner and microphone inputs are fed into three SX-2100AO Audio Output Units connected to three SX-2000CO Control Outputs via digital transmission, although an analogue input function enables simultaneous all-zone calls in emergency situations. In addition to controlling the audio signal routing and priorities, it also allows the input and output controls to be monitored on a PC, where a log of all the recorded events and failures can be viewed. An EVC digital recorder is capable of playing back the evidence.

TOA pre-assembled six equipment racks off site, before terminating the cabling in late 2015. The SX-2000 system in one of the six racks in the fire command centre is linked to 10 SS-2010 speaker selectors. These serve as the output matrix section assigning the audio signals to 92 individual zones, including the basement levels from its audio busses, allowing the technicians to switch between BGM and paging announcements in any of the zones at the touch of a button. Linked to these are 10 LS-2010Q Line Supervisory panels, which provide measurement and monitoring of the impedance for each speaker line with an indicator. However, an RM-200SF Fireman’s Microphone takes priority status should an emergency evacuation announcement need to be made.

The hospital is served with an extensive ceiling speaker solution consisting of 2,425 PC-658R 6-inch models, which are integrated with a resin panel and speaker frame, feature a spring clamp mechanism which can be mounted to the ceiling and input impedance that can be switched by changing the tap position on the transformer. A total of 263 SC-615M paging horn speakers have been wall-mounted in back-of-house areas such the car park, whilst a further 179 BS-633A wall mount speakers adorn zones such as the outdoor entrance columns and fire escape staircases. Finally, the garden areas to the front are adorned with 42 waterproof GS-302 garden speakers.

The entire speaker system is powered by a total of 18 VP-2421 single 420W power amplifiers. SX-2100AO Audio Output units which offer auto-fault and changeover features monitor and detect amplifier channel malfunctions, automatically assigning one of the three standby amplifiers to take over in such an instance. In case of a power cut, seven VX-2000DS emergency power supplies ensure the audio system operates for a further two hours or until the power returns to normal.

Whether it’s a shopping mall, stadium, bus terminal or hospital, the overriding need for intelligible speech is fundamental should it need evacuating. TOA has been chosen by many public buildings to ensure that all-important sense of sound remains intact in the worst-case scenario.

www.toa.com.sg