The Punggol Fire Station – Singapore’s first smart fire station and SCDF’s 23rd fire station – officially opened today. It will serve as a testbed for the smart applications to be introduced to other fire stations in Singapore.
Co-located with the Punggol Neighbourhood Police Centre at 151 Punggol Central, the fire station will serve the rapidly developing Punggol town, including the Punggol Digital District.
This next-generation fire station will have a wide range of features leveraging cutting-edge technologies and data analytics to optimise resources and enhance operational efficiency. These were conceptualised and implemented in partnership with HTX (Home Team Science and Technology Agency).
Some smart features include:
- Automated fire station access control
- this integrates automation, motion sensor, facial and license plate recognition technologies to enhance the security of the fire station and improve efficiency by freeing up officers’ time to focus on crucial operational duties. Visitors will be able to enjoy seamless access to the fire station when using their physical identity cards (NRICs) or digital NRICs on the Singpass app at the registration kiosk.
- Automated medical store
- a grab-and-go self-checkout system that uses sensors and tracking devices to detect items taken off shelves and who took them, thereby easing the demands of manual stock-taking on paramedics so that they can focus on operational needs and training. The continuous tracking enabled by the automated medical store is also envisioned to be part of the larger supply chain management within SCDF to optimise resources by leveraging data analytics to anticipate future and cyclical demands for specific inventory items.
- Integrated building management system (IBMS)
- provides automated control of the building’s sub-systems such as air-conditioning, mechanical ventilation fans, and lighting to achieve cost savings. The IBMS also optimises energy consumption, one of the key thrusts of what makes this fire station environmentally sustainable.
“As SCDF transforms itself towards an organisation driven by data and technology, the traditional fire station also needs to transform itself into a Smart Fire Station, which harnesses leading-edge technologies such as sensors, analytics and automation, said Ling Kok Yong, Director, Civil Defence Programme Management Centre (CDPMC) at HTX. “A Smart Fire Station will help SCDF to improve both its operational and administrative effectiveness, thereby bringing a more effective and efficient service to members of public.”