University of Bristol - From Manual Logs to Real-Time Monitoring

The Challenge❌

The University of Bristol faced significant challenges in managing fire safety across its sprawling estate. Fire alarm systems were manually inspected during weekdays, leaving gaps in fault detection over weekends. Repeated faults often overwhelmed control panel logs, making root cause analysis difficult. Compliance tracking relied on spreadsheets completed by service engineers, which were prone to delays and inaccuracies, hindering visibility into system status.

The Solution✅

Following a successful pilot in the Wills Memorial Building, the university deployed 25 Nimbus devices across 100+ buildings (some of which are separated by distances of over 15 miles) spanning multiple campuses. These units connected to existing fire alarm systems and transmitted real-time data to the Nimbus cloud-hosted portal. 

The Results💡

The universities maintenance team now receive instant email alerts for system events, from power failures to detector faults, enabling faster response and prioritisation.

The Nimbus Digital App has streamlined compliance by allowing the universities maintenance contractor to log tests directly into the system using the Nimbus mobile app, engineers can take images of failures and the app automatically passes any devices that are triggered during the maintenance visit. The estates team can now monitor testing schedules, identify overdue devices, and manage failures in real time.