The PETRONAS Twin Towers is a marvel of automation, technology and intelligence. The Towers use intelligent building system to enhance safety, reliability of control systems, ease of maintenance and the maximisation of functional internal floor area. The tenants of the Towers continually benefit from a system that can readily adapt to their changing needs of environmental controls. Among others, the systems continuously assess and provide the optimum degree of fire protection and ensuring safe and speedy passage to, from and through the Towers. The intelligent building system comprises features which coordinate and manage telecommunications, environment and climate control, power supply and lighting, fire and smoke control, evacuation and emergency protocols, and building security. The Towers are a model achievement of the level of computerised sophistication and intelligence. |
The physical network is a complex array of vertical and physical cabling pre-planned throughout the Towers from main subscriber distribution frames to end-user work-stations – providing maximum flexibility for present and anticipated needs. The CTO also manages platforms for video-conferencing, electronic mail and phone services.
Within the Twin Towers, the building control system ensures that all environmental controls are responsive to user needs. Air-conditioning, electrical supply and lighting are all monitored and managed efficiently, safely and economically. The internal working environment can be individually tailored within the Towers on a floor-by-floor basis to provide absolute comfort to users. Lights and air-conditioning units can be activated or deactivated by telephone and password control.
The Towers' fire control system is integrated into the design of the floor-by-floor air-handling system, which controls smoke in the event of fire by intelligent pressure systems which automatically isolate the fire floor from adjacent floors. This prevents the passage of smoke through the building and allows the specific expulsion of a body of contaminated air. The occupants of the floor on fire can be safely evacuated to adjacent smoke-free floors. Evacuation procedures are finely calculated to allow complete discharge of all occupants of either tower in 80 minutes, and a maximum of 36 minutes for the last person in the building to enter the safety of a protected stairway. The building security system is another computerised marvel. From the point of entry at any level, users are invisibly registered by air gates, close-circuit televisions and audio alarm surveillance systems. |
The Gas District Cooling (GDC) system caters to the air conditioning needs of approximately 8 million sq ft of enclosed space that include the PETRONAS Twin Towers, Suria KLCC Mall, Maxis Tower, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Esso Building and the Mosque.
The system also produces electricity thus making the buildings self-sufficient and reducing their dependence on the National Electricity Grid.
Powered by natural gas, the GDC plant in KLCC was built, owned and operated by Gas District Cooling (M) Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of PETRONAS. Pollutant-free and economical, the GDC system contributes to a cleaner urban environment.
The system is now used in the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang and the Federal Government's new administrative centre, Putrajaya.
