Victoria Place · Wolsey & Peacock
Two adjacent shopping centres modernised with a single fibre-linked PAVA platform — reusing existing speakers and circuits, working around a live cinema and theatre, and reconfigured post-completion for independent operation in a single visit.
Project Delivery
Fault Finding
Because the installation reused existing speakers and circuits, every legacy fault had to be located and rectified before the new head-end equipment could be brought online.
Head End Equipment
Supply, fabricate, deliver and commission a new 3300 W 36U rack housing all amplification and routing for both shopping centres.
Design
Design of the new head-end equipment for two shopping centres connected by fibre — with post-completion reconfiguration to provide independent operation per the end user’s revised requirements.
Commissioning
Out-of-hours commissioning programme allowing both shopping centres to be brought online concurrently without disruption to retail trading.
The Story
As part of a larger renewals programme, Voxiss were engaged by Pacific Fire and Security to install two new PAVA Systems at the Wolsey and Peacock shopping centres — a larger system incorporating 17 zones and a smaller 4-zone system.
Both systems had to be linked by fibre and commissioned so that they could be operated either individually or as a combined unit.
Due to the age of the existing installation, the engineering team carried out fault-finding on every existing speaker and circuit, bringing them into correct working order before the new equipment was introduced.
As the system needed to be commissioned over a number of evenings, a new marshalling panel was installed so speaker circuits could be migrated and tested one by one. This allowed for a single co-ordinated changeover for both shopping centres.
At Victoria Place there is also a cinema and a theatre — both required careful planning to avoid disrupting business as normal during testing windows.
Upon completion, the end user requested the systems be reconfigured to operate independently of each other. Each rack was reconfigured and the existing fibre repurposed to serve the fireman’s microphone — delivered in a single visit and reducing the additional cost to the client.
Challenges
Faults found across several legacy circuits had to be diagnosed and rectified before the new head-end equipment could be installed.
Three distinct evacuation processes required full testing and commissioning to satisfy the fire-strategy requirements of the combined estate.
Existing background-music equipment had to be configured to interoperate cleanly with the new PA system — preserving the customer experience throughout.
Close coordination with the on-site cinema and theatre was needed to avoid disrupting their performances and screenings during testing windows.
Very limited space was available for the new equipment while the existing PAVA system had to remain in operation throughout the changeover period.