THE region's businesses have been warned of the rising costs of fire detection and prevention at a recent seminar.
The seminar, sponsored by ADT and Tyne and Wear Fire Brigade, examined the mounting costs faced by local firms as a result of false alarms and looked at ways to reduce the problem.
The businesses also received advice on how to comply with forthcoming plans devised by the British Fire Protection Systems Association (BFPSA), from Alan Holmes, deputy chief fire officer at the Tyne and Wear Brigade.
Other speakers at the seminar included ADT's Mike Fanthorpe, John Letts, of BFPSA, and Colin Newman, of NHS Estates.
Mr Holmes said: "During the past 30 years there has been a yearly increase in the number of unwanted fire signals - many of which are caused by faulty installations.
"The cost of these false alarms is difficult to quantify, but over time they are extremely expensive."
He added: "The aim of the seminar was to make local businesses aware of the scale of the problem and the enormous cost each year of false fire alarms."
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