RCF Evacuation system for the new Skyway at Mont Blanc

The SkyWay at Mont Blanc is equipped with an evacuation system by RCF, with the contribution of the installer company CED Impianti. A digital system RCF DXT 9000 certified in accordance with law EN54-16 was used for this engineering masterpiece.
"We already knew the DXT 9000 products", explains the installer Jacopo Franchin. "The central system is powerful, reliable and it is in accordance with sector regulations. It was a great choice from both the technical and commercial point of view." The installation in Mont Blanc is made up of three independent systems, one for each station, and is divided into separate zones corresponding to fire detection areas.
Three amplifying units were chosen from the MX 9504 series, one for each level of the new SkyWay cable car. The pre-recorded messages are in three languages instead of two, as usually occurs. "In the Aosta Valley French is spoken just as much as Italian and the SkyWay has a great influx of French speakers. For this reason the client also requested French as a language", explains the installer. The MX9504 units allow to send multiple messages simultaneously, in order to manage a well-organised evacuation of the various areas open to the public.
The powerful digital amplifiers used are RCF UP 9502 and 9504 models. The supply unit PS 4048 ensures continued power to the DXT 9000 system in case of network interruptions. The sound source is RCF MS1033 model, with integrated CD/mp3 player and a radio tuner. Microphones from the RDF BM 9800 series are also used. "Not only did we want a good evacuation system, but one that could also have a broader use for the diffusion of music or various types of messages," states engineer Petrella from Dimensione Ingenierie, that developed this project with RCF technical staff.
Three types of loudspeakers were chosen for their high-quality sound performance, UV- and weather-resistance – sound projector RCF DP1420 EN, speaker DU 50EN and horn speaker HD 21 EN.
It is worth noting that, in the case of the new SkyWay cable car at Mont Blanc, the normative method indicated by the regulations was not followed, but it was still possible to prove the conformity of the system thanks to the EASE sound simulation tool. The final project expects an average SPL that is more than 10 dB higher than the background noise, and therefore comes in the range established by the regulation. The average STI is higher than 0.5, with slight normal variations, calculated on 627 measurement points, resulting in great sound clarity and speech intelligibility.
Photographs by Enrico Romanzi