How The Alarm Hub turned 216 firestopping inspections at Athens International Airport into a risk-led action plan

Working across the Main and Satellite Terminal Buildings, The Alarm Hub created a drawing-linked digital record of 216 inspected penetration block-outs — giving the airport a traceable baseline for targeted verification, remedial planning and future audit.

The challenge

Firestopping is largely hidden from view, yet it plays a vital role in maintaining compartmentation around the pipes, cables, ducts and other services that pass through fire-resisting walls and floors. At a live international airport, the challenge is amplified by scale, access constraints, different generations of installation and the need to avoid unnecessary disruption.

Athens International Airport needed an evidence base that went beyond isolated observations. Each inspected opening had to be identifiable, relocatable and supported by photographs, drawing references and consistent assessment data. Just as importantly, the process had to distinguish between a visible defect and an evidence gap: an installation without a visible rating mark may require verification, but should not automatically be described as failed.

The Alarm Hub approach

The Alarm Hub combined desktop review, non-intrusive site inspection, digital data capture and independent technical review. The work was planned around the airport's live operational environment and access requirements, including above-ceiling and high-level inspection activity.

Every inspected block-out received a unique digital record containing its location, the element penetrated, service types, visible marking and condition information, drawing-pin reference, checklist responses and photographic evidence. This consistent structure allowed observations from both terminal buildings to be consolidated into technical reports and spreadsheet registers.

The result

The reported phase covered 216 block-outs: 146 in the Main Terminal Building and 70 in the Satellite Terminal Building. Rather than reducing the project to a blanket pass/fail judgement, the deliverable created a decision-ready baseline showing what was observed, what evidence was available and where further verification or remedial planning should be prioritised.

For the airport's engineering and facilities teams, the value is practical: clearer records, more focused next steps and a digital foundation that can be updated after works and reused for future inspection and audit cycles. For The Alarm Hub, the project demonstrates how qualified fire-safety judgement, structured field data and rigorous review can turn complex passive fire protection evidence into a programme of action.

Managing passive fire protection across a complex estate? Talk to The Alarm Hub about drawing-linked inspections, digital evidence capture and risk-led remedial planning.