Case Study: Suncor Energy achieves early-warning smoke detection and reduced maintenance costs with Xtralis VESDA

Advanced smoke detection systems provide maintenance solutions and help to prevent downtime at Canadian Oil Sands

Suncor Energy’s Athabasca oil-sands operations in northern Alberta are a massive, 24/7 industrial complex with mission‑critical electrical, steam and processing systems that must run continuously to sustain production. Protecting switchgear rooms, motor control centers, substations and other high-risk areas from fire is essential, but Suncor’s previous ceiling‑mounted linear‑beam detectors were hard to access, sometimes requiring plant shutdowns and costly scaffolding for maintenance.

To solve this, Suncor standardized on Xtralis VESDA VLC air‑sampling smoke detectors, installing ceiling sampling pipes while placing the detectors at eye level for easy servicing. The VESDA systems provide earlier, more reliable detection than conventional spot detectors, consolidate coverage, log alarms and service events, and have significantly reduced maintenance costs and the need for shutdowns—improving safety and operational uptime.

Suncor Energy

Curtis Langston

Senior Fire Alarm Technician