The document provides an overview of the Elite Fire software, which performs hydraulic calculations for sprinkler and standpipe systems. It discusses the program interface and how to enter a new project, including general project data such as pipe material, sprinkler information, and hazard description. It also demonstrates how to enter pipe data specifying parameters like length, diameter, elevations, and fittings. The software then calculates the demand flow rate and pressure based on the input data.

1. Presenter :
Eng: Mahmoud A. ElMaadawy
Mahmoud.A.Elmaadawy@gmail.com 01115228080 – 01277715977
ELITE FIRE SOFTWARE

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
What’s Elite Fire Software?
Program Interface.
General Project Data.
Enter / Edit Pipe Data.
Some Additional Tools.
Performing Calculations.
Report Options.
Case Study.
Contents

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
Elite fire software:
o is a simple program used to do the hydraulic calculation for a water
sprinkler & Standpipe systems instead of manual calculation which
saves effort and time and give more accurate results.
o Elite Fire can perform all necessary hydraulic calculations as
required by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA
13). Fire can handle all types of sprinkler systems (trees, grids,
and hybrids)
o The program can automatically calculate
 Pipe diameters
 Find the most hydraulically demanding area
(automatic peaking)
 Perform standpipe calculations
 Make quick estimations on sprinkler head requirements.
o You can do any change in any pipe & see the effect on all other
outputs with one click !
Now, let’s have a look at our program ..
Introduction to Elite fire Software functions

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Elite Fire Software
Program Interface

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Elite Fire Software
Menu bar:
Contains the menus of the program; from this
bar you can reach any function you need as we'll
see in following slides.
Function bar:
Contains some of the most popular used functions
of the program.
Project Explorer:
Here, you can find the projects have been opened in
Elite fire software.
1
2
3
Program Interface

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Elite Fire Software
To start a new project you have three ways:
1. From Menu bar :-
Click File > New
2. From Tool bar :-
3. Press Ctrl + N
Entering New Project data.

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
After Creating a new project, you’ll see this screen
At first tab : Project data
General Project Data.

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Elite Fire Software
At first tab : Project data
1. Project name
2. The name of the engineer designed this project
3. Date Project date
4. NFPA 13 Which concerns Sprinklers & NFPA
14 Which concerns Standpipe system, or any
other code you use.
5. Civil Defense Agency
6. anycommentyouwantitto beincludedinthe
report
NOTE: This data is only to be written in the output report &
does not affect the calculations !!
General Project Data.

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Elite Fire Software
At remaining tabs : Client Data, Company data and Building
data, you’ll find more general data about the project you are
designing.. These data do not affect the calculation, it only to
be written in the report. You may let them empty.
General Project Data.

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Elite Fire Software
At last tab : System Data, You will see this window ! Let’s
take these cells one by one
General Project Data.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
 In Rack Sprinkler Allow
o It’s the flow required by the
sprinklers in the racks of the
storage. If it exists in your
project, according NFPA 13,
enter the flow of it.
o Leave it zero, if you don’t have
in rack sprinklers.
o NOTE:
 This input does NOT affect
calculation results, it’s only
to be written as a
reference.
 In case of considering “In
Rack sprinkler allow”, add
this flow also to the “non
sprinkler flow”. We’ll see it
soon in our slides.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
 Inside Hose Stream Allow
o It’s the flow required by the inside
hose cabinet, If it exists in your
project -according NFPA 14- Enter
the flow of it (it’s normally 50 ~ 100
gpm).
o Leave it zero if you don’t have
inside hose cabinets.
o NOTE:
 This input does NOT affect
calculation result, it’s only
to be written as a
reference.
 in case of considering
“inside hose stream allow”,
add this flow also to the
“non sprinkler flow”. We’ll
see it soon in our slides.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
 Outside Hose Stream Allow
o It’s the flow required by the
outside hose cabinet. If it exists
in your project, according
NFPA 14, enter the flow of it
(it’s normally = 250 gpm) .
o Leave it zero, If you don’t have
inside hose cabinets.
o NOTE:
 This input does NOT affect
on calculation results, it’s
only to be written as a
reference.
 in case of considering
outside hose add this flow
also to the “non sprinkler
node”. We’ll see it soon in
our slides.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Default Pipe Material
o It’s the material of the pipes used in your project, Elite Fire uses
this input to calculate the loss per unit length of your pipes, to
use it in the calculations.
o Normally, in fire fighting we use the seamless schedule 40 wet
steel which corresponds to reference number “4” in Elite Fire.
o If your project is different, press the arrow to open the drop-
down list, then select your material from the table.
o NOTE: This input specifies the default pipe material & you can
de pend on it at ENTER/ Edit Pipe Data Window (will come
soon).

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Default K-Factor:
o It’s a constant for the one
sprinkler & it is considered a
property of it.
o It’s relating the water flow rate
with the pressure difference
across the sprinkler.𝑸 = 𝒌 ∗ 𝑷
o It depends on ceiling height,
operating temperature ,
storage height & sprinkler
orifice diameter. In most
cases, K-Factor = 5.65.
o Press the arrow to open the
drop-down list, then select
your material from the table
o Use NFPA 13 to find the
appropriate sprinkler for your
case.
o NOTE: This input specifies the
default K-FACTOR & you can
depend on it at ENTER/ Edit
Pipe Data Window (will come
soon).

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Sprinkler Model:
o It’s a model of your sprinklers, it’s one of the characteristic
information of sprinklers it's requested only to be written in the
report.
o Such as Vk 100
Sprinkler Make
o It’s a company name of your sprinklers, it’s one of the
characteristic information of sprinklers it's requested only to
be written in the report.
o Such as Viking
Temperature Rating
o It’s a temperature at which the sprinkler will operate. It’s one of
the characteristic information of sprinklers it's requested only
to be written in the report.,
o It can be specified according NFPA 13.
o It’s corresponding to a specific color rating.
o At normal operating conditions Take it 155 F

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Sprinkler Size:
o It’s the orifice diameter of the sprinkler. It’s one of the
characteristics of sprinklers. It's requested only to be
written in the report.
o You can find a table of a K-Factor & corresponding Orifice
Sizes in NFPA 13.
o Take it ½” for K-Factor 5.6
Labor Rate, Other Labor Hours & Other Material Costs:
o These three inputs are used to indicate the roughly cost of
other things except the pipes, fittings & Sprinklers in the
project
o You can let them empty.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Primary Type of Discharge:
o Selecting the primary type of discharge depends on whether
you depend mainly on sprinkler system or hoses “standpipe
system”
o Select your answer from the drop-down menu.
Comment:
o This input allows you to enter any comment if you want. To
include your comment in the final report, mark the check box.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Hazard Description:
o Select the Hazard , this input is only to be written in the report
o It can be specified according to the occupancies of your
project. Specify yours from NFPA 13.
o Select your answer from the drop-down menu.
Minimum Desired Density:
o Select the Min Desired Density of the sprinklers flowrate per
unit of area.
o It can be specified according to chart in NFPA 13 which
depends on hazard type & the operation area.
o NOTE: this input affects significantly the calculations.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Sprinkler System Type:
o Select your system type whether it’s Wet or dry.
o it's requested only to be written in the report..
Area of Sprinkler Operation:
o Put the design area of all sprinkler operation; it’s a portion of
area which the sprinklers are placed in.
o The sprinkler at this area are expected to be active.
o It’s the most remote area from the water source.
Maximum Area per Sprinkler:
o Put the Maximum Area per Sprinkler; it’s the maximum area
which one sprinkler can cover.
o It can be specified according to a table in NFPA 13.

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Hydrant Data :
What’s the hydrant ?
o is an outlet from a city
main fire fighting network,
often consists of an
upright pipe with a valve
attached from which fluid
(e.g. water or fuel) can be
tapped.
o In order to use the city fire
fighting network, we’ve to
know the test results
which preformed by a
certified organization, ex:
Civil Defense

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Hydrant Data :
o If you have a test data, provide it to
the software as shown in the
picture. It affects the Supply-
Demand curve which will be in the
final report.
o The hydrant ID : you can get it
from the label on the hydrant itself.
o If you intend to use an exterior hose,
mark its checkbox to take the
required flowrate for hose in
consideration. This flow will added
directly to the calculated flowrate of
the system,
o You can let these inputs empty if
you don’t have a city network, or in
case of depending on fire pump only
5
3

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Elite Fire Software
General Project Data.
Calculated Demand Pressure
Calculated Demand Flow Rate
o These two cells are not inputs, the program will fill them with
the output answer after doing the calculation.

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
To Enter / Edit Pipe Data you have two ways:
1. From Menu bar :-
Click Project > Enter/Edit Pipe Data
2. From Tool bar :-
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
You’ll see this screen
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
What are the main parameters that logically expected to be
requested to do the hydraulic calculations ?!
o Length
o Diameter
o Coefficient of friction (Depending on pipe Material)
o Pipe Ends Elevations
o Fittings losses in the pipe
o Flowing Flow either through sprinklers
or non sprinkler flow
To enter a pipe in Elite, We have to give the pipes Ends
(Beginning & Ending ) a numerical names to enter it in. these
names may be the numbers (1,2,3 … etc. ) or ( 10,20,30 …
etc.).
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
In Elite Fire every two rows represent the data of one pipe
i.e., this screen contains the inputs of six pipes.
Let’s take one pipe input for illustration
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
Let’s take one pipe input for illustration
Now, we will discuss every cell individually
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
 Beg, Input represents the node number of the
beginning of the pipe. (ex: 1, 2. … )
 End, Input represents the node number of the End of
the pipe. (ex: 1, 2. … )
 Mat, Input represents the material of the pipe, if you’ve
entered the Default Pipe Material at the general pipe
data, you will see here the same material chosen
before. (it’s normally 4 which represents the seamless
schedule 40 wet steel See Slide “17”
 Loss, Input represents the pressure drop according a
Constant Pressure Loss Device, this cell is active when
you select in Mat a device not Material See Slide “42” .
 Dia, Input represents the diameter of the pipe.
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
1
2
3
4
5

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Elite Fire Software
NOTE: You can change the units if any inputs you are entering
by clicking on the unit and selecting the unit you want.
Ex: Changing the units of pipe diameter, which is by normal
represented in inch
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
 Len, Input represents the length of the pipe. (ex: 50 m)
 & KFact, Input represents K-factor of sprinkler at
Beginning/End node.
Note: K-Factor input may be :
o Empty “0” : if you don’t have a sprinkler at this node.
o Default “dflt”: if you have a sprinkler with the default K-
factor value entered in GPD.
o Value “ex: 5. 65, 16.8 , ..”: if you have a sprinkler with K-
Factor different from the default one have been entered.
 & Sprk Elev, Input represents the elevation of the
Beginning/End node WRT the reference line. (normally
we take the in-flow node as a reference & this reference
have a zero elevation ).
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
6
87
9 10

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Elite Fire Software
 & Press Est, it’s an optional Input represents the
initial guess of the residual pressure at the
Beginning/End node. If this guess is a reasonable the
calculation time would be shorter. But in normal we do
not use this input. (leave it empty).
 & Sprk Area, Input represents the coverage area of
the sprinkler at the beginning/End node (if found), if you
want to use the default coverage area in the GPD, Leave
this cell “zero”.
 & Area Grp, it’s an optional input represents the
imaginary area in which the Beginning/End node is
located. This input helps in Automatic Peaking
Calculation & in the calculation of deluge systems also.
You can leave it empty.
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
13 14
11 12
15 16

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Elite Fire Software
 & NSprk Flow, Input represents the non sprinkler
flow required by the hoses or by the in rack sprinklers at
this node. The flow you enter here is added to the total
flow directly. You can not add a flow at node which
contains a sprinkler.
 Std Fit, Input represents the standard fittings at this pipe,
to enable elite taking the secondary loss in to
consideration. Elite adds an equivalent length to the
original pipe length to do calculation. You just enter a
letter corresponds the fitting as the table shown in next
slide.
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
17 18
19

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Elite Fire Software
NOTE: You can enter more than one fitting at one time.
Ex. If you have a pipe with Two Tees, One 45 Degree elbow &
Three 90 degree elbow, you would enter ( 2T1F3E)
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
 NStd Fit, Input represents the non standard fittings
at this pipe. Elite has a standard fittings list which
shown an the previous slide. If you have a fitting
which is not in that list, you would enter the
equivalent length of it.
NOTE: If you do not know the equivalent length, you can
use Additional Fitting Length Calculator as shown
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
20

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Elite Fire Software
NOTE: After opening Additional Fitting Length Calculator,
you’ll see the flowing window.
You can calculate equivalent fitting length if you know the
 Head loss through the fitting
 Approximate flowrate through the piping
 Pipe size at that location
 Pipe roughness
 Fluid characteristics
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software
 Eq Len, Output represents the total equivalent length of
pipe including it’s actual length added to the Standard &
Non Standard fittings at this pipe. You do not enter
anything here.
 Pipe Type, Input represents the group name of this pipe,
this input helps in auto sizing pipes, in normal we do not
depend on auto sizing feature In Elite, so we do not
create a pipe groups we leave this input blank.
 Active Button, Input this button allows you to
Activate/Deactivate the pipe which mean taking it in
consideration at calculation or not.
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.
21
22
23

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Elite Fire Software
 Now We will illustrate the tool bar at the top of Enter/Edit
pipe date.
Add Pipe: Button used to add a pipe.
Delete Pipe: If you want to delete a certain pipe, put the
mouse blinker at any cell of that pipe an click Delete pipe.
Sort Pipe: Button used to sort the pipes, this only for change
the order of the pipes & do not affect the calculation
Clear Pipe: If you want to delete ALL PIPES in the project
Mark Inflow Node: To specify the source node of the flow, put
the mouse blinker at any node an click Mark Inflow node. You
will see this mark besides the node.
Unmark Inflow Node: To delete the Marked node before.
CPLD: To enter a new Constant Pressure Drop Device name.
the device name you add here will appear in the material field.
Enter/Edit Pipe Data.

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
We will illustrate here some additional Features that are
introduced by Elite fire like :-
 Enter/Edit Node Data.
 Sprinkler K-Factor Calculator.
 Branch Line K-Factor Calculator.
 Enter/Edit Pipe Library Data.
 Fire Pump Data Base.

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
 Enter/Edit Node Data.
The Enter/Edit Pipe Node Data window allows you to enter or
edit data for existing nodes that have been entered in the
Enter/Edit Pipe Data window. Viewing this data by node (in
numerical order) is sometimes easier than by pipe. It’s
provided for convenience and as an alternative way to view
and input sprinkler system data.

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
 Sprinkler K-Factor Calculator.
The Sprinkler K-Factor Calculator allows you to calculate the K-
Factor, residual pressure, or flow rate for a sprinkler using the
known sprinkler properties you enter.
This Calculator based on orifice equation 𝑸 = 𝑲 ∗ 𝑷

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
 Branch Line K-Factor Calculator.
This window calculates the K-Factor for a branch line with a
sprinkler at the end. A tree branch can be reduced to the
equivalent of a single demand point at the tree trunk by use of
the branch line K-Factor. The result is automatically updated
whenever you change the branch line properties. Note that the
elevation of the node using the branch line K-Factor must be
changed to the elevation of the sprinkler.

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
 Enter/Edit Pipe Library Data.
The Enter/Edit Pipe Library Data window is used to enter or edit
the data in the pipe library. This includes entering user-defined
pipe types. The pipes you enter here will appear in the material
field & you can use them.

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Elite Fire Software
Some Additional Tools
 Fire Pump Data Base.
The Fire Pump Database window is used to enter or edit the data
in the fire pump database.

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
Performing Calculations
The step coming after entering GPD & Pipe Data is performing
the calculations. This is by :
1. From Menu bar :-
Click Project > Calculations
2. From Tool bar :-

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Elite Fire Software
You’ll see this screen which contains four sections.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Calculation Comment:
This comment will be printed at the top of all of the output
reports.
Calculation Mode:
o Demand Mode
Select this mode if you do not know the pressure at the inflow
node, this mode calculates the minimum total system demand
pressure and demand flow that will satisfy the minimum residual
pressure requirement for the HMD sprinkler. In this mode you
need to enter:
Minimum Residual Pressure at HMD Sprinkler Node : which is the
lowest acceptable pressure allowed at the most remote sprinkler.
It’s minimum value is 7 psi according NFPA 13
Minimum Desired Density: Back to slide 22
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Calculation Mode:
o Supply Mode
Select this mode if you know the pressure at the inflow node, this
mode calculates the resultant flow conditions in the piping
network. The inflow node number and residual pressure are
specified on this window. The program will calculate all other
pressures based on the inflow pressure. . In this mode you need
to enter:
Residual Pressure at Inflow Node Number xxx : This field is used
to enter the residual pressure at the 'xxx' inflow node equal to the
available inflow water pressure. Note that 'xxx' represents the
inflow node number which here in this pictures node number 33.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Options:
o Use Automatic Peaking Calculations
This option will select whether or not the automatic peaking
method will be used in the calculations. The automatic peaking
means that Fire will calculate which area group has the HMD
node. This item is only valid in Demand Mode calculations.
Ex: If you have three area groups have been entered at Enter/Edit
Pipe data (Slide 36 ) , and you do not know which of these groups
have the maximum demand. Checking this option will calculate
the demands for the three areas & tell you which of them have
the maximum demand.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Options:
o Ignore Pump Boost In Calculation And Show Pump Curve
If you enter a check mark here, the pump boost will be ignored
when the residual pressures are calculated. In addition, the
pump curve and the combined pump/public water supply curve
will be shown on the hydraulic graph. If this box is unchecked,
the residual pressures will account for the pump boost, but there
will be no pump curve on the hydraulic graph.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Options:
o Use Residual Pressure Estimates
If reasonably accurate pressure estimates have already been
entered, it can greatly speed up the calculations the program
performs by checking the Use Residual Pressure Estimates. but it
is usually not necessary.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Imbalance:
As the most calculation programs, Elite uses Trial & Error
method, The perfect solution of a fire sprinkler system would
show a zero nodal pressure imbalance for all nodes. For
practical reasons this is virtually impossible to attain. In fact the
acceptable range for it within 0.5 psi.
The smaller value you put, the longer time the calculation takes &
the accurate results you will get.
o Converge to 0.01 flow imbalance
If the calculations finish with this checkbox checked, your results
are sufficiently accurate, but it will take long time in large
projects.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Oscillation Damping Factor:
This field refers to the steps that program make it to correct the
pressure. Small damping factors (1 - 4) allow Fire to make
relatively large pressure adjustments per iteration, so that a
solution can more quickly be obtained; however, the problem with
using small damping factors is that Fire can sometimes over-
adjust nodal pressures such that a divergent situation arises.
If a divergent situation occurs, Fire will print a message
indicating the situation. If this ever happens, increase the
damping factor and run the calculation again. If divergence still
persists, some changes in the piping system may be required.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Pipe Sizing/Constrains:
The Pipe Sizing tab is used to set constraints for Fire pipe sizing
calculations. Note that only those pipe sections with no specified
diameter and/or pipe with diameters shown in red on the
Enter/Edit Pipe Data window will be automatically sized using the
parameters entered in the tab. The autosizing feature can also
cause calculation difficulty, so use it with caution.
Optimization of pipe sizing is generally best performed by manual
specification. So we’ll not use this tab.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
After Finishing the previous fields Now click Calculate button
to let fire program preform the calculations
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software
Pipe Sizing/Constrains:
The Solution tab shows the results of a calculation. The Fire
program will open this tab automatically when a calculation run
finishes. If you select this tab manually, the results shown do not
necessarily reflect the results of a calculation run based on the
inputs currently entered. They are the results of the last
successful program run.
Performing Calculations

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software
The Final product of Elite Fire Software, after finishing
project entering data & calculation, is the smart report which
contains everything you can imagine about your Project. You
Can view the report by one of the following ways:
1. From Menu bar :-
Click Reports >
Quick Preview Reports
1. From Tool bar :-
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software
You can control the report appearance & the data printed on
it , this is by going to Report Options Window
1. From Menu bar :-
Click Reports > Report Options
2. From Tool bar :-
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software
You’ll see this screen which contains two tabs, The first tab
is Reports, Which Controls What data will be appear.
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software
The Second tab is Other Options , Which Controls What data
will be appear. According this window you can Change fonts,
Colors & some general options like page numbering & line
spacing. Etc.. You can also Print a logo to the report.
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software
Exporting the report
The bad News that Fire program do not allow you to save the
report neither with Microsoft word format (Doc&Docx) nor any
popular format that enables you to send the report via e-mail.
Fire allows you only to print the report directly on a paper !!
But we will do a trick to over this issue. We will install a virtual
printer which is a software allows us to export a files with PDF
extension , Flow this steps:
1) Search about “virtual pdf printer”.
2) Install it.
3) Open elite & print the report as following
1) Go to Report Menu > Quick Print Reports
2) Select the printer Icon from Tool bar
3) Click CTRL + P
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software
You’ll see this screen. After installing the Virtual PDF Printer,
You will find a printer added to your PC, contains the name
of the software, In case of my computer , I installed so
Adobe PDF printer is shown in printers.
o Select this Printer, and optimize other options as you want.
o Click ok to open “Save as Window” to select the name and
place of you PDF file.
o Now, You’ve a PDF File which allows you to E-mail it. Or convert
it to Word & Edit it .
Report Options

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Elite Fire Software

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Elite Fire Software