Download Bob Hendricks - Metro Chiefs President

The Lexington Division
of Fire and Emergency Services
Fire Chief Robert G. Hendricks
The Code of Hammurabi
• 229. If a builder builds a house
for someone, and does not
construct it properly, and the
house which he built falls in and
kills its owner, then that builder
shall be put to death.
• 230. If it kills the son of the
owner, the son of that builder
shall be put to death.
• 233. If a builder builds a house
for someone, even though he
has not yet completed it; if then
the walls seem toppling, the
builder must make the walls
solid from his own means.
UK Building Codes In the News
January 15, 2007 // Published as a news service by HIS
The U.K. government announced revisions to the Building Regulations
of the Building Act 1984 relating to fire safety.
The revisions to Part B (fire safety) of the Building Regulations and
supporting guidance in Approved Document B reflect recent
experiences of actual fires, developments in construction, research
findings and stakeholder engagement, including a four-month public
consultation exercise.
The revised code will affect future building work in England and Wales,
such as the erection, extension or material alteration of a building,
and how fire safety is designed into a building. They also include
amendments to the guidance on domestic loft conversions, the use
of door-closing devices in dwellings and the provision of sprinklers in
tall blocks of flats.
Note: A fire partition is the term used for the separation wall
between dwelling units. Generally the requirement is a one
hour wall with a 20 minute self closing door in the non
sprinklered building and a ½ hour wall with a 20 minute
self closing door in the sprinklered building
**FIRE PARTITIONS
**708.1 General. The following wall assemblies shall comply
with this section:
1. Walls separating dwelling units in the same building.
2. Walls separating sleeping units in occupancies in Group
R-1 hotel, R-2 and I-1 occupancies.**
708.3 Fire-resistance rating. Fire partitions shall have a
fire-resistance rating of not less than 1 hour. (20 minute
self closing door)**
Note: Group R-2 is your typical apartment style with common
egress hallways
903.2.7.2 Group R-2 and R-3. An automatic sprinkler system
shall be provided throughout all buildings with a Group R-2
and R-3 fire area where more than two stories in height,
including basements. **
**[F] 907.2.10.1.2 Groups R-2, R-3, R-4 and I-1.
Single-or multiple-station smoke alarms shall be
installed and maintained in Groups R-2, R-3, R-4
and I-1, regardless of occupant load at all of the
following locations:
1. On the ceiling or wall outside of each separate
sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of bedrooms.
2. In each room used for sleeping purposes
3. In each story within a dwelling unit, including
basements but not including crawl spaces and
uninhabitable attics. In dwellings or dwelling
units with split levels and without an intervening
door between the adjacent levels, a smoke
alarm installed on the upper level shall suffice
for the adjacent lower level provided that the
lower level is less than one full story below
the upper level.**
**[F] 907.2.9 Group R-2. A manual fire alarm system
shall be installed in Group R-2 occupancies where:
1. Any dwelling unit or sleeping unit is located three
or more stories above the lowest level of exit
discharge;
2. Any dwelling unit or sleeping unit is located more
than one story below the highest level of exit discharge
of exits serving the dwelling unit or
sleeping unit; or
3. The building contains more than 16 dwelling
units or sleeping units.**
The changes go into effect on April 6, 2007.
For non-domestic buildings, the key changes include:
The introduction of a maximum unsprinklered compartment size for
single-story warehouses.
Note: You can build a 1-story S-2 warehouse as big as you want so
long as you meet the open space requirements. This is in a special
section of the code that governs unlimited area buildings. For the
most part the unlimited area building will be sprinkled unless it
qualifies as the 1 story F-2 or S-2.
Table 503 ALLOWABLE HEIGHT AND BUILDING AREAS govern how
big a building can be based on use group and construction type.
From the tables starting point you can get increases in the
buildings height and area by adding open space around the
building for area and adding sprinklers for height and area
increases.
**507.2 Nonsprinklered, one story. The area of a
one-story, Group F-2 or S-2 building shall not be
limited when the building is surrounded and
adjoined by public ways or yards not less than 60
feet (18 288 mm) in width.**
**311.3 Low-hazard storage, Group S-2. Includes,
among others, buildings used for the storage of
noncombustible materials such as products on
wood pallets or in paper cartons with or without
single thickness divisions; or in paper wrappings.
Such products are permitted to have a negligible
amount of plastic trim, such as knobs, handles or
film wrapping.**
I have more, but you get the picture.
Our Codes and Requirements
• In Kentucky, Design Professionals
(Architects and Engineers) are
charged to work from the
Kentucky Building Code, Ninth
Edition, 2007 which regionalizes
the 2006 International Building
Code with Kentucky specific
provisions.
• Design Professional’s plans are
then submitted and reviewed by
the local office of Building
Inspection and local Fire
Marshal’s Office. In our case, the
Office of New Construction.
The Goal
• To design and build the safest possible
wood constructed residential multiple unit
structures within Code defined maximum
allowable height and surface area.
• The design principle is each dwelling unit
acts like a safety compartment or
envelope to keep the fire contained to the
room or unit of origin within the overall
building system.
Large Multi-Unit Wood Constructed
Residential Structures
Any residential project of 12 units or larger
require architectural and engineered stamped
plans submitted for review and approval.
Use Groups
• Our R-1 Use Group is defined as “Residential
Occupancies containing sleeping units where the
occupants are primarily transient in nature”. For
example, hotels, motels, and boarding houses.
• R-2 Use Group is defined as “residential
occupancies containing sleeping units or more
than two dwelling units where the occupants are
primarily permanent in nature”. For example,
apartments and condos, dormitories, other non
transient housing.
Wood Built Construction
• If it has been determined that the project
is to be built out of wood to achieve the
maximum height of four stories there is
only one option, Type 5A Construction.
- One example of protecting wood building
components is with 5/8” Fire Rated Gypsum.
There are a multitude of UL Listed Assemblies
to achieve the required rating.
Allowable Height and Building Areas
R-1 and R-2
Adding Sprinklers to the Equation
• The minimum sprinkler
system would be
NFPA13R. It permits an
additional story, to a
maximum height of four
stories.
• To achieve both
maximum height and
square footage increase
(200% + allowable area)
requires NFPA13.
R-1 & 2 Fire Resistance
Rated Construction
• One hour rating vertically and horizontally
between living units.
• Corridors rated one hour with 20 minute doors
with closures.
• Shafts (elevators, stairs), communicating three
floors require one hour rating including doors.
- Four or more stories require two hour rating
and door closures.
- Constant lighting is required in stair shafts.
Code Comparison
IBC
Kentucky Rev.
705.3 - Firewall material
shall be of any approved
non -combustible
material.
903.2.7 – An automatic
sprinkler system installed
in accordance with Sec
903.3 shall be provided
throughout all buildings
with a Group R fire area.
705.3 - Firewall materials
shall be constructed of
approved masonry or
concrete materials that
provide the strength and
fire resistance ratings as
specified by this code.
907.2.7 An automatic
sprinkler system shall be
provided throughout all
buildings with a Group R2 and R-3 fire area which
are more than two stories
in height, including
basements.
Code Comparison
IBC
Kentucky Rev.
• 903.2.12 – Type A-2
(Restaurant) requires
a sprinkler system for
occupancies greater
than 100.
• 903.2.12 – Sprinkler
systems are required
in Type A-2
(Restaurant) with
occupancies greater
than 300.
Examples of Exceptions
In Kentucky
- churches are exempt from sprinkler requirements unless they are trying
to increase their height and building area without separation.
- alarm systems in churches are exempt from the requirement to be
monitored off site.
Trade Offs
The Kentucky Building Code has a number
of building options and trade offs. The fire
code official’s job is to insure each trade off
results in equal or greater life safety for the
occupants and responding fire personnel.
Without Firestopping,
notice the voids.
With Firestopping, products of
combustion are contained for
the rated assembly.
Unfinished Compartments
Predictable Results
A Compartment That Worked
Summary, This…
Not This
Especially not this…
Questions?
The End