Residential Fire Sprinklers .com

Protecting Your Home & Family

Webinar presentation will educate plumbing contractors on the NFPA 13D standard for the installation of sprinkler systems in one and two family homes.

A new webinar has been prepared by Fire Smarts, LLC on behalf of the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors – National Association (PHCC) to educate plumbing contractors across the nation on the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 13D standard that covers the installation of sprinkler systems in one and two family homes. The webinar is part of the online training offered by the PHCC.

The “Introduction to NFPA 13D Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems for One and Two Family Homes” webinar will be presented by fire protection industry expert, Russ Leavitt, SET, CFPS, on February 10, 2010 at 3:00pm EST. Mr. Leavitt will educate participants about the NFPA code development process and the requirements for designing and installing fire sprinklers in single and two family homes. Participants will learn how this standard is organized and will be introduced to the requirements for materials and components, design criterion, and installation practices for residential fire sprinkler systems.

“With the recent addition of residential fire sprinkler requirements into the International Residential Code, there is no question that these systems will become a standard component in new home construction across the country,” said Ryan J. Smith, President of Fire Smarts, LLC. “There is a need and an incredible opportunity for plumbing contractors to assist in providing these services.”

The “Residential Fire Sprinklers Market Growth and Labor Demand Analysis” published by Fire Smarts, LLC in September 2008, projects that over 7000 additional positions for sprinkler installation will be needed as residential fire sprinkler requirements are adopted and widely enforced across the country over the next decade. An adequate amount of skilled labor is essential to ensuring that residential sprinkler systems can be properly and cost-effectively installed. A growing number of industry experts agree that plumbing contractors play a critical role in the successful implementation of residential fire sprinkler code requirements.

“There is a lot of interest by PHCC members in this new market,” said Skip Pfeffer, PHCC’s President. “We cannot afford to lose this market—especially in the current economy. I encourage all PHCC members and potential members to participate.”

Registration is open to all interested parties. For more information and to register for this webinar visit https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/112342186 . This webinar is another residential fire sprinkler educational and training opportunity that is being offered by the PHCC in partnership with Fire Smarts.

About PHCC: The PHCC – National Association is the oldest trade association in the construction industry and the premiere organization for the plumbing, heating and cooling professional. Since 1883, PHCC has been the leader in promotion, advancement, education and training. Today PHCC has more than 4100 contractor members from open and union shops, who work in the residential, commercial, new construction, industrial and service and repair industry segments.

About Fire Smarts, LLC: Fire Smarts, LLC is a leading provider of fire protection educational and training resources. The company operates the home fire protection resource website, Residential Fire Sprinklers .com ( http://www.ResidentialFireSprinklers.com ), frequently publishes articles and reports on the latest industry developments and utilizes its team of Fire Smarts Faculty members to create custom training solutions for contractors, fire and building officials, and business organizations based on NFPA standards.

The State of California has adopted building code changes that will require all new one- and two-family homes and townhouses built in the state starting January 1, 2011, to be equipped with life-saving fire sprinkler systems.

The California State Building Standards Commission voted yesterday unanimously by a margin of 10-0 in favor of adopting the 2010 California Residential Code, which includes the 2009 International Residential Code as established by the International Code Council in September 2008. With this action, California becomes the third state to formally adopt the code. As the most populous state in the U.S., this is a huge victory for proponents of life safety. The new code requirement becomes effective January 1, 2011.

“This is another step forward in our efforts to eradicate the home fire death problem. By requiring home fire sprinklers in new homes, California adds an important safeguard for the people in the state,” said Jim Shannon, NFPA President. “We are hopeful their action will lead to more states doing the same in order to save lives from fire.”

The residential sprinkler requirement was voted into the 2009 IRC Code by building code officials from all over the U.S., gaining more than two-thirds of the vote. This demonstrated that officials very clearly see the need to require sprinkler technology as a life-saving measure.

It took a lot of hard work and dedication for this to become a reality. The CAL Fire-Office of the State Fire Marshal took an early lead position, by bringing stakeholders to the table to study the feasibility of adopting this code. The Residential Fire Sprinkler Task Force issued Phase I and Phase II of their final report in June and July of 2009, respectively.

NFPA Regional Manager Ray Bizal actively participated in the task force. “The California homebuilders did not oppose the adoption of the requirement,” said Bizal. The California Building Industry Association also participated. Everyone on the ground worked cooperatively towards the goal. Their model is to be emulated.

On Friday, December 11, the New Hampshire State Code Review Board voted in the majority to adopt the International Residential Code 2009 edition, including townhouse automatic fire sprinkler systems and one- and two-family dwellings automatic fire sprinkler systems; effective April 1, 2012. The New Hampshire Home Builders Association Representative, John Starr spoke vehemently against adoption while the New Hampshire Fire Chiefs’ Representatives Chief Corey Landry and Local Fire Marshal Michael Hoisington countered every negative remark in a passionate and professional manner. There was widespread support from the Board of Architects, Board of Engineers, New Hampshire Building Officials Association, Board of Licensing and Regulations of Plumbers, and the New Hampshire Plumbing & Mechanical Contractors Association.

The public hearing on adoption was originally held on October 23, 2009 with NFSA’s Buddy Dewar, Vice President of Regional Operations, and Tim Travers, New England Regional Manager submitting oral and written testimony; joined by the NFPA, the New Hampshire Fire Marshal, the New Hampshire Fire Chiefs Association, and Road Sprinkler Fitters Local Union 669.

According to Tim Travers, “the adoption is but one step in the process as several pieces of legislation have been filed for 2010 to prohibit the state building code, or any local amendment, from including a mandatory fire sprinkler system. This will severely impact “home rule”, which is sacred in NH and the NH fire service has vowed to prevent its passage.”

The last hurdle from the Independent Regulatory Review Commission came yesterday, as they recommended to Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor & Industry that the new International Residential Code be placed in effect 1\1\10 WITH NO RESTRICTIONS OMITTING SPRINKLERS.

A lot of people worked very hard to overcome the roadblocks placed by the NAHB. In general, the Fire Service, organized into the PA Residential Sprinkler Coalition co-chaired by John Waters and Tim Knisely from Upper Merion Twp (King of Prussia) and Centre Region Code (State College) led the fight. The sprinkler industry was primarily held back in a support role behind the scenes. Thanks also should go to Senate Advisory Panel members Aus Marberger and John Kampmeyer, from FPI and Triad Engineering, for the time and effort to attend numerous hearings, sometimes with almost no notice or time to prepare.

I’d personally like to also thank Ray Lonabaugh, NFSA Regional Manager, for not only his efforts directly in the political arena, but for his huge help in facilitating side by side burns to sway public opinion. We’d joined the NFSA to help support their Industry Promotion Fund, not realizing we’d be able to have this funding mechanism kick in and provide funding to realize the vision of some interested fire departments and the PennBOC Annual Convention demo.

There are others too numerous to name in any endeavor of this magnitude, and I certainly wasn’t in the middle of the political battle so I cannot know the amount of input from them- just that the end result- safe housing for Pennsylvanians – was realized.

We hope this passage sets the stage for other states to follow. We can afford safety, these systems can be done economically, and the time has now come for us to work with the builders and code officials to make the process work as we move into the implementation phase.

In my wildest dreams I did not ever think residential sprinklers would be required, its too simple and effective. Future generations may read the occasional fire death story and think wow- that must have been an old house to not have sprinklers in it!

Click the following to view Document 2804 from the Pennsylvania Independent Regulatory Review Commission

By BARBARA S. WILLIAMS – The Post and Courier

The good news is that a misguided attempt to reverse last year’s hard-fought national building code mandate for fire sprinklers in new residential construction has gone down to overwhelming defeat. It’s safe to say that when the committee and floor votes were taken late last month, no one in the Baltimore, Md., audience of several thousand was more elated than S.C.’s State Fire Marshal John Reich.

Reich describes the International Code Council’s reaffirmed commitment to the residential sprinkler mandate as ‘fantastic.’ Now, the question is whether homebuilder opposition to the mandate can be overcome at the state level. Expect to wait much of next year for the answer.

The prolonged process for adopting a new national building code in this state says the 2009 code won’t be up for approval until the middle of 2010. The comment period will end Dec. 2 and hearings will be conducted for another six months. It would then be up for approval by the S.C. Building Code Council. If there are no hitches, the new sprinkler mandate could go into effect as scheduled in January 2011.

But Reich is realistic enough to recognize that the homebuilder opposition that was recently thwarted at the ICC gathering in Baltimore will re-emerge in the state adoption process. While he appreciates the need to keep increases in construction costs at a minimum, he contends that the savings in lives and property to be gained by the $2 per square foot cost of sprinklers in single and two-family homes should be ‘a no brainer.’ According to Reich, some 400 communities already have new residential sprinkler requirements.

Among those is Prince George’s County, Md., which has had such a requirement in place for 15 years. A recent study of the results by sprinkler advocacy groups along with the University of Maryland shows that of the 13,494 house fires during that period, there were 101 deaths and 328 injuries in homes without sprinklers.

In homes that were sprinkler protected, there were no deaths and six injuries. During that time, sprinklers were activated 245 times in homes where 446 people were present. Property loses in sprinkler protected homes were said to be cut dramatically.

No one knows the value of sprinklers more than city of Charleston Fire Chief Thomas Carr, who formerly was chief of the Columbia County, Md., fire department, which was among the pioneers in the sprinkler mandate. He took over the reins of the Charleston Department after the deaths of nine firefighters more than two years ago in the horrific Sofa Super Store fire where, according to investigators, sprinklers could have saved lives. Unlike residences, most commercial properties are required to have sprinklers. The Sofa Super Store predated that mandate.

That tragedy, along with a fire at a North Carolina beach house where seven S.C. college students lost their lives, finally got legislative attention. The beach house had working smoke detectors but no sprinklers. But rather than strengthening old and imposing new sprinkler mandates, lawmakers passed an incentive package that has yet to implemented in any South Carolina community.

Carr’s plan to take that package to City Council this fall has been delayed until early next year, but he made it clear through a spokesman that it is no less a priority.

Four Charleston firemen were among the 71 S.C. fire and building inspection officials in Baltimore last month working to keep the ICC’s residential sprinkler mandate in place. According to reports, only a two-thirds vote at a May ICC conference can remove the mandate from the national code, now considered virtually impossible.

To read the full article click here.

In today’s meeting of the International Code Council (ICC) in Baltimore, Maryland, proposals made to eliminate the requirement for residential fire sprinklers in the International Residential Code (IRC) were defeated. These requirements were included in the 2009 IRC, to become effective January 1, 2011. Proposals to modify the 2012 International Residential Code included RB 54, which would have removed the mandatory requirement and made it an optional provision, RB 56, which would delete sprinkler requirements for townhomes and one- and two-family occupancies and move P2904 back to the appendix, making the requirement optional; and RB 57, which would have completely removed the sprinkler requirements from these residential occupancies.

The final action on these issues will be voted upon at the May 2010 meeting of ICC, at which only building officials and code enforcers can vote. However, today’s vote was an important win for residential fire safety because it will force homebuilders and their allies to get two-thirds vote to over-ride these sprinkler requirements at the May ICC meeting, which is considered unlikely.

From Ronny J. Coleman, President of the IRC Fire Sprinkler Coalition

Words cannot describe how great if feels to have won the sprinkler vote again in Baltimore. Even better, to our surprise, we won the committee vote by a margin of 7 to 4. EVERY member of the IRC Committee not representing NAHB voted in favor of sprinklers!

Thanks to EVERYONE who took part in and supported this historic event!!!

Home fire sprinklers can be integrated with local water supply systems with ease according to a new study – Integration of Residential Sprinklers with Water Supply Systems (PDF, 842 KB) – released today by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The study, conducted by Newport Partners of Maryland, looked at detailed information for 20 US communities with a residential sprinkler ordinance and concluded that water supply integration requirements have been put into place, and there are no examples of insurmountable problems or issues. Neither design problems nor significant added costs were found in the communities surveyed.

“This is another critical piece of substantiation against the myths that abound about home fire sprinklers,” said Jim Shannon, NFPA president. “It is simply not true that sprinklers cannot be integrated with public water supply or significantly adds to cost. What is true is that home fire sprinklers save lives and should be required in new construction of one- and two-family homes.”

All model safety codes now include such a provision. According to NFPA, the risk of dying in a home fire is cut by about 80 percent when sprinklers are present.

Key findings from the report

While sprinklers are still a fairly recent development in all of these communities (average ordinance age is about 3 years), water supply integration requirements have been put into place, and there are no examples of insurmountable problems or issues. Neither design problems nor significant added costs were found in the communities surveyed. Findings included:

- Nearby communities, such as those in the same state, generally adopt consistent provisions on issues such as water metering requirements; making compliance more uniform and predictable.

- More unusual design requirements, such as dual water service lines or dual water meters, are rare and typically driven by a local issue which would not apply in most other areas

- In more than half of the communities, no cost impact resulted from sprinkler-induced changes to water meter size, the need for additional water meters, or changes to tap size. These communities also did not have higher monthly service fees from the water supplier for homes with sprinklers. (In those communities where one or more of these factors did add cost, the average added cost was about $400.)

- Administrative issues such as concerns about water shut-off and larger, less accurate meters are not viewed as significant issues. In those communities where system inspections are required, communities are adopting a variety of practical strategies.

Overall, water suppliers, building departments and fire service have developed practical approaches to accommodate both home fire sprinklers and the local water supply.

Study Background

In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 U.S. communities with a residential sprinkler ordinance to better understand how sprinklers are integrated with the local water supply systems, including any added costs related to meters or tap fees. Participants included local water providers, building departments and fire service staff. The interview questions were based on a literature review of fire sprinkler/water supply integration issues, and were conducted by phone after first screening a community to make sure it had an ordinance covering all new single-family construction that had been in effect since 1999. This research was conducted in Spring/Summer 2009.

Part four of a five part series focusing on the rapidly growing residential fire sprinkler market and why plumbing contractors are best positioned to capture this opportunity.

To view part three of the series visit “Residential Fire Sprinklers: Plumbing Contractor Competitive Advantage #1“

When the 2009 International Residential Code (IRC) arrives, with it will be the highly publicized requirement for all single family homes to have fire sprinkler systems installed in them. Previously we discussed the market and individual growth potential for residential plumbing contractors this new code will create. If we have convinced you, a residential plumbing contractor, that in fact, this opportunity is viable; the question now is, what next? Certainly questions of capital, resources, training and tools all fill the list. But, if you are like me, you are asking, “How do I sell this?” How do I convince my existing homebuilding client that, not only am I capable of providing both services, but it will be less expensive than two separate contractors doing the work?

To start with, let’s admit that most everyone would agree that it should cost less to get everything you need from one source, rather than to get only one thing you need from one source at a time. A quick glance at the popularity and success of big retail such as Wal-Mart or Best Buy will validate that. And while it may seem obvious that bundling services is cheaper than buying them separately, it is harder to distinguish this when the amounts that are being compared are relatively low. For instance, you normally don’t drive to a specialty battery store to buy AA batteries that cost $6.50 when you can get the same brand at the grocery store for approximately the same price or usually within a $1 while you are buying your groceries. The batteries at the battery store may even be less expensive (not likely, but possible) however, when the retail price of batteries is not that much to begin with, who is going to drive all over town to save a dollar. And while costs are always a strong part of decision making, the residual savings that you get by not spending the time to make the extra trip to the battery store will most likely outweigh the cost difference between the two stores supplying the batteries. Not to mention the convenience and stress reduction of having one more item off your “to do” list.

Now equate this example with those contractors vying for the installation of a residential fire sprinkler system. You have the fire protection contractor acting as the specialty store and the plumbing contractor acting as the “all in one” store. If an average tract home is 2500 square feet and the higher end of installed costs for a fire sprinkler system are $1.50 square foot, the installed cost would be $3,750. If the average sales price for this size tract house falls into the mid $200 thousands the fire sprinkler system would represent approximately 2% of the cost. The question is “can a plumbing contractor provide this system for less than a fire protection contractor?” While geographic factors such as unions will skew the numbers somewhat, it would be safe to answer this question with a resounding “yes”. The first and most obvious reason is the combination or overlapping of insurance, tools and resources. It would be very difficult to compete with a workforce that is trained to install toilets and sinks as well as risers and fire sprinklers, especially when many of the tools and materials used are the same. A second factor that would make this option even more definite would be if the fire sprinkler system is a multipurpose or combined type system. Meaning a system of valves and piping that feeds both domestic and fire sprinkler demand all together. The reduction in coordination issues alone would make this a very attractive choice for any home builder.

The third and not so obvious reason would reflect the nature of tract housing itself. Tract housing is all about volume and typical construction. I have termed it RPTV which stands for “Residual Profit on Typical Volume”. This represents profit that is not readily measurable, but is made as the result of “production line” thinking. It could be characterized as savings made from repetitive activities that require very little effort on your part or that of your clients. It can apply to the services you currently provide for your tract home builder, but can also apply to his services as well. The typical nature of this type of construction produces less and less supervision with each home built. I can attest to this first hand. While growing up in the homebuilding industry I experienced the transformation of our family business from tract housing to full custom homes. Without diverting into a dissertation on the differences, suffice it to say, it can be summed up in one word… Volume.

Let’s say the average cost of the plumbing contract for our 2,500 square foot tract home is $15,000 and the fire sprinkler system is $3,750. The total cost for each service without profit is $18,750. If both the plumbing contractor and the fire sprinkler contractor apply a 10% markup, the total price to the client is $20,625. Now, if you are a plumbing contractor providing both services it would be reasonable to expect your price to be at least 2% lower than this as your fixed expenses are now spread over a larger amount of revenue. This would put your sell price at approximately $20,210 which is a savings of roughly $415 to the client per house. Now, consider that your 10% profit per house should actually increase as your crews become more and more proficient with the installation of both systems, along with savings on bulk materials. When you multiply that profit over a couple of hundred homes a year the decision to expand your services to include fire sprinkler systems becomes much easier.

Do not forget, just like everyone else in the construction industry, home builders are looking for ways to do more or get more with the same amount. And if they do agree to pay more money it has to be towards something that they know will help them stand out from their competition. Tract home pricing is very competitive with margins averaging 8% to 10% at best. So other marketing tools are used. Usually these types of things come in the form of “buyer options”. This is where the buyer of the home may want to add certain options to the basic home he is buying such as a refrigerator, washer/dryer or upgraded carpet. The big difference is that these options are not “required” by codes or standards. The fire sprinkler system, on the other hand, is required by code and therefore is a hard cost that the home builder must account for. While he is looking for “bang for the buck” he is equally looking for companies that are going to make his life easier. Meaning, fewer coordination issues, no more sub-contractors than what he is already working with and someone who is managing their work without his supervision. By using an “all in one” plumbing contractor for both services he eliminates one more company he has to go into contract with, he needs only one phone number to deal with issues for either system, and there are fewer invoices to process, which keeps his overhead from increasing.

Trust me when I tell you, home builders put a high price on their time and how it is spent. They don’t want to deal with coordination problems or issues regarding permits or scheduling conflicts. They just want it done, on time, on budget and with attention to the same quality expected in custom home building. Home builders today are looking for every advantage they can find to either lower costs or provide more value for the same price. If domestic plumbing and fire sprinkler services are packaged up by a single source contractor, they will take a long hard look at the single source price. With a competitive price and the reduction of administrative expenses, there is real value to the home builder in getting there plumbing and fire sprinkler systems from the same “store”. Show the home builder how this works for them with the pricing in your own neighborhood and I am confident you will be successful as a single source provider.

In Part 5 of this series, “Residential Fire Sprinklers: Plumbing Contractor Competitive Advantage #3”, Jayson Drake, will discuss why multipurpose systems are the future of residential fire sprinklers, why plumbing contractors are uniquely qualified to install these systems and how this creates a clear competitive advantage.

Steven Scandaliato is a Fire Smarts Faculty member and Principal at SDG, LLC, a fire protection design and consulting company. With over 23 years of fire protection engineering, design and project management experience he holds a Level IV certification from NICET in Fire Sprinkler Layout and serves as a member of the NFPA 13, 101 and 5000 committees.

Fire sprinklers help to reduce the carbon footprint of properties through the entire cycle of construction. They reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fires, reduce the amount of burned or non-recyclable building materials going to landfills, save energy on rebuilding after fire, conserve water, and reduce diesel fuel usage in heavy fire suppression equipment.

The carbon emissions are not solely from the fire itself; they are also from the billions of material needed to rebuild $14.6 BILLION in direct property loss following fires (2007 statistic from the National Fire Protection Association).

As a former volunteer firefighter in northern NJ, I remember a case in a neighboring community where a paint manufacturer’s fire had well over 4 million gallons of water applied to extinguish. There was a gully located approximately 50 feet from the building. The gully fed into a stream about a ¼ mile away and the fish were jumping OUT of the stream onto the bank because of the toxic, irritating material that was mixed in the water runoff from the firefighting operations.

Although codes may not require fire sprinklers in certain size buildings, fire sprinklers must be in all green construction projects to truly reflect this designation. I ask you – how can a green building, including single-family homes, be considered ‘sustainable construction’ if it is positioned to burn someday without the benefit of an automatic fire sprinkler system to suppress smoke and save materials?

Dominick Kasmauskas is the NY Regional Manager for the National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA) and Secretary to the NFSA Green Committee, as well as a member of the U.S. Green Building Council. After 32 years in the fire service as a Captain, NJ State Fire Instructor, and Fire Inspector, Dominick went on to gain experience in legislative matters. He is with the NFSA for over 8 years and is also an NFPA Certified Fire Protection Specialist and a NY Certified Codes Enforcement Official.

Getting home fire sprinklers added to the 2009 International Residential Code wasn’t easy. Opponents are still fighting to remove that requirement from the code, and NFPA and its allies have readied their arguments for hearings next month.

Code development hearings of the International Code Council set for Oct. 24-31 and Nov. 4-11 at a Hilton hotel in Baltimore will include the latest bout between advocates of residential fire sprinklers and their foes, notably the National Association of Home Builders. Four proposals to remove the requirement for home fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family homes from the 2009 International Residential Code will be considered at those hearings.

NFPA’s Fire Sprinkler Coalition has prepared seven pages of responses to the proposals, which are featured on pages 96-100 of this document. NFPA’s coalition says the arguments by sprinkler opponents are based on false statements and premises or misleading statements of the benefits sprinklers offer and their potential drawbacks. “The fact is that home fire sprinklers save lives and protect property from destruction by responding quickly and effectively to the presence of a nearby fire. In fact, the risk of dying decreases by about 80 percent when sprinklers are present. Sprinklers also reduce the average property loss by about 71 percent per fire,” according to the coalition.

NFPA urges ICC members to attend the hearings and vote no on the anti-sprinkler proposals.