In our last post on the Chicago Life Safety Ordinance, commonly referred to as the Chicago High Rise Ordinance, we looked at some of the reasons a majority of residential high rises in Chicago are not compliant with the ordinance. Let’s now look at what the owners & managers of these buildings are up against [Read More]
Applying Common Sense to Intelligibility
If you’re reading this blog, you’ve no doubt heard about and know what the definition of intelligibility is, but may not be sure of how to achieve it. Most of the time, the quest for intelligibility is met with “It depends…”. That is true, but more often than not, that applies to unique situations. Since [Read More]
Fire Alarm System Testing & Inspection, Part II
In our last post, we discussed why regular testing and inspection of a facility’s life safe system is both required and in a property manager’s best interest. What, then, should a proper test and inspection consist of? In this post, we’ll address proper smoke detector testing. A true test of a fire alarm system ensures the system will [Read More]
Fire Alarm System Testing & Inspection, Part I
Commercial fire alarm systems are a lot like referees. You really shouldn’t notice them until they are needed. How does a property owner or manager keep it that way, plus know that it will work when needed? A proper test and inspection of the system is the answer. Most municipalities require an annual test and [Read More]
High Rise Fire Safety in Chicago, Part II
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Last week we introduced the Chicago Life Safety Ordinance and some of its requirements. Click here to review. This week we’ll answer the question we left off with: Why are some high rises fully compliant and some not compliant at all? As a response to the differences in economic and occupancy realities between residential high [Read More]
Can I put more than one sprinkler valve monitor on a single point?
Physically, you can obviously put the sprinkler devices on the same addressable circuit if there’s capacity on it. If you have a non-addressable fire alarm system or want to combine a number of valves onto a single addressable module, the valves must annunciate distictly if they have a dissimilar function. In other words, if approved by [Read More]
High Rise Fire Safety in Chicago
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The Chicago High Rise Ordinance was established in 1975 to ensure that occupants of buildings eighty feet and taller had a reasonable amount of protection from smoke and fire while egressing the building or waiting in place. It is comprised of a number of codes found in different chapters of the Chicago Building Code (CBC). However, the [Read More]
Elevator Code Compliance
When providing a scope of work for incorporation an existing elevator bank with an existing fire alarm system, which you may need to do within the next year to keep complaint with the current Chicago elevator code, first ensure the elevator’s emergency operation can be controlled automatically. Chicago adopted ASME 17.3 – 2005 with variations [Read More]
CI Cable Is No Longer Listed For Two Hour Survivability…….Now What?
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CI lost its UL 2196 listing in September 2012, so any installation that calls for a UL listed two hour survivability rating can’t use CI cable manufactured after then. UL states that CI cable manufactured before then was made to standards appropriate at the time so they recommend that any projects that are under way [Read More]
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