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Insights Category: Technical Information

For projects in Massachusetts, multiple dwellings are required to comply with 521 CMR.  In multiple dwellings for rent (not for sale) that contain 20 or more units, at least 5% of the dwelling units must be Group 2A units (521 CMR 9.4).  521 CMR includes unique requirements that designers may not be familiar with based on experience with other requirements such as FHA or ANSI A117.1. Some of these high-level requirements are included below:

  • Bathrooms
    • Wheelchair turning space is required to be provided clear of the door swing.
    • The centerline of the toilet is required to be at least 42” from the farthest side wall or the closest edge of an adjacent fixture. A minimum of 42” clear is required to be provided from the front edge of the toilet.
    • Clear floor space at bathtubs is required to be 30” x 72”. At least 12” of the clear floor space length is required to extend beyond the drain end of the tub.
    • Shower curbs must not be higher than ½” and must be beveled.
    • Bathtub faucets and mixing valves are required to be centered horizontally on the long wall, exactly 28” above the floor. Shower mixing valves are required to be centered horizontally on the long wall, 38”- 48” above the shower floor.
  • Kitchens
    • A counter space at least 15” wide is required to be provided on one side of the sink, cooktop, and refrigerator.
    • Built-in microwave ovens and at least one conventional oven are required to be wall ovens with the floor of the oven exactly 30” above the floor.
    • If corner cabinets are provided in L-shaped or U-shaped kitchens, a built-in lazy susan must be capable of being provided.
    • At least one base cabinet is required to provide a drawer or drawers).
    • Refrigerators are required to be either a unit with two side-by-side doors or a freezer above refrigerator unit.

Note that there may be other accessibility requirements applicable to your project.

Storage of hazardous materials is defined by 780 CMR Massachusetts State Building Code as “the keeping, retention or leaving of hazardous materials in closed containers, tanks, cylinders, or similar vessels; or vessels supplying operations through closed connections to the vessel” (780 CMR Section 202). For buildings utilizing a control area approach to address the inclusion of hazardous materials, such storage of hazardous materials is limited to defined Maximum Allowable Quantities (MAQs) per control area, which are listed in Table 307.1(1) and Table 307.12(2) of 780 CMR.

For most chemical classifications, the quantity of each chemical is permitted to be increased by 100 percent if the building is fully sprinklered, and another 100 percent if the hazardous materials are provided in what is commonly referred to as “approved storage”.  In the context of MAQs for physical hazards, footnote e to 780 CMR Table 307.1(1) specifies that approved storage could include storage in “approved storage cabinets, day boxes, gas cabinets, gas rooms, exhausted enclosures, or listed safety cans.”  For health hazards, 780 CMR Table 307.1(2) permits only approved storage cabinets, gas cabinets or exhausted enclosures for these purposes.  As discussed below, day boxes and safety cans are used for specific physical hazards and therefore are not applicable to health hazards.

Each type of approved storage is required to meet specific requirements, as prescribed by 780 CMR and/or 527 CMR 1.00 Massachusetts Comprehensive Fire Safety Code.

Approved Hazardous Materials Storage Cabinets: Hazardous material storage cabinets used to store solid and liquid hazards materials and are required to meet 527 CMR 1.00 Section 60.5.1.18 which prescribes the following minimum requirements:

  • Metal, double-wall construction with a minimum thickness of 0.044 inches (18 gauge) and minimum 1.5 inches of airspace between the walls.
  • Cabinet joints are required to be riveted or welded and tightfitting.
  • Doors are required to be well-fitted, self-closing, and equipped with a 3-point latch.
  • Entirety of the interior of cabinets are to be treated, coated, or constructed of materials that are nonreactive with the hazardous materials stored.
  • A 2-inch liquid-tight sump is required in cabinets utilized to store liquids.
  • Cabinets are required to be marked in conspicuous lettering that reads “HAZARDOUS – KEEP FIRE AWAY”.
  • Incompatible materials are not permitted within the same storage cabinet.

Depending on the material(s) stored within the cabinets, additional material-specific requirements may also apply.  For example, storage cabinets utilized for flammable or combustible liquids are further regulated by NFPA 30 Flammable & Combustible Liquids Code and require the cabinet be labeled with “FLAMMABLE – KEEP FIRE AWAY.”

Day Box: A day box is a portable magazine designed to hold explosive materials constructed in accordance with the requirements for a Type 3 magazine as defined by 780 CMR Section 202.

Gas Cabinet: A gas cabinet is a fully enclosed, ventilated noncombustible enclosure used to provide an isolated environment for compressed gas cylinders in storage or use (780 CMR Section 202). Gas cabinets are required to meet 527 CMR 1.00 Section 63.2.17 which prescribes the following minimum requirements:

  • Metal, with a minimum thickness of 0.097 inches (12 gauge).
  • Doors are required to be self-closing.
  • Cabinets are required to have self-closing limited access ports or noncombustible windows to give access to equipment controls.
  • Entirety of the interior of gas cabinets are to be treated, coated, or constructed of materials that are compatible with the hazardous materials stored.
  • An exhaust ventilation system is required, designed to operate at a negative pressure relative to the surrounding area.
  • Incompatible materials are not permitted within the same gas cabinet.

Depending on the material(s) stored within the gas cabinets, additional material-specific requirements may also apply.  For example, gas cabinets utilized for toxic, highly toxic, or pyrophoric gases are required to be internally sprinklered.

Gas Room: A gas room is a separately ventilated, fully enclosed room in which only compressed gases and associated equipment and supplies are stored or used (780 CMR Section 202). Gas rooms are required to be designed to the following minimum requirements per 527 CMR 1.00 Section 63.2.4:

  • Gas rooms are required to be provided with an exhaust ventilation system designed to operate at negative pressure in relationship to the surrounding area.
  • A minimum 1-hour separation is required to adjacent areas.
  • Separation of incompatible materials within gas rooms is required.

Exhausted Enclosure: An exhausted enclosure is an appliance or piece of equipment that consists of a top, a back and two sides providing a means of local exhaust for capturing gases, fumes, vapors and mists. These enclosures may include laboratory hoods, exhaust fume hoods and similar appliances and equipment used to locally retain and exhaust the gases, fumes, vapors and mists that could be released. Rooms or areas provided with general ventilation, in themselves, are not exhausted enclosures (780 CMR Section 202).  Exhausted enclosures are required to be designed to the following minimum requirements per 527 CMR 1.00 Section 63.2.18:

  • Noncombustible construction
  • Exhausted enclosures are required to be provided with an exhaust ventilation system designed to operate at negative pressure in relationship to the surrounding area.
  • Sprinkler protection is required within exhausted enclosures.
  • Incompatible materials are not permitted to be stored or used within the same exhausted enclosure.

Depending on the material(s) stored within the exhausted enclosure, additional material-specific requirements may also apply.  For example, the ventilation system serving exhausted enclosures utilized for toxic, highly toxic, pyrophoric, unstable reactive (Class 3 or 4) or corrosive gases are also required to meet minimum face velocities.

It should be noted that the definition of exhausted enclosure in 780 CMR Section 202 identifies laboratory hoods as one type of permissible exhausted enclosure.  However, within laboratories subject to NFPA 45 Fire Protection for Laboratories Using Chemicals, the storage of chemicals in fume hoods is explicitly prohibited per NFPA 45 Section 8.3.4.7.  In such laboratories, MAQ increases are typically achieved by way of approved storage cabinets.

Listed Safety Can: Safety cans may be utilized for the storage of flammable or combustible materials.  Where they are used to increase the MAQs per control area, safety cans are required to be listed in accordance with UL 30 Metallic and Nonmetallic Safety Cans for Flammable and Combustible Liquids.  Safety cans are further required to meet the following requirements, per Section 3.3.244 of 527 CMR 1.00:

  • Maximum capacity of 5 gallons (limited by UL 30 listing which is more restrictive than Section 3.3.244).
  • Safety cans require a spring-closing lid and spot cover designed so that it will relieve internal pressure when subject to fire exposure.

 

 

Light rail train stations are a unique occupancy in the eyes of the building code, given their transient occupants, large fuel loads in the form of train cars, and necessary interface and connectivity to surrounding public elements.  The required protection features and allowable design characteristics are distinct from most other building types.

Of particular importance is the specific allowance in NFPA 130 Section 5.2.4 for allowable vertical openings and interconnection between floor levels, which helps to aid pedestrian movement between various parts of the station:

In recognition of the additional hazards present in light rail stations and the interconnection of floor levels, NFPA 130 contains additional fire rating requirements to ensure public safety.  Most notably, all non-public areas of train stations are required to be separated from the public portions of the train stations (NFPA 130 5.2.4.2):

These non-public spaces can include mechanical equipment rooms, electrical rooms, storage rooms, battery rooms, employee-only spaces, and more based on the station’s infrastructure requirements.

Fire Department Connections (FDCs) are provided on buildings with fire sprinkler systems and/or standpipe systems, to allow the responding fire department to supplement the system’s water supply by pumping additional water into the building using an engine company. The two most common connection types for FDCs are 2.5-inch with National Hose (NH) internal threaded (female) swivel fittings and Storz connections. The type of connection required on a system should be determined by the local fire department based on the type of connections they use and their standard operating procedures. The numbers and/or sizes of the connection are determined by the type of systems they serve.

For sprinkler only systems, which are usually found in one- to three-story buildings, NFPA 13 (2019) §16.12.3 requires the FDC serving that system to have two 2.5-inch connections unless the following requirements are met:

  1. Local fire department does not conform to NFPA 1963, then the AHJ shall designate the connections.
  2. The use of threadless couplings (Storz) shall be permitted where required by the AHJ and is listed for such use.
  3. A single 2.5-inch connection may be used where the system riser is 3 inches or less.

NFPA 13 does not require additional inlets based on the sprinkler system demand – only two inlets are required. The system designer has the option to add more inlets, but only two are required.

For FDCs serving standpipe or combination standpipe/sprinkler systems, typically found in buildings that are four or more stories tall (or below ground), each FDC is required to have one 2.5-inch inlet for every 250 gpm of demand required by the standpipe system  per NFPA 14 (2019) §7.12.3. The total demand for a system is determined by the number of risers provided on the system. For Class I and Class III standpipe systems with a single riser, a minimum flow rate of 250 gpm out of the two most remote hose connections (total of 500 gpm) is required. For a system with two standpipe risers, this adds an additional 250 gpm for the next riser (total of 750 gpm). As more standpipe risers get added, the quantity increases 250 gpm per additional riser for floors with areas of 80,000 sqft or less. Where floor area exceeds 80,000 sqft, the rate is 500 gpm for the second standpipe and 250 gpm additional for the third. The maximum total flow rate – regardless of the number of standpipe risers – for a sprinklered building is 1000 gpm, and 1250 gpm for a non-sprinklered building.

As most buildings with standpipes have at least two exit stairs, generally when using 2.5-inch inlets it is expected that there will be three 2.5-inch inlets (for 750 gpm standpipe demand). For three or more stairs, four 2.5-inch inlets (maximum 1000 gpm for a sprinklered building) would be expected. The demand for the sprinklers does not have to be added to the standpipe flow to determine the number of inlets.

While Storz inlets, which typically come in 4-inch or 5-inch sizes, are permitted for use, their flow rates are not addressed in NFPA 14 2019 or earlier editions. The proposed 2023 edition; however, will address the flow rates for both 4-inch and 5-inch Storz inlets. A new Section 10.7.3.1.1 states that the flow rate for a 4-inch Storz inlet assumes a flow of 500gpm per inlet and the new Section 10.7.3.1.2 states that the flow rate for a 5-inch Storz inlet assumes a flow of 750gpm per inlet.

 

 

Emergency backup power systems are an imperative component of a buildings Fire Protection and Life Safety (FPLS) systems. Both emergency power and legally required standby power are vital in ensuring essential life safety components continue to operate in the event of an emergency, and first responders are provided with all necessary tools and building functions to facilitate emergency operations. These systems typically consist of emergency generators, automatic transfer switches (ATS), backup battery power, and all associated wiring and equipment.

As outlined in our previous insights (Life Safety Systems Maintenance Parts 1 and Part 2), there has been a renewed focus in the City of Boston on the code-required testing and maintenance related to FPLS systems. This insight seeks to outline these requirements as they relate to emergency power supply systems (EPSS).

What are emergency power supply systems?

NFPA 70, National Electrical Code, outlines the three types of emergency and standby power systems: emergency, legally required standby, and optional standby power. Only the first two are code required under NFPA 110, Standard for Emergency and Standby Power Systems, with emergency power being provided for systems that are essential to life safety, and legally required provided for systems that assist in firefighting operations, or systems whose failure could result in increased hazards within a building during an emergency. Optional standby power is provided for systems that are not essential to life safety or rescue operations, but that may be imperative for day to day operation of a business or facility. This includes data-processing systems, refrigeration units, or other industrial processes. For further insight on these different systems, please visit (https://coderedev.wpenginepowered.com/insights/emergency-and-standby-power/)

What are the maintenance requirements?

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Fire Safety Code (527 CMR 1.00) requires owners, operators, or occupants to provide tests and to keep records of all maintenance, inspections, and testing of fire protection systems, fire alarm systems, smoke control systems, and emergency power equipment until their useful life has been served, as required by law, or as required by the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ), Sections 10.2.5 and 10.2.6. Periodic testing of emergency power supply systems is described in NFPA 110, Standard for Emergency and Standby Power Systems.

Chapter 8 of NFPA 110 outlines the requirements for emergency power system maintenance, stating that a routine maintenance and operational testing program should be implemented based on manufacturer’s recommendations, equipment instruction manuals, requirements of the AHJ, and the minimum requirements of NFPA 110. Some key requirements outlined in NFPA 110 are as follows:

  • Transfer switches: Periodic maintenance, including visual inspection, cleaning, replacement of contacts. Monthly operation, consisting of operating the switch from the primary to the alternate position and back again.
  • Paralleling gear: Periodic maintenance, including visual inspection, cleaning, and replacement of contacts.
  • Storage Batteries: Weekly inspection to ensure manufacturer’s specifications are met.
  • Generators (EPSS): Weekly inspection of generator components. Monthly operation consisting of the following;
    • Diesel Generators: 30-minute minimum test, using one of the following criteria.
      • Load that maintains the minimum exhaust gas temperature, as recommended by the manufacturer.
      • Under operating temperature conditions, and at a load not less than 30% of the EPS standby nameplate kW rating.
    • Spark-ignited Generators: Tested at the available EPSS load for 30 minutes or until the water temperature and oil pressure have stabilized.
    • For all generators, the date and time of the operational testing is at the facility managers discretion, to not disrupt or interfere with normal building operations.
    • All EPSS operational tests shall be initiated by the ATS, either by the ATS simulating a loss of normal power or by opening the normal breaker to the ATS. Where multiple ATSs are used as part of an EPSS, the ATS used to initiate a test will be rotated monthly.
    • An annual fuel quality test shall be performed per the appropriate ASTM standard.

Also outlined in Chapter 8 of NFPA 110 is the importance of creating and maintaining records of all EPSS inspections, testing, and maintenance. This should include the date and time of all testing, identity of the service personnel, any notes on the condition of equipment, and any corrective actions needed to be taken. These records should be maintained at the discretion of the facility manager and the AHJ.

 

 

Most newly constructed multi-story buildings are designed with elevators to provide both movement and accessibility benefits within a facility. With that said, elevators and their associated hoistways can present significant fire and smoke spread challenges if not properly protected. For this reason, current model building codes require hoistways to be fire resistance rated unless an exception is met. A 1- or 2-hour fire resistance rating is required which is dependent on the number of floors connected by the shaft (1-hour if less than 4-stories; 2-hour if 4-stories or more), and the fire resistance rating of the floor assemblies within the building.

Standard elevator hoistway doors are constructed to be fire rated for compliance with the criteria noted above; however, are typically not designed to limit floor-to-floor smoke spread. As such, building codes have supplemental requirements for hoistway opening protection at or around the elevator car doors. In fully sprinklered buildings, this applies to elevator hoistways connecting more than 3-stories and having either of the following conditions apply (780 CMR 3006.2):

  • The building contains one of the following special Institutional occupancies: Group I-1 Condition 2, Group I-2, or Group I-3.
  • The building is a high-rise and the hoistway is more than 75-feet in height as measured from the lowest floor to the highest floor of the floors served by the hoistway.

If triggered by the above, the following elevator hoistway opening protection options are available (780 CMR 3006.3):

  • An enclosed elevator lobby consisting of smoke partitions is provided at each floor (except at the level(s) of exit discharge) to separate the hoistway from the floor. Lobby doors are required to be self-or-automatic closing, positive latching, and listed as smoke and draft control assemblies per UL 1784. Duct and air transfer openings penetrating a lobby require smoke dampers unless an exception is met.
  • Provide additional doors at each elevator hoistway car door opening at each floor (except at the level(s) of exit discharge) that are operable from the car side without a key, tool, or special effort. The doors are also required to be listed as smoke and draft control assemblies per UL 1784 when tested without an artificial bottom seal. It is common to see elevator smoke curtains used for this application.
  • Pressurize the hoistway with a smoke control system in accordance with 780 CMR 909.21.

Note: Specialty elevators such as fire service access and occupant evacuation elevators have separate and more stringent requirements that must be evaluated separately.

Background

Fire alarm systems are a critical building life safety component that require ongoing inspection and maintenance to ensure they operate properly during a fire. When an existing building undergoes renovation, and impairments may occur to passive and active fire protection systems, it is critical that systems that remain online are working properly, as the fire hazard in the building increases due to the presence of construction.  Occasionally, however, existing fire protection systems in buildings under renovation are found to be lacking required maintenance or simply not functioning.

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Fire Safety Code (527 CMR 1.00) requires inspection, testing and maintenance of fire alarm systems be performed in accordance with the provisions of NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code. Inspection, testing, and maintenance requirements in NFPA 72 are contained in Chapter 14.

Inspection Requirements

As stated previously, the purpose of inspection, testing and maintenance is to ensure the fire alarm system is functioning properly.  This includes both visual inspection and functional testing.  Both are required, because some physical impairments, such as the fire alarm panel being blocked by storage, a dust cover being left on a smoke detector, or a heat detector not mounted to the ceiling, may render the device or the system itself inoperable.

Visual inspection ensures devices have not been physically damaged, covered, obscured, or even removed and bypassed.  Functional testing ensures devices are performing within their listed parameters, for example a smoke detector triggering an alarm signal after being tested with canned smoke.  The number of functional tests for different components are too numerous to list here but are described along with their prescribed test frequency in NFPA 72, Table 14.4.3.2.

Fire alarm systems can be integrated with many other life safety systems, such the sprinkler system, smoke control systems, other specialized extinguishing systems, generators, and elevators. Integrated systems may be supervised by the alarm system and may generate fire alarm-initiating signals and/or receive output signals from the alarm panel.  Where other systems are installed and maintained under a separate NFPA standard, their inspection and testing is performed under their respective standard.  These systems may require separately licensed, specialized technicians to safely operate or reset controls that the fire alarm company cannot perform.  Signal initiation from an integrated system, which does not have to include actual system activation, or receipt of an output signal, are the extent of the fire alarm test requirements.

The testing of fire alarm components should include activation of notification appliances – audible and visual alarms. In office buildings, this testing may preferably be conducted off-hours. In a residential building, it is likely that the testing takes place during the day. Newer fire alarm systems may include automatic self-test modes; these self-tests should be verified.

Who May Inspect

Responsibility for periodic inspection, testing and maintenance falls upon the building owner or their designated representative.  This is required both by 527 CMR 1.00 (Section 10.2) and NFPA 72 (Section 14.2.3).  In Massachusetts, a person testing a fire alarm system (also referred to as a fire warning system) must be licensed by the Board of State Examiners of Electricians, in accordance with 237 CMR.

Recordkeeping

A building owner may be asked at any time to present documentation of up-to-date inspection, testing, and maintenance any time by Fire Department officials, and those records are required to be maintained for at least one year.  This request can be initiated for many reasons, including during a regularly scheduled inspection, as part of a permit application, or in response to a complaint.  Any records that are maintained should be organized, such as in a binder organized by system and date; or can be electronically maintained. Regardless of what system is utilized, the inspection reports should identify any discrepancies noted during the inspection as well as remedial action that was taken.

If you have any questions regarding fire alarm system maintenance or fire alarms during renovation projects, please contact our office at info@crcfire.com or 617-500-7633.

 

Projects in occupied buildings in Boston undergoing renovation have a renewed focus on the continued maintenance of Fire Protection and Life Safety Systems in these buildings. This Insight will help to explain the different systems that have come under review, code requirements for maintenance, and how you can best plan in advance.

What is considered a Fire Protection or Life Safety (FPLS) System?

Of the many systems that are present in a typical urban building, the following are critical for ensuring the safety of occupants in the event of a fire:

  • Fire Alarm Systems
  • Fire Protection Systems (sprinklers and standpipe systems)
  • Fire Protection Water Supply (fire pumps)
  • Smoke Control Systems
  • Emergency Power Systems (generators)

Each of these systems is a complex combination of components working together to protect the building occupants, and it is important that the systems work as intended every time they are called upon. Since the nature of these systems is that they should only activate in the event of an emergency, a routine and regular testing schedule needs to be implemented. This is critical during construction in an occupied building, as systems may be impaired, and the risk of fires is increased due to the presence of construction.

What are the requirements?

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Fire Safety Code (527 CMR 1.00) requires owners, operators, or occupants to to keep records of all maintenance, inspections, and testing of fire protection systems, fire alarm systems, smoke control systems, and emergency power equipment until their useful life has been served, as required by law, or as required by the AHJ (Sections 10.2.5 and 10.2.6).

Several codes and standards outline the specific inspection and testing requirements for FPLS Systems. The relevant standard for water-based systems is NFPA 25, Standard for the Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems. Fire alarm system inspections and testing must comply with Chapter 14 of NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code, while smoke control system testing requirements are in Chapter 8 of NFPA 92: Standard for Smoke Control Systems. Lastly, generator tests are described in NFPA 110, Standard for Emergency and Standby Power Systems. 

A record of your systems’ maintenance may need to be produced at the building’s quarterly or annual city inspections, when applying for an alteration permit, when getting TCO or occupancy for a completed renovation, or simply if an AHJ shows up for any reason and request said reports.

This Insight is the first in a new mini-series. You can expect to see the specific maintenance and testing requirements for each type of system discussed in more depth throughout the series. Using the links below you can find prior Insights for the following systems:

  1. Standpipe – (August 2016) https://coderedev.wpenginepowered.com/insights/you-will-not-get-your-ti-certificate-of-occupancy-in-boston-if-you-are-missing-this-test/
  2. Smoke control – (March 2017) https://coderedev.wpenginepowered.com/insights/requirements-for-existing-building-smoke-control-retesting/
  3. Fire pump – (June 2021) https://coderedev.wpenginepowered.com/insights/fire-pump-flow-test-reports/

If you have questions on the inspection, testing, or maintenance requirements for your fire protection or life safety system, please contact us at info@crcfire.com.

*images by Vecteezy

 

 

Often during the design process the benefits of utilizing a fire wall arise, with “what will this get me?” coming into question.  The use of fire walls as part of a building’s code strategy can allow for the realization of substantial benefits, but users also must be aware of what a fire wall installation will not get them.

A fire wall is a “A fire-resistance-rated wall having protected openings, which restricts the spread of fire and extends continuously from the foundation to or through the roof, with sufficient structural stability under fire conditions to allow collapse of construction on either side without collapse of the wall” (780 CMR 202).

The two main benefits of a fire wall for consideration are:

  1. Height and Area: The height and area of each building separated by a fire wall is evaluated separately. This allows for taller buildings and/or larger footprint areas since the heights and areas of adjacent structure is evaluated between fire walls, as opposed to the aggregate area of abutting structures.
  2. Construction Type: Buildings separated by a fire wall are permitted to consists of different construction types. In other words, on one side a building could be combustible, wood framed construction and on the other side could consist of noncombustible steel construction as long as height and area limitations are not exceeded for each side independently.

Depending on local code amendments, fire walls can also influence factors such as evacuation zoning, fire protection system scoping, etc.

To assure that fire walls provide sufficient protection to prevent fire spread or compromise to the structural integrity of buildings separated, there are a number of requirements that need to be met to assure that these assemblies are constructed to meet this objective. Stay tuned for the next insight as part of this fire wall series outlining how fire walls are constructed.

If you have any questions regarding fire walls on your project, please contact our office at info@crcfire.com or 617-500-7633.

 

Energy Storage Systems (ESS) are quickly gaining popularity in both commercial and residential applications, and the newness of the technology combined with some high-profile historical fires have led Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJ’s) to be somewhat wary.

ESS are essentially a large battery system of single cells (usually Lithium Ion) connected together, often used to store energy from alternative sources (solar, wind, etc.), or to store utility power for use during peak demand times.  The battery technology is constantly evolving, and the design and size of ESS can vary a great deal, making them challenging for an AHJ to evaluate.

The potential risks of an ESS fire can be considerable.  Battery fires can be difficult to extinguish and can produce explosive and environmentally hazardous byproducts.  These unique factors led to the development of a dedicated Standard to help the industry properly protect against the dynamic challenges posed by this new equipment and technology.

While not yet formally adopted in most jurisdictions, NFPA Standard 855, Standard for the Installation of Energy Storage Systems dictates requirements to designers and reviewers on many aspects of an ESS installation, including topics such as:

  • Size limits
  • Location and separation from adjacent structures
  • Physical protection and security
  • Fire Department access, water supply and suppression strategies
  • Hazard Mitigation Analysis (HMA) of potential failure modes
  • Explosion prevention and control
  • Emergency preparedness and response planning
  • Commissioning, Operation and Maintenance

An NFPA 855 review, completed by either the design team, a third-party, or the AHJ, encourages a methodical and thorough evaluation and can go a long way in ensuring a baseline level of safety for ESS installations.  If you have questions regarding how to apply these requirements to your project, please contact us at info@crcfire.com.