Foundation News
September 2011
Foundation Presentation in VA to Advance Awareness of FDAI Program
September 14th, 2011. In partnership with the Virginia State Fire Marshal’s office, The Door Security & Safety Foundation held a fire door inspection training session titled, ‘Fire Rated Doors and Hardware—A Guide to Field Inspections’ for fire officials in Glen Allen, VA, located just outside the Richmond area.
The class was offered to Virginia fire officials who actively inspect and approve the inspections of fire-rated openings, in addition to the Virginia State Fire Marshal and the Deputy Fire Marshal. The state of Virginia is currently governed under the ‘Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code 2009’ and the ‘Virginia Construction Code 2009’; both codes reference NFPA 80 (2007 edition).
This class was taught by Foundation staff and Fire Door Assembly Inspector, Paul May, AHC. Mr. May was a graduate of the Door and Hardware Institute’s first Fire and Egress Door Assembly Inspection class (DAI 600) conducted in Nashville in 2007.
Since many of those in attendance do inspections on a daily basis, there were a number of questions asked of Mr. May regarding the inspection program and how someone with Mr. May’s credentials can support fire officials inspecting openings in accordance with NFPA 80 mandates.
This presentation is one of many events conducted by the Door Security & Safety Foundation to help advance awareness of the fire door inspection initiatives across the U.S. The Foundation exists to provide education and promote awareness of the life safety and security features of the commercial door opening. With updated standards in place that require the annual inspection of fire-rated doors and all doors in the path of egress, the Foundation is a leader in supplying information that will assist the AHJ and facility engineer to better understand this thorough method of inspecting and/or approving an opening.
The Door Security & Safety Foundation offers individuals and organizations the opportunity to learn and experience the vital role that the architectural opening plays in life safety and security. Through collaborative efforts with the Door and Hardware Institute (DHI), the Foundation is able to provide instructors with the qualifications and insight to train fire and building code officials in a classroom setting. This training is important as it provides the means for a greater understanding of the life safety and security potential that each door opening provides.
The Foundation works with recognized experts who have designed the specifications for approximately 95% of the door openings in U.S. commercial buildings and schools. Organizations rely on the advice and expertise of a door and hardware consultant to keep them current on standards and technology as it pertains to safety and security. These current standards and technology need to offer a combination of the best possible fire protection and a reasonable amount of security.
Click here for the Top Ten Deficiencies commonly observed on swinging fire doors.
Learn more about the Foundation and its mission at www.doorsecuritysafety.org.
July 2011
Foundation Works to Advance Fire Door Inspection Awareness at NASFM Conference
July 14th-15th, 2011—Door Security & Safety Foundation staff attended the National Association of State Fire Marshal’s (NASFM) Conference. This annual event, which hosts State Fire Marshals from across the U.S., offered a number of educational sessions regarding fire prevention issues and code awareness.
Participation at this meeting of senior fire officials gives the Foundation access to key personnel directly responsible for fire safety code adoption and enforcement at the state level. It is through the Foundation’s collaborative relationship with NASFM officials that staff is able to meet face-to-face with U.S. fire marshals during their conference and provide updates on the current states’ adoption status of NFPA 80, Standard for Fire Doors and Other Opening Protectives (2007 edition) and NFPA 101, Life Safety Code (2009 edition). NFPA 80 requires documented inspections for fire-rated door assemblies on an annual basis and NFPA 101 expands on NFPA 80’s inspection requirements for fire-rated door assemblies where the door leaves are required to swing in the direction of egress travel. NFPA 101 also requires non-fire-rated door assemblies to be inspected in conjunction with the fire-rated door assemblies.
During the NASFM conference, Foundation leadership had one-on-one meetings with Fire Marshals representing Washington D.C., Indiana, Georgia, Maine and Washington, as well as sessions with key industry stakeholders like a U.S. Fire Administration official; Paul D. Martin, president of the Center for Campus Fire Safety, a national non-profit organization devoted to reducing fires within college campuses across the U.S.; and several leaders representing the Foundation’s largest contributors.
According to Foundation Vice President, Bill Johnson, “It’s vital for the Foundation to remain active within the fire marshal community. These officials are the ones who are able to provide information about codes impacting life safety within the built environment directly to their states to advance awareness on such initiatives and enforcement of code. Industry events like NASFM facilitate being able to reach a large number of Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) in a short amount of time.”
The Foundation works to create awareness, specifically in the AHJ community, and provide education to help organizations better understand what to look for when approving a fire-rated opening. Partnering with members of the Door and Hardware Institute, the Foundation offers training sessions providing fire and building code officials with a better understanding of what to approve when they are asked to verify the inspection of a fire-rated opening.
Want to advance awareness of fire door inspections to your AHJs in your locale? The Foundation’s Local Champion Program was developed for companies and DHI Chapters to deliver fire door training to AHJs and Facility Engineers to increase awareness and enforcement of codes mandating annual inspections of fire and egress door assemblies.
To find out more information about becoming a licensed Door Security & Safety Foundation Local Champion, please phone or email Bill Johnson at 703.766.7039 or bjohnson@doorsecuritysafety.org.
June 2011
Clark County to Implement Casino-centric Fire Door Inspection Program in Fall.
June 17, 2011 — Clark County, NV. Representing the Door and Hardware Institute (DHI) and the Door Security & Safety Foundation, former DHI president and current Foundation Board of Trustees member Scott Sabatini, AOC, CSI, CCPR, attended Nevada’s Clark County Department of Development Services – Building Division’s public hearing to finalize details for the requirements of fire door assembly inspections and inspectors. In the last stages of adopting current mandates, Clark County is very close to implementing a program for the inspection of fire doors in casinos.
The June 17th hearing was held to establish the rules, regulations, and list responsibilities of a Fire Door Inspection Agency that would operate as qualified company licensed to provide fire door inspections services and perform annual inspections within Clark County, NV. Language specific to DHI’s Fire Door Assembly Inspector (FDAI) program and the Intertek Certified Fire Door Inspector certification will be included in the final requirements for Clark County inspectors. The program is scheduled to take effect by the end of October.
The state of Nevada is currently governed under the 2006 IBC and IFC codes and standards. Clark County, with jurisdiction over the world-famous Las Vegas Strip, has taken the initiative to move forward and adopt the NFPA 80 (2007 edition) and its standard that requires the annual inspections and testing of door assemblies be performed by individuals who are knowledgeable of the operating components of the fire and egress door assemblies.
Back in April of 2010, the Foundation conducted several education sessions to generate awareness for inspections and to define and qualify the term: ‘knowledgeable’ inspector. Over 150 individuals representing hotels and casino, the insurance and risk management industry, and building and fire officials from Clark County attended two sessions over two days to hear about fire door inspections and what steps they can take now to implement an inspection program.
Just over a year later, the Foundation’s efforts to advance the FDAI program, in conjunction with DHI, are showing tangible results. Details will be posted as they are made available.
June 2011
Foundation Conducts FDAI Awareness Meetings during NFPA Convention
While attending the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Conference in Boston on Monday, June 13, 2011, Door Security & Safety Foundation staff held several key meetings regarding the NFPA 101 Life Safety Code® (2009 and 2012 editions). Discussions focused on the work conducted by the Foundation to advance awareness of the Fire Door Assembly Inspection (FDAI) program; how fire door inspection mandates impact building owners as well as companies insuring buildings; and the adoption of the current code by key government entities and its impact on advancing the FDAI program initiative.
The Foundation’s Executive Vice President, Bill Johnson, met with NFPA Training and Certification staff to present an overview of the Foundation’s current and upcoming training programs, the Fire Door Assembly Inspection (FDAI) program, and how openings professionals can help AJHs, facility management, and building owners maintain compliance by better understanding the current mandates and requirements for openings inspections.
As part of the Foundation’s on-going mission to create awareness of the important role of inspections among those organizations that insure buildings against significant loss, Johnson also met with Factory Mutual (FM) Global staff to discuss the FDAI program and insurance ramifications. FM Global provides comprehensive commercial and industrial property insurance, underwriting and risk management solutions to their clients.
The Foundation’s NFPA Convention activities concluded with a discussion with a Program Manager from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to review the recent adoption of the 2009 edition of the NFPA’s Life Safety Code® by VA hospitals. The Life Safety Code® is a benchmark for safety that applies to both existing and new structures.
Effective April 1st of this year, the VA now requires state facilities that receive government funding to care for the men and women who have bravely served in the U.S. military to meet requirements in the 2009 edition of the Life Safety Code. This adoption emphasizes the importance of fire safety in the built environment and the need for qualified personnel to conduct fire door assembly inspections to help ensure compliance and maintain safety within these facilities.
Future efforts of the Foundation will focus on continuing to provide education for building and code officials as well as other end-users such as building owners and facility managers. The Foundation’s work, in conjunction with the Door and Hardware Institute, advances awareness of the FDAI program and its initiatives and provides education and training of personnel to meet the demand for qualified fire door assembly inspectors to perform inspections and maintain compliance with codes and standards.
RESOURCE:
NFPA101 (2012 edition) Overview.
Watch a video of Jim Lathrop, an engineer and member of several NFPA Life Safety Code committees, offering a brief overview of some of the changes to the Life Safety Code's provisions in the 2012 edition of NFPA101 that is currently under consideration for adoption.
May 2011
Foundation Educates Virginia Fire Prevention Association (VFPA) Members
On Tuesday, May 24, 2011, The Door Security & Safety Foundation conducted a half-day class, “Fire Rated Doors and Hardware—A Guide to Field Inspections” for 150 attendees from the Virginia Fire Prevention Association (VFPA) in Virginia Beach , VA. Comprised of fire officials from every jurisdiction in Virginia, VFPA members actively inspect and approve the inspections of fire-rated openings.
Led by Foundation staff, Bill Johnson and instructor, Dave Diamantes, C.B.O., a retired fire official in Virginia and long-time instructor on fire-related matters and NFPA 80, this event helped educate Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) and end-users about current openings-related codes and mandates.
Fire-Rated Doors and Hardware—A Guide to Field Inspections is a one-day course for fire and code officials to learn about the updated NFPA 80 Standard for Fire Doors and Other Opening Protectives, installation, operation, features, basic criteria and maintenance of fire-rated doors. The updated standard now makes the inspection of fire-rated doors a yearly requirement.
The Foundation is working in coordination with the Door and Hardware Institute's certified members to provide these classes at no cost to the attendees. The class itself provides fire and code officials a better understanding of what to visually verify when they see that a fire-rated door has been inspected.
Designed specifically for fire and code officials, the class is being taught at locations across the country. For further information, or if you are interested in sponsoring a session, please contact Bill Johnson at: 703/766-7039 or by email at bjohnson@doorsecuritysafety.org
November 2010
Fire Door Assembly Inspection (FDAI) Program Q & A for the State of New York.
by Catherine Hall, AHC, FDAI
Building Construction Program Manager II
NYS OGS, Div. of Design BU1
October 2010
Foundation Webinars Educate AHJs!
Two one-hour webinars, coordinated in partnership with the National Association of State Fire Marshals, were held on October 20th and October 26th, featuring DHI’s Director of Technical Services, Keith E. Pardoe, DAHC/CDC. Each webinar had over 120 fire officials in attendance to learn more about the fire door inspection program and what they as the AHJ community need to know about fire door inspection as mandated by NFPA 80, Standard for Fire Doors and Other Opening Protectives (2007 edition). Attendees left with a better understanding of: the inspection requirements, the definition of ’knowledgeable’, the role of an FDAI and knowing that they (AHJ community) can turn to members of the DHI industry for support.
What attendees are saying:
- "Thanks very much for the webinar yesterday. It was very helpful and informative. I would very much be interested in future training [sessions] of this kind." – Department of Public Safety, Division of Fire Safety.
- "Some very good information was provided, and it will be useful in our program" – Public School Inspector
As enforcement of the fire door inspection program continues to take hold across the country, these one-hour webinars enable the Foundation to reach a large audience to advance awareness. Being aware of the economics of state budgets, it also enables us to address the concerns with local officials for cost-efficient training.
Special thanks to NASFM and all of our financial supports who enable us to conduct these type of events, particularly to our Diamond Level Supporters and our sponsors of these two webinars: Contract Hardware (Seattle), Door and Hardware Systems Inc., Door Data Solutions, and Western Building Specialties.