Today’s buildings are becoming greener, smarter and more complex as they incorporate new design approaches. At the same time, fire and life safety system integrations are also becoming increasingly complex. While the main focus of greener/smarter systems is energy or utility savings, a holistic approach is at the center of fire and life safety integrations. Fire and life safety systems need to be designed, coordinated, installed, programmed, tested, and integrated to protect an entire building’s life safety
NFPA 4 Standard for Integrated Testing Requirements for testing of integrated fire and life safety systems are found in NFPA 4, Standard for Integrated Fire Protection and Life Safety Systems Testing. NFPA 4 is applicable where the 2018 or 2021 editions of the International Building Code, International Fire Code, NFPA 101® Life Safety Code®, or NFPA 1 Fire Code have been adopted. Integrated testing is already a requirement for many jurisdictions through locally adopted building or fire codes. Locations that
In the event of a fire or other emergency, more complex buildings (e.g., hospitals or prisons) may rely on staff response, passive fire protection features (e.g., fire or smoke barriers) and increasingly complex active fire protection systems (e.g., sprinklers, fire alarms, doors closing, smoke control). Other systems that may interface with fire and life safety systems include security, audio/visual, access control, building management system/ building automation system, lighting controls, and elevator con