Fire Sprinklers and Sustainability

1. Fire Sprinklers and Sustainability Russell P. Fleming, PE, FSFPE Managing Director International Fire Sprinkler Association

2. International Fire Sprinkler Association • Founded in 1999; administered by NFSA • Co-founder of the European Fire Sprinkler Network in 2002 • Primary host of international fire sprinkler conferences in Prague in 2002, Berlin in 2004, Lisbon in 2006, and Copenhagen in 2008

3. IFSA Governing Members • FM Approvals • General Air Prod. • Globe • Job • Lubrizol • Minimax • Potter Electric • Reliable • Tyco Fire Products • Tyco Fire & Security • Underwriters Labs • Victaulic • Viking

4. Goals of IFSA • Development of National and Regional Organizations to promote the fire sprinkler concept • Development of Information Systems to Protect Product Integrity and Industry Identity • Delivery of Training and Education • Enhancement of Codes, Standards and Legislation • Growth in Visibility, Membership and Support

5. Fire Sprinkler Associations in Latin America

6. IFSA Panama Conference • 5-6 February 2014

7. Sustainability • From the Latin sustinere – (tenere - to hold and sus - up) • Can mean “maintain”, “support” or “endure” • Since the 1980’s has primarily been associated with human sustainability on Earth

8. Sustainability and Fire Sprinklers Q: What are the developers of automatic sprinkler systems doing to support sustainability needs of building?

9. Sustainability and Fire Sprinklers Q: What are the developers of automatic sprinkler systems doing to support sustainability needs of building? A: Everything the industry does promotes sustainability, because it results in the preservation of resources. Unfortunately, current concepts of sustainability utilize fairly narrow definitions, resulting in some advantages being overlooked.

10. LEED and Fire Sprinklers • In 2010 the National Fire Sprinkler Association retained the Green Building Systems firm in an effort to learn how recognition of fire sprinkler systems could be improved within the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) 2009 building design and construction rating systems.

11. LEED – Materials & Resources • Credits were available only for materials found within specific Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) MasterFormatDivisions. • No material factors counted with regard to our Division 21 on Fire Suppression. • As such, the reused value, the recycled content value, the regional content value, and the rapidly renewable content value of our fire sprinkler systems were simply not pertinent to the achievement of these credits.

12. Materials & Resources • It should be noted that while automatic sprinkler and other mechanical systems are exempt from specific requirements for recycled content, many component manufacturers have made this information publically available. • Some manufacturer’s products, including sprinklers, valves, and fittings, exceed 90 percent recycled content by weight.

13. Other LEED Credits? • Energy and Atmosphere – only the fact that water-based systems do not contain ozone-depleting substances is noted as positive. Fire sprinkler systems were not considered within the energy model and were not addressed within the LEED measurement and verification aspects. • Indoor Environmental Quality – possible small credits with the use of low emitting materials, i.e. adhesives, sealings, paints and coatings.

14. Water Efficiency • The most obvious area for credit • It was pointed out that if discharge water were collected for reuse, it could contribute to credit achievement in the areas of “water use reduction,” “water-efficient landscaping,” “innovative wastewater technologies,” and “water use reduction”

15. 40 Years of Increased Efficiency • Tremendous gains since the 1972 introduction of density/area curves to NFPA 13. • The curves allowed the use of hydraulic calculations to size the piping for a system based on the strength of the water supply as opposed to the previous “one size fits all” pipe schedule system. • The use of hydraulic calculations is considered to have reduced system costs by up to 40 percent overall, and most of that savings resulted from smaller pipe sizes.

16. Other Material & Resource Gains • 1972 – Combined standpipe and sprinkler risers • 1973 – Sprinklers with smaller frames • 1973 – Extended coverage sprinklers • 1974 – Nonthreaded thinwall steel pipe when joined by mechanical couplings • 1978 – Threadable thinwall steel pipe • 1988 – ESFR sprinklers (eliminating in-rack sprinkler piping)

17. Advances in Water Savings • 1974 – “Room design method” • 1980 – 2-sprinkler design in NFPA 13D  • 1985 – 4-sprinkler design in residential portions of other occupancies • 1989 – 4-sprinkler design for new NFPA 13R   • 1996 – Design area reduction for quick response sprinklers • 2010 – Design curves for storage applications truncated due to availability of larger orifice sprinklers

18. Unrecognized Savings • For other than high-rise buildings, the fire sprinkler industry in the U.S. successfully championed changes in the building codes to allow the use of standpipe hose systems without permanent pumps where the public water supply can meet the sprinkler system demand. • The fire department “brings the pump” to the fire in the event it is needed. • This represents a tremendous savings in initial and ongoing energy and water resources, but merits no LEED credit since it is recognized as a feature of the building code.

19. Water Savings in System Testing • Efforts have been made in Australia to substantially curtail the amount of water used in maintaining fire protection systems. • HB 233-2008 Fire Protection Systems Testing –Water Conservation Handbook was published to provide building owners, consultants and system designers with recommendations for ways to reduce, re-use or recycle water used to test sprinkler systems, hydrants, pumps and hose reels. • Published as a companion guide to AS 1851-2005 – Maintenance of fire protection systems and equipment, the Australian standard.

20. Recycled Water? • Main concern is water quality and the potential for compatibility problems with system components. • Integrating rainwater catchment is common practice throughout the Caribbean and elsewhere. • If the water is potable, it is considered adequate for use. Rainwater catchment technology is similar to the rooftop tanks in New York City. Domestic water volume is only accessed down to a certain level, with only the sprinkler system having access to the fire protection reserve toward the base of the tank.

21. Sustainability with Fire Sprinklers • Of the environment • Of businesses • Of buildings • Of our heritage • Of lives • Of firefighters

22. Sustainability of the Environment In October 2009, the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC) partnered with FM Global in full-scale fire tests to compare the environmental impact of sprinklered and non-sprinklered home fires. The tests showed that in the event of a home fire: • Greenhouse gas emissions were cut by 97.8% • Water usage was reduced between 50% and 91% • Fewer persistent pollutants, such as heavy metals, were found in sprinkler wastewater versus fire hose water

23. Sustainability of Businesses • According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, 40 to 60% of businesses never reopen after a disaster • According to the Electronic Data Systems Corp. the number is 43%, with only 29% of those that reopen still operating two years later • After the 1993 WTC bombing 150 of 350 affected businesses never reopened anywhere

24. Sustainability of Buildings • Fire data shows the ability of fire sprinklers to reduce property loss by at least one-half to two-thirds

25. Preservation of Resources

26. Wood High-Rise Buildings • Being promoted as a sustainable approach • Create an even greater need for fire sprinkler systems

27. Sustainability of Our Heritage • Automatic fire sprinkler systems provide the most practical means of preserving our historic buildings

28. Sustainability of Our Heritage Library of Congress, Washington, DC

29. Sustainability of Our Heritage Exterior system protecting a historic village in Japan

30. Sustainability of Lives • Recent data indicates the ability of fire sprinklers to reduce fire deaths by more than 80% • Afour-fold increase in the rate of fire sprinkler usage in North America between 1975 and 2000 due to stronger code requirements is credited with helping to reduce the rate of life loss to fires

31. International Fire Death Rates (source: NFPA) The widespread acceptance of fire sprinklers helped reduce fire losses in the U.S. and Canada

32. The Fire Sprinkler Record • There has never been a multiple loss of life of building occupants from a fire developing in a building protected by an automatic fire sprinkler system properly installed and maintained in accordance with recognized standards.

33. Sustainability of Firefighters • Ten years ago, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation organized an effort to reduce deaths of responding firefighters • Support of fire sprinklers was among the 16 Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives endorsed at that time

34. Initiative 15 – Advocacy must be strengthened for the enforcement of codes and the installation of home fire sprinklers.

35. www.sprinklerworld.org Information on grants and other IFSA initiatives can be found at:

36. Thank you fleming@sprinklerworld.org