Fire is one of the most dangerous hazards in commercial real estate. This peril can be more destructive than powerful weather events. It can start small and wreak havoc on buildings quickly and acutely.
Every commercial property owner should follow National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards. Although compliance isn’t mandatory, embracing NFPA guidelines can help preserve your assets and protect yourself from liability if disaster strikes. Understand how to ensure your building is NFPA-compliant.
Focus on the Big Six
The NFPA publishes hundreds of codes, which may be an overwhelmingly large number for building owners. Thankfully, you don’t have to adopt them all, and many of them may be irrelevant to the nature of your operations.
Pay attention to the standards that matter to you to make compliance more feasible, and get started with these codes:
- NFPA 1: Also known as the Fire Code, this standard discusses general fire safety requirements and provides foundational fire prevention and protection knowledge.
- NFPA 13: The Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems discusses the rules to follow when choosing an automatic sprinkler system to mitigate property damage and save lives in case of a fire.
- NFPA 25: This code complements NFPA 13, spelling out the best practices to proactively maintain and keep water-based systems sound.
- NFPA 70: Dubbed the National Electric Code, all 50 states have adopted a version to regulate electrical system design and installation, protecting people and properties from electrical hazards.
- NFPA 72: The National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code details guidelines for fire detection, signaling and emergency communication methods, ensuring devices sense fires and trigger appropriate responses.
- NFPA 101: This code guides architects and engineers when incorporating fire protection measures, egress systems and building construction standards into property design to ensure occupant safety during emergencies.
These standards reference other codes, so beginning your NFPA compliance journey with them can advance your knowledge of achieving and maintaining fire safety.
Mind Industry-Specific Codes
The most common NFPA standards are universally useful. However, some apply to specific building types.
For instance, NFPA 99 — or the Health Care Facilities Code — is a valuable resource to reduce the risk of fire, electricity and explosion in hospitals, medical clinics and offices, birth centers, blood banks, urgent care facilities, dental practices, and other related commercial properties.
NFPA 96 is another example. The Standard for Ventilation Control and Fire Protection of Commercial Cooking Operations sets fire safety requirements for restaurateurs to manage cooking-related hazards.
Facilities that deal with motor fuel could use insights from NFPA 30A to be safer. Aerosol product factory managers should read NFPA 30B to know the minimum requirements to prevent and control fires stemming from industrial chemicals. The design of hydrogen power plants should be consistent with the fundamental safeguards mentioned in NFPA 2.
If your commercial property deals with flammable substances, chances are that you need to comply with industry-specific guidelines and go beyond standard codes.
Keep Tabs on Standard Revisions
No NFPA standard is set in stone. The organization updates its codes approximately every four years, ensuring its guidelines adapt to the times and adequately solve problems the public reports. This enables NFPA to revise its codes before they become unhelpful. Fortunately, this nonprofit announces the rollout of every standard’s next edition.
Monitor the release of the new editions of all the codes you should comply with to implement any necessary changes as soon as possible. Ensure you have a certified fire protection specialist to guide you and cover all the bases successfully.
Adopt the Latest in Fire Prevention
Technologies can evolve faster than fire safety codes. Upgrading your system when an innovation comes along is worth the expense of preventing and mitigating fire incidents more effectively. It keeps your building NFPA-compliant and helps plug the holes in current code versions.
For example, switching from fire alarms with ionization sensors to smoke detectors with photoelectric ones allows you to catch fires 30-45 minutes faster, which can forestall most fire events since they generally begin in smolders.
Regulators are typically stricter on newly built properties than existing ones. Although being exempted from more rules can be convenient, proactively embracing the latest standards makes your building more fire-resilient.
Document Your Efforts
Sometimes, NFPA compliance only counts when recorded. Otherwise, your commercial property insurance carrier may deny your claim if you can’t prove you did everything possible to prevent or mitigate the fire incident, such as proactive maintenance and equipment upgrades.
Documenting every step to achieve and stay NFPA-compliant gives your insurer no reason to reject your claim. Your paperwork should be ready upon the request of the adjuster assigned to your case to substantiate your claim effectively and counter any statement that may lower your potential compensation.
Make Your Building NFPA-Compliant
NFPA compliance promotes peace of mind. Consider the standards applicable to your property as mandatory — even if they’re not — to make it as resilient to fires as possible.
