Home > Issue by Date > October 2006

No Stone Unturned

A comprehensive building assessment makes for an effective life safety plan.

By Hector M. Gomez

It was Benjamin Franklin who said, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” This founding father, of course, did not have 21st century facility managers in mind when he coined the phrase. Nonetheless, the turn of words is particularly apt with respect to safety condition assessments, which are fundamental factors in the ongoing operation of any building.

Safety assessment criteria will vary greatly, as will such factors as whether a structure is owner occupied by a single organization or landlord owned with multiple tenants. What effective safety assessments for all buildings share in common, however, is that the resulting life safety plans are developed from a structure specific profile which takes into full account sector classification (i.e., hospitality versus office). Bearing in mind these relative differences, what then are the elements central to a well conceived safety assessment plan?

It begins with the codes . The principal driver of building safety is full compliance with the myriad of federal, state, and municipal codes. It is essential to begin with a 360° view of not only the regulatory picture, but industry and safety association standards. What is required under the Americans with Disabilities Act or by OSHA regulations? How do facility professionals apply best practice directives from trade groups such as the National Fire Protection Association? Also, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has established emergency preparedness guidelines, which, while not all mandated, need to be fully considered and applied where appropriate.

Other significant elements for consideration . Beyond what is formally codified, there are several other factors to be considered. These elements include:

Geographic region . Seismic sensitivity is a top of mind issue in a safety assessment of a San Francisco Bay Area building, for example. However, this type of threat bears far less relevance to an evaluation of a similar structure located in Miami, where hurricane vulnerability and response preparedness require greater emphasis.

Site characteristics . Each structure must be evaluated on its merits and, conversely, its vulnerabilities or deficiencies for potentially responding to and withstanding a range of fire and non-fire related events.

Tenant type . The needs of a hospital, which is likely to include a greater percentage of non-ambulatory patients requiring assistance in the event of an evacuation, vary substantially from an office tower whose occupants could depart on their own. At the other end of the spectrum, facility managers need to consider if the building has security sensitivities, as in the case of a financial institution or government consulate. Is there an unusual risk of potential threats?

Occupancy size . While the point is largely self explanatory, it’s worth noting that well coordinated, high occupancy buildings frequently can be better prepared than smaller structures in responding to critical events as a result of a well laid safety assessment plan.

Applying captured knowledge in an effective manner . Using the information gathered about relevant code requirements, building structure conditions, and other related issues enables preparation of a written safety plan that is both site specific and eminently practical. All too often programs are too complex or out of tune with the target audience.

Maintaining a cool head and a calm, measured reaction in a critical event comes from being empowered with information. When an evacuation alarm sounds, occupants can forget something as simple as north versus south orientation. As part of its revamped safety programs following a large fire at Chicago’s LaSalle Bank Building in December 2004, management there took extensive steps to streamline life safety measures. For instance, exit stairwells were given alphabetical designations and color coded in place of the directional references.

Distilled from the overall safety plan, emergency preparedness manuals need to be clear and well written. The format must be uniform and properly summarized, and the content should be communicated effectively. Training meetings, electronic notifications, and other means should be standard operating procedures.

Employing technology for safety’s sake . Information flow and coordination pay off, and technology is increasingly playing a role in this arena. To cite a recent event, a fire broke out in a mid-rise, suburban office building in Orange County, CA last year, threatening serious consequences. However, the building had recently been equipped with a Web-based application for staff and occupant life safety training. This provided comprehensive information, which resulted in a standardized response. The use of the Web-based tool enabled a quick and effective evacuation. So smooth was the process that damage was contained and minimized, and the level of measured coordination was commended by local fire officials.

Vast advancements in applying technology to disseminate information has profound implications on building safety. Technology offers the capability not only to share information for training purposes, but also to capture participation figures and ensure compliance. Concrete data is accessible to track occupant completion. Previously, in-person live training was the standard, and compliance was dependent on all parties attending required meetings.

There is also a convenience factor. In a recent statement to The Sacramento Bee, Heidi Frieser, a manager with Thomas Properties Group, which oversees the Joe Serna Jr. Cal-EPA headquarters building in Sacramento, CA, said, “[Online training] is great, because it lets tenants do the training at their desks, on their own timetables.”

In the same published account, David Koch, manager of 101 California, a 48-story high rise in San Francisco, CA, agreed. He said that fewer than 100 of the building’s 4,000 occupants would attend twice yearly safety courses that included a small brochure and 20-minute video. However, within three days of installing the online technology three years ago, some 700 tenants had logged on. Koch noted he had seen a significant improvement at annual fire drills as well.

Safety team building requires staff and occupants working together . Any plan is only as good as the people empowered with, and committed to, its effective implementation. Safety teams—the fire brigades and fire/floor wardens made up of tenants and staff who will participate in responding in event of an emergency—need to rely on information that is consistent to ensure measured response.

Building staff teams comprised of facilities management, engineering, and security are linchpins in the safety process. They facilitate effective action by the floor wardens and fire brigades. They also serve as sources of vital information, such as location of building systems and controls, as well as first points of contact for emergency response police and fire personnel deployed to the site.

When done properly, assessments lead to consistent and accurate information in a life safety plan. Further, this knowledge gives individuals the ability to save themselves and others during an emergency event. That is a plan even Benjamin Franklin could endorse.

Gomez is president of Pasadena, CA-based Building Safety Solutions, Inc. The company specializes in building safety and architectural engineering assessment services and has leveraged this expertise to create advanced information technology products for life safety training and emergency preparedness response.

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