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Life Safety Considerations You (Probably) Haven’t Thought Of

The depths of the life safety code are mind-boggling; many of them are straightforward and in some cases common sense. But unless you deal with the industry and codes on a regular basis, there are some issues you probably wouldn’t consider as code infractions. Generally, store and facility managers mean well and have no idea […]

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Electromechanical Solutions – Things Your Architect Doesn’t Know

I was having a conversation yesterday about our Electromechanical Solutions department and the challenges the project managers are facing during specification. If our team (who is specifically trained in the fields of electrical and mechanical hardware) is facing challenges – someone with little or no knowledge of the industry is having these issues times ten. What […]

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Delayed Egress: Deciphering Code Requirements

Hardware must be meticulously specified and maintained in order to perform as intended in the event of an emergency.  However, often times, people compromise properly configured egress systems by adding in convenience features designed for more frequent non-emergency usage. The IBC requires exit signs, directional signs, and “NO Exit” signs to provide occupants with sufficient […]

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Electromagnetic Locks – Code Requirements

The International Building Code is anything but easy to read, which makes sifting through section after section of code requirements a daunting and confusing task. We hope this “condensed” section on the requirements for electromagnetic locks will help ease the headache of code reading. IBC 1008.1.4.4 Access-Controlled Egress Doors Allowed in use groups – A, […]

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Locked Emergency Exits Cause Panic During Plant Fire in China

Stories like these are, unfortunately, the reason the US has strict safety standards in place. Last week a swift-moving fire trapped workers inside a poultry slaughterhouse in northeastern China. The factory had only a single open emergency exit and killed at least 119 people in the scurry to find an open door. This accident, like […]

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