reducing fire alarms in the commercial high-rise fire alarms single... · reduces trust in the...

Reducing Fire Alarms in the Commercial High-Rise

CFAA Edmonton

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

1 Kitteringham Security Group Inc.

2012

What we will talk about today

  City of Calgary Bylaws 40M2003 and 16M2006

  The properties used in the alarm reduction initiative.

  The value of data based decision making

  Cataloguing the three kinds of alarms

  The true cost of an alarm

  Effective reduction strategies

Glen Kitteringham 2012

3

Putting it into perspective

Effective January 1, 2004, Bylaw 40M2003 came into effect.


Definition

“False Alarm” means an alarm in a building to which the Fire Department is dispatched and in respect of which no fire or similar emergency is found;

Glen Kitteringham 2012 4

Further Amended: to increase fines

5 Glen Kitteringham 2012

Bankers Hall

  2.7 million square ft.   4 levels of retail   8000 tenants   2-48 floor towers   1-26 floor structure   1 – 17 floor structure   1-6 floor structure   1-8 level detached parkade   4 levels parking

underground   3: +15’s and 1: +30 bridges   138,000 weekly visitors

The Properties


Suncor Energy Centre

  2.1 million square feet   2 levels of retail   5000 tenants   56 and 36 floor

towers   4 underground

parking levels   4 +15’s bridges   40,000 weekly visitors


Fifth Avenue Place

  1.7 million square feet   2 levels of retail   4500 tenants   2-36 floor towers   4 +15 bridges   3 underground parking

levels   44,000 weekly visitors


 This is a security issue as it is about managing risks to the organization.


What is data driven decision making?

"If you can't measure it, you can't manage it” [Tom DeMarco paraphrasing Lord Kelvin]

It is related to this:


Benefits

  It separates perceived risks from actual risks.


Benefits

  Justifies security related costs based on verifiable data that results are related to the investments. For example, if an organization spends X number of dollars to prevent fire alarms, data should be captured to justify the expenditure. There must be a cost effectiveness related to the protection strategy.


 Provides the measurement and tracking of losses associated with those risks.

 Allows one to tailor the security program to the various threats and risks associated with the business.


 Validates/invalidates the risk reduction program and countermeasure implementation.

 Allows us to make projections and predictions about criminal actions and other loss events to occur.


We found three kinds of alarms

1.  Legitimate (some are nuisance alarms) 2.  Unknown 3.  Illegitimate

1.  User Error 2.  System Malfunction 3.  Work done without notification 4.  Damage to the system


Statistics: love and hate em!

  Total alarms 2002-2010: 326   Legitimate: 68 (21%)   Unknown: 35 (11%)   Illegitimate: 222 (68%)

  User Error (Education) 85 (38%)   System Malf. (Maint) 39 (18%)   Work without notif (Comm) 68 (31%)   Damage to System 31 (14%)


Points to remember

 Once we started taking this issue seriously, the number of legitimate alarms dropped by 5% and the number of unknown alarms dropped by 10%.


Legitimate alarms


Unknown alarms

  Programming errors   Stairwell smokers   People not being honest when questioned   Vandalism   This category dropped by 15% once we

started investigating fully.


Illegitimate alarms explained   User Error: taking the wrong floor, tower, or

zone off-line, replacing wrong devices such as swapping heat detector with smoke detector.


Work done without notification

  Contractors   jack-hammering   not signing in   not waiting for approval   Dry-walling, painting, parkade cleaning, power

washing, vacuuming, hot-work, laying carpet (glue, drywall and other dust and fumes).


Remember

  It is not just smoke that activates a smoke detector.

  Nor is just heat that activates heat detectors: rapid changes in temperature will also do it.


Impact of false/nuisance alarms

  Lost productivity (tenants, building staff, Emergency Services)

  Lost sales revenue (retailers/food court)   Reduced system faith – people ignore alarms   Contractor work suspended   Arrival of emergency services   Owners subject to fines


Hidden costs   Aggravation to the tenants.   Delayed response times:

  Reduces trust in the building system.   Many tenants develop the attitude that when the alarm

activate, it is just another false alarm.

  Wear and tear on various building systems.   Brings the fire department when they could be

responding to a real fire. According to the NFPA, there were 2,187,000 false alarms in 2010.

  Creates conflict between emergency services and property owners.


NFPA U.S.A. 2010 Statistics

Glen Kitteringham 2012 25 Glen Kitteringham 2012

Lost Productivity   Approximately 300 occupants: 100/floor - 3

floors (minimum) more if alarm grows: $15,000.00.   Lost productivity: 1 hour   Average Salary: $50.00/hr.

  + $500.00 CFD fine   A building wide alarm with 30 to 100 floors

can cost your tenants over $100,000.00 in lost productivity.



Effective Reduction Strategies

Practical Take-Aways

 Fire Panel Training for staff  Having employees check each

others work or double or triple check their own work.

 Educating staff, contractors, tenants and owners about activities that create alarms.


 Passing on false alarm fees.

 Increase communication between all parties: tailgate meetings on projects.


 Use contractor education pamphlets

 Write letters to tenants and contractors

 Alarm impact assessments Glen Kitteringham 2012 30

 Collect and monitor fire alarm data: at least annually.

 Robust authorization permit process required.

 Empower your security staff to ask questions


Necessary ingredients

  Joint effort of several departments required: construction, security, engineering, contractors.

  Education, Education, Education   employees   Contractors   Tenants

  Enforcement Glen Kitteringham 2012

What Security/Operations can do

  Double check permits.

  Verify with contractors that any work they are completing will not impact the system.   Grinding, welding, cutting, sanding, painting,

dusting, etc.



 Confirm that contractors understand they must wait for approval before starting.

 Ask lots of questions. Glen Kitteringham 2012


  In completing work throughout the building pay attention to activities that may generate an alarm.

  If upon responding to an alarm determine the true cause, provide details to security for reporting purposes.


Glen Kitteringham 2011 36 Glen Kitteringham 2012

NFPA Journal March/April 2007

The Results


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

TOTAL

Occ

urre

nces

Total by Year

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

51 60 54 49 31 23 32 24 28

100% 90% 82% 52% 38% 53% 40% 47%

Contact Details

Glen Kitteringham M.Sc., CPP, F.SyI., CPOI Kitteringham Security Group Inc.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

403-909-8949

[email protected] www.kitteringhamsecuritygroupinc.com


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