Life Safety Systems

The management of fire and smoke has served as the underpinnings of building codes in the United States for over 100 years. Nearly all buildings intended for human occupancy are required by today's building codes to be designed with an assurance that, over the life of the building, occupants will be reasonably safe from fire and smoke.

The building codes require the design of an integrated system of building features, such as walls, floors, ceilings, and structural members, and specific fire and smoke protection components, products, devices, and systems that reinforce one another and cover for one another in case of the failure of any one in the event of a fire. The overall intended building performance and the depth of the designed redundancy is based on the objectives of the building owner and the occupants.

Professionals, who properly install, inspect and maintain the dampers, make an important contribution to the execution of the fire protection design and overall building performance in the event of a fire.

Knowledge Areas of Expertise
Life Safety Systems Technician

Design, Plans and Specifications

SCOPE: Level 1 competency in installation, inspection, and maintenance of fire, smoke, combination fire/smoke dampers, and ceiling dampers in HVAC systems.

Basic knowledge about the responsibilities of the architects, engineers and system designers:

• Purpose of fire and smoke damper for life safety and protection of property
• Terminology commonly used in conjunction with fire and smoke dampers
• Symbols commonly used on plans for HVAC systems
• Specifications for HVAC systems in SpecText or MasterSpec
• Skill in reading plans and specifications