This document summarizes information presented at a Capital District event on strengthening building codes in New York State. It describes several recent apartment building fires caused by Type V combustible construction and discusses the faster fire growth seen today. The document then covers topics like noncombustible vs combustible assemblies, NFPA 13 vs 13R sprinklers, and a cost study finding that noncombustible construction increases costs by only 5% on average. Overall, the document makes the case that updating codes to require safer, noncombustible materials would better protect occupants and firefighters.

1. Capital District 36th Celebration of National Engineers Week
February 25 & 26, 2016

2. Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
Regency Apartments
Guilderland, NY
•January 31, 2016
•Older Type V Construction
•Built with masonry
concrete fire barriers
•No Sprinklers
•Fully occupied
•6 units destroyed
•Displaced 13 residents;

3. Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
Avalon at Edgewater
Edgewater, NJ
•January 21, 2015
•Type V Construction
•Sprinkled with NFPA 13R
•Fully occupied
•240 units destroyed
•Displaced 1000 residents;
500 permanently

4. Cliff Avenue Apartments
Wayne, NJ
•November 18, 2014
•Type V Construction
•Fire was started by
explosion in a building
under construction
•It spread to 2 adjacent
buildings destroying the top
floor (24 units) in one of
them.
•An entire city block was
evacuated
Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

5. Brittany Chase
Wayne, NJ
•July 11, 2011
•Type V Construction
•Sprinkled with NFPA 13R
•Fully occupied
•24 units destroyed
•Displaced dozens of
residents permanently
Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

6. Marshall Square Retirement
Resort, Evans, GA
•June 2, 2015
•Type V Construction
•Sprinkled with NFPA 13R
•Fully Occupied
•1 resident death
•100 apartments and 48
garden units destroyed.
Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

7. Riverwalk at Millennium,
Conshohocken, PA
•August 2008
•Type V Construction
•Sprinkled with NFPA 13R
•Fully Occupied
•90 Residents displaced
Why Strengthen the Codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

8. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
• Keeping people and 1st responders safe
• Multi-Family Housing (R-2) in NYS Today
• Hotels and Motels (R-1) in NYS Today
• ASTM E-119 Test standard for fire rating
• Noncombustible vs combustible fire rated
assemblies
• Sprinklers – NFPA 13 vs 13R
• Life Safety vs Property Protection
• What’s the cost of a life (Non-combustible vs
combustible construction)
• Balanced Fire Safety Design
• What can I do to help strengthen the codes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

9. Keeping 1st Responders Safe
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building
Standards and Codes
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
110,000
120,000
1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Firefighters Injuries
Source: Fire Loss in the United States 2014,Hylton J.G. Haynes, NFPA, September 2015 and previous reports in the series;
Firefighter Fatalities in the United States, Rita F. Fahy, Paul R. LeBlanc, Joseph L. Molis, NFPA, June 2015 and previous reports in the series;
U.S. Firefighter Injuries, Hylton J.G. Haynes., Joseph L. Molis, NFPA, November 2015 and previous reports in the series.
Updated 1/16

10. Keeping 1st Responders Safe
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building
Standards and Codes
Source: Fire Loss in the United States 2014,Hylton J.G. Haynes, NFPA, September 2015 and previous reports in the series;
Firefighter Fatalities in the United States, Rita F. Fahy, Paul R. LeBlanc, Joseph L. Molis, NFPA, June 2015 and previous reports in the series;
U.S. Firefighter Injuries, Hylton J.G. Haynes., Joseph L. Molis, NFPA, November 2015 and previous reports in the series.
Updated 1/16
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Firefighters deaths

11. Keeping 1st Responders Safe
• On the average, it can take 6-8 minutes
for firefighters to arrive on the scene of a
fire.
• With today’s fast growth wood, Type V
Construction are consumed 8X faster
than the legacy structures built 30 years
ago.
• The fire develops at an alarming rate.
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building
Standards and Codes

12. Question #1
• With today’s fast growth wood, Type V
Construction is consumed how much
faster than the legacy structures built 30
years ago?
• Answer - 8X faster
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

13. Keeping 1st Responders Safe
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building
Standards and Codes
Legacy rooms – 29:25 mins. Modern rooms – 3:40 mins.

14. Question #2
How much more time does occupants and 1st
Responders have with legacy rooms vs.
modern rooms before flashover occurs?
About 25 minutes
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

15. Multi-Family Housing (R-2) and
Hotels (R-1) in New York State Today
• Type V Construction
• All wood structure including engineered trusses
• Fire Walls and Barriers
• Firewalls consisting of combustible material
• 13R Sprinklers
• No protection in combustible concealed spaces, attics and
closets
• Up to 6 Stories in Height (70 feet)
• 4 stories built on a 2 story pedestal
• Block Size Buildings
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

16. • Gives a fire-resistance rating for the endurance period and
assigns an hourly fire-resistance rating.
• E-119 Test method is approximately 100 years old
• The test assembly is placed under the following temperature
conditions with exposure at:
• 1550 F at 1/2 hour
• 1700 F at 1 hour
• 1850 F at 2 hours
• 1960 F at 3 hours
• 2000 F at 4 hours
• Test specimens can add to the test temperature.
• Hose Stream test.
ASTM E-119
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

17. Noncombustible
materials:
• Concrete Block
• All types Concrete
• Stone masonry
• Clay masonry
• Cement
plaster/stucco
• Ceramic tile
• Steel
Combustible
materials:
• Dimensional
Lumber
• Forest
Products
• Plastics
• Synthetic
Materials
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
Non-Combustible vs Combustible

18. • Non-Combustible rated wall: Will not aid
in combustion or add appreciable heat to
an actual fire situation.
• Combustible Wall: One by the very
nature of its construction, will add to the
expected fire load, in a fire scenario, by
burning along with other contents in the
actual fire.
Non-Combustible vs Combustible
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

19. Typical
Noncombustible
Fire-Rated
Assemblies
• Single and double
wythe masonry
• Pre-cast concrete
• Cast concrete
• Steel framing with
gyp board, cement
board
Typical
Combustible
Fire-Rated
Assemblies
• Wood stud
framing with
gypsum board
• Any other
assembly not
passing ASTM
E136
Non-Combustible vs Combustible
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

20. • Noncombustible Fire rated
assemblies :
• Do not add to the fire load.
• Do not contain concealed
combustible spaces
• Contains fire to its area of origin.
Fire Rated Assemblies
Noncombustible vs Combustible
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

21. Fire Resistance
Rees Hall Dormitory
Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, NY
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

22. Apartment Building in Framingham MA
Fire Resistance
Fire was contained to the individual room
Room was cleaned and repainted.
No other Damage to Building
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

23. Sprinklers
NFPA 13 vs 13R
•NFPA 13 sprinkler systems are designed
for life and property protection. Sprinkler
protection is required within occupied areas
and combustible concealed areas, with
exceptions.
•NFPA 13R sprinkler systems are designed
to protect occupants and only required
within occupied areas.
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

24. What’s the Cost of a Life
Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
Prepared by Haas Architects Engineers
A model multifamily structure was designed, then reviewed for Code
Compliance and cost estimates were prepared for the same building
comparing seven different non-combustible building systems.
The building model was a 4 story structure encompassing
approximately 25,000 gross square feet of building area per floor.
Two different floor layouts were used to evaluate each building.
•One was comprised of all single bedroom dwelling units
•One of a mix of one and two bedroom units.
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

25. Fire Safe Construction Cost
Comparison Study
The construction types included:
•CWF - Conventional wood framing with wood floor system.
•LGS - Light gauge steel framing with cast-in-place concrete floor
system on metal deck
•M/PP M/CIP- Load bearing concrete masonry construction with
precast concrete plank floor system
•P - Precast concrete walls and precast concrete floor system
•ICF - Insulated concrete form wall and precast concrete plank
floor system
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

26. 2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building
Standards and Codes
•Prevailing rate
•Everything included but moveable appliances and furniture
•Steel stud partitions
•Wood stud partitions
•Applicable seismic requirements
•Fire sprinklers NFPA 13R
•Base line cost of 100 represented by wood frame model
•The average cost to move from the conventional wood framing
to a building with non-combustible construction was 5.5%.
•In some cities certain non-combustible systems cost as little as
1 to 3% more.
Cost Estimation Components
Fire Safe Construction Cost
Comparison Sturdy

27. Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
90
95
100
105
110
115
120
Relative Cost
CWF-Single
MPCP - Single
PCC - Single
LGS - Single
CWF - Mixed
MPCP - Mixed
PCC - Mixed
LGS - Mixed
Albany, NY
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

28. Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
90
95
100
105
110
115
120
Relative Cost
CWF-Single
MPCP - Single
PCC - Single
LGS - Single
CWF - Mixed
MPCP - Mixed
PCC - Mixed
LGS - Mixed
Framingham, MA
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

29. Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
90
95
100
105
110
115
120
Relative Cost
CWF-Single
MPCP - Single
PCC - Single
LGS - Single
CWF - Mixed
MPCP - Mixed
PCC - Mixed
LGS - Mixed
Harrisburg, PA
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

30. Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
90
95
100
105
110
115
120
Relative Cost
CWF-Single
MPCP - Single
PCC - Single
LGS - Single
CWF - Mixed
MPCP - Mixed
PCC - Mixed
LGS - Mixed
Towson, MD
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

31. Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study
•Base on construction cost estimates that were seen in the
previous slides, the cost associated with a compartmentalized
construction method utilizing a concrete based material was <5%
of overall project cost.
•The minimal increase of construction can be easily paid for over
the life of the structure.
•Materials like concrete masonry, precast concrete, and cast-in-
place concrete have many other advantages such as:
•Resistance to mold growth
•Resistance to damage from vandalism
•Minimal damage caused by water and fire in the event of a
fire in the building.
•Compartmentalization provides for reduce cleanup costs and
quicker reoccupation of structure.
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes

32. Answer to Question #3
What are the standard test methods for fire tests of building
construction materials?
A. ASTM C-90
B. ASTM D-1557
C. ASTM E-119
D. UL-263
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
C. ASTM E-119 & D. UL-263

33. Question #4
Which is NOT a non-combustible firewall/ fire barrier?
A. Single and double wythe masonry
B. Wood stud framing with gypsum board
C. Pre-cast concrete
D. Cast concrete
E. Steel framing with gyp board, cement board
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
B. Wood stud framing with gypsum board

34. BalancedFireSafetyDesign
*Suppression
*ActiveFireSprinklerSystems
Detection
FireAlarms
SmokeDetectors
CODetectors
Education
SchoolPrograms
CommunityAction
*NoncombustibleConstruction
*Comparmentation
*LimitFireArea
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes
How can I keep NYS Citizens Safe?

35. How can I keep NYS Citizens Safe?
Ask the Experts
•Nick Carparelli, LEED Green Associate, Executive Director
NYS Concrete Masonry Association
•Jerry Deluca, Executive Director & CEO
NY State Association of Fire Chiefs
Jay Hall, Manager-Codes and Standards
Portland Cement Association
•Keith Lashway, PE, FNSPE, FSAME, Director of Industry
Development and Technical Services
International Masonry Institute
•Rita L. Seraderian, P.E., FPCI, LEED AP, Executive Director
Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Northeast
•Lizette Strait, LEED Green Associate, Marketing Assistant
PCA Northeast Region
2016 E Week - Strengthening NYS Building Standards and Codes