“ Today, almost 80 percent of fires occur in homes,” Pauley says. This means that the call for mandatory sprinkler systems is “absolutely a big priority – we try to use the data to actually guide us where we need to be putting our emphasis, with the majority of deaths there. cite, from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), sug- gests that each life saved through mandatory residential sprinkler sys- tems would cost $38 million. Builders opposing the NFPA stance assert that the greatest risks for fire deaths have occurred in older homes, which wouldn’t be helped by mandatory sprinkler instructions, at least anytime in the near-term. Still, the NFPA has marshaled its ar- guments, with videos demonstrating the difference in fire damage between a sprinklered and non-sprinklered home, and observations that sprinkler system costs will decrease dramati- cally if they become standard rather than special-request items in new con- struction. The CMHC study asserts that sprin- kler system costs can vary widely. De- pending on key factors such as the type of pipe used (copper or plastic) and location (using municipal water supplies in urban centers or private wells in rural areas), costs associated with the installation of a sprinkler sys- tem could range from $2,800 to $6,700 (Canadian). However, according to a study by the NFPA’s Fire Protection Research Foundation, the average cost of sprin- klers in a new home is $1.35 per sprin- klered sq. ft. (In the U.S. in recent years, according to the Census Bu- reau, the average new house size is 2,600 sq. ft. – houses are getting larger – suggesting an average cost of about $3,500 U.S. per home.) While residential sprinklers top the NFPA’s agenda, it is only one of sev- eral areas of importance to the fire protection community, Pauley said. Another – the success in improving safety, reducing fire damage costs, and lowering fire fatality rates – has had an unfortunate negative conse- quence. There are pressures to re- duce and cut budgets for municipal “ fire inspections and oversight, in part because the fatality and fire loss dam- age levels have been declining, he said. “There are a lot of new trends in building and construction, and it is im- portant to ensure, as new technolo- gies and practices evolve, that we make sure codes and standards and fire safety evolve as well,” Pauley said. These issue and trends include: • “Alternative fuels and energy sources; as these go into play, that’s technology evolving rapidly and it is important that fire safety keep up with that;” • Trends toward new, larger and multi-story construction buildings, including structures built with light woods; • Construction safety challenges, especially with the new wood structures – there have been sev- eral major construction fires in re- cent years; • Sustainability measures causing concerns/limitations on fire retar- dant chemicals; and • New alternative and solar energy technologies. “When a roof is en- tirely covered by solar panels, how do you navigate on the roof where the fire is going on; how do you ensure the electricity is turned off?” Accordingly, the NFPA supports re- search, advocacy grants and building code enhancements to change build- ing codes and regulations, making the residential sprinklers mandatory. “When smoke alarms went in as a mandatory requirement in homes, there was an argument that no one would be able to build any homes in the country – because it (would make them) too expensive,” he said. “The same sort of arguments were made on the electrical side, such as for ground fault circuit interruptions, that they would never build again be- cause they put the costs too high... and we continue to build.” “Every situation is unique,” Pauley said. “History bears out that we’re able to do these advances and make people safer and able to do construc- tion and continue moving along.” The June 22 to 25 conference at McCormick Place attracted more than 4,000 architects, engineers, contrac- tors, fire protection officials, suppliers and others concerned with fire safety. Pauley says the NFPA holds its an- nual conference on a rotating sched- ule, in Las Vegas one year, and then at a major U.S. city the second year. Founded in 1896, “NFPA is a global non-profit organization devoted to eliminating death, injury, property and economic loss due to fire, electrical and related hazards,” the association says. “The association delivers infor- mation and knowledge through more than 300 consensus codes and stan- dards, research, training, education, outreach and advocacy; and by part- nering with others who share an inter- est in furthering the NFPA mission.” Overall, the NFPA’s membership totals more than 65,000 individuals interna- tionally. Florida Construction News — SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015 – 21