NFPA Journal - October 2016 Home Fire Sprinkler Special Issue - 23

FEATURE
SPRINKLERS AND THE HOME FIRE PROBLEM

(NFSA), were also championing for
sprinklered homes, but Keith admits
the educational messaging from all
three organizations was disjointed
and none could devote the attention
to it that was needed.
As a way to coordinate efforts and
provide a unified voice for home
sprinklers, the Home Fire Sprinkler
Coalition (HFSC) was formed in 1996,
with founding members
including
NFPA, AFSA,
and NFSA. In
keeping with
the mission
it developed
20 years ago,
HFSC offers free
and unbiased
educational
resources for
the fire service,
homebuilders, and other stakeholders-all housed on its newly
revamped website, HomeFireSprinkler.org. Through the years, HFSC
has expanded its board to include
property insurers, fire service organizations, and others.
As a community's most trusted
safety source, the fire service has
been the biggest promoter of HFSC
materials and the home fire sprinkler
message. Through HFSC's Built for
Life Fire Department Program, 2,800
U.S. and Canadian fire departments
have pledged to make home fire
sprinklers a priority of their outreach.
A popular tactic by these departments has been conducting live

side-by-side flashover/sprinkler
demonstrations for the public and
community decision makers. In these
demonstrations, two eight-by-eightfoot structures-one equipped with
fire sprinklers, one without-are
set ablaze as audiences watch and
compare the outcome. These sideby-side events display a startling
fact: today's home fires can become
deadly in as little
as two minutes.
This is in part
due to the materials and methods
used to construct
many new homes.
Today's building
material of choice,
engineered lumber,
is made of wood
fibers and other
materials bonded
together and
utilized as part of a building process
commonly referred to as "lightweight
construction." While the materials are
considered environmentally friendly
and as structurally sound as traditional
dimensional lumber, they behave very
differently when subjected to fire; studies document this material collapsing under fire in about six minutes,
compared to about 19 minutes for
homes built with traditional dimensional lumber. Compounding the
problem is modern furniture stuffed
with synthetic materials, including
highly combustible polyurethane
foam, that burn quicker than the wool
and cotton used in older "legacy"
furniture. While aesthetically pleasing,

"Several fire chiefs
told me my fire
service career was
over due to my
advocacy for fire
sprinklers"

served as HFSC president while he
was with NFPA. "Since sprinklers in
new homes were not a code requirement at that point, it was unusual for
NFPA to be out in front of the codes.
We had some discussions on whether
that was OK, and determined that it
was because of the
importance of the
issue." Other orga%
nizations, including
the American Fire
Sprinkler AssociaPercentage of all fire
deaths in the U.S. in 2015
tion (AFSA) and the
that occurred in home fires
National Fire Sprinkler Association

2,560 11,075
Number of civilians
who died in home fires
in the U.S. in 2015

Number of civilians
injured in home fires
in the U.S. in 2015

OCTOBER 2016 NFPA JOURNAL

http://www.homefiresprinkler.org http://www.homefiresprinkler.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - October 2016 Home Fire Sprinkler Special Issue