NFPA Journal - July/August 2019 - 39

In Compliance
expanded to study all special amusement
building criteria (not limited to escape
rooms), and the group will continue its
work through the Second Draft.
NFPA staff receive and respond to
code interpretation questions through
our Technical Questions Service, a
number of which have related to AHJs
needing a better understanding of how
to classify the occupancy for these
types of facilities. For the purpose of
determining occupant load, one might
enforce the assembly use factor (less
concentrated, see Table 7.3.1.2), but,
based on the size of the space and the
calculation results, they would not be
considered an assembly occupancy
unless the occupant load exceeded
49, based on the NFPA 101 definition
of "assembly occupancy." My understanding of these facilities is that many
would not result in that high an occupant load due to their size, so the first
condition set forth in the assembly
occupancy definition would not kick in.
The second condition warranting classification as an assembly occupancy is
any occupancy used as a special amusement building, regardless of occupant
load. A special amusement building is
one that is temporary, permanent, or
mobile, and contains a device or system
that conveys passengers or provides a
walkway along, around, or over a course
in any direction as a form of amusement arranged so that the egress path
is not readily apparent due to visual or
audio distractions or an intentionally
confounded egress path, or is not readily
available due to the mode of conveyance
through the building or structure.
The first draft of the 2021 edition
of NFPA 101 extends the use of special
amusement to include entertainment
or educational purposes in its definition. In addition to the small revision
in the definition of special amusement buildings, valuable information
has been added to the annex section
accompanying the definition to provide
additional examples and considerations
to help enforcers determine applicability of the special amusement definition.
Typical examples of special amusement buildings include haunted houses.

Participants weave through a path not
readily obvious, accompanied by low
lighting, special effects, and other visual
distractions. Per the new advisory text,
other occupancies, including escape
rooms, might also fall into the classification of special amusement building if
the conditions described in the definition exist. It is incumbent on the local
AHJ to inquire if the conditions in the
escape room meet the definition of a
special amusement building. Where
such conditions exist, escape rooms
should be classified as special amusement buildings and require compliance
with NFPA 101. Where such conditions
do not exist, escape rooms might be
classified as another occupancy type,
such as business.
It is also important for an AHJ to
recognize that the code requires an
occupancy to be classified as a special
amusement building if the conditions
in the space meet the definition of
special amusement building, regardless of the occupant load of the space.
No minimum occupant load threshold
needs to be met for a space to be classified as a special amusement building.
I have been to an escape room and
had a great experience. I don't believe
it was a special amusement building,
as the egress path wasn't confounded
and lighting levels at the egress paths
were not reduced. It was relatively
small, with an occupant load of probably fewer than 50 persons, which would
most likely make it a business occupancy. It posed no unusual life safety
hazard, and I felt safe the entire time.
My team of four people was briefed, in
great detail, on the safety provisions of
the facility, the details of the room we
would be in, and the rules of the game.
When our briefing was complete, I
asked the room leader if the doors were
really locked. To my relief, the answer
was "no." If needed, I could have left at
any time. The catch was that if anyone
opened the door, the game was over-a
small price to pay for safety, in my
opinion. There was no need to do so:
we beat the game, solved the puzzle,
and were able to egress the room safely,
and with no penalty.

To follow the work of the Technical
Committee on Assembly Occupancies
and the escape room task group, visit
nfpa.org/101next.
Kristin Bigda, P.E., is principal fire protection
engineer at NFPA. NFPA members and AHJs can
use the Technical Questions tab to post queries on
NFPA 101 at nfpa.org/101. Portions of this article
are taken from "The Great Escape (...Or Not...)," a
2017 blog post by Greg Harrington, principal fire
protection engineer at NFPA. To read Greg's piece,
and to see more selections from his "101 Wednesdays" blog, visit nfpa.org/xchange.

NFPA 72

Fire alarms, signaling, and
emergency communication

Fire alarm system roles
and responsibilities
By Wayne Moore
e know that a fire alarm
system installation goes
through many phases
before it is ready for use.
These phases include a
discussion with the owner about their
desired system performance and detection goals, system design, equipment
selection, and, finally, the installation and final acceptance tests for the
installed system. During this process
there are numerous players involved,
and each bears a responsibility to
ensure the fire alarm system installation meets both the owner's needs and
the requirements of the code.
In the 2019 edition of NFPA 72®,
National Fire Alarm and Signaling
Code®, Section 10.5 provides the qualification requirements for the system
designer; system installer; supervising station operators; inspection,
testing and service personnel; system
programmers; and plans examiners and
inspectors. Among the responsibilities
of the system designer is that they be
experienced in the design, application,
installation, and testing of fire alarm
systems. The designer in every case
must evaluate the building conditions,
determine building code requirements

W

N F PA . O R G / J O U R N A L * NFPA JOURNAL

| 39
http://www.nfpa.org/101next http://www.nfpa.org/101 http://www.nfpa.org/xchange http:// nfpa.org/journal
NFPA Journal - July/August 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - July/August 2019
