New options--and new requirements

Building Operating Management, Nov 1998 by Vergetis, Barbara L

Progress or problem? With many recent and proposed changes to codes, standards and regulations, the jury is still out

KNOWING WHAT'S GOING ON in the world of codes and standards has always been vital to facility executives. That's especially true today. Whether general building codes, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), fire protection codes or BACnet standards, there's a lot to keep up with.

The International Building Code

Inconsistency among building codes has long been a Concern among facility executives. Often, adjoining communities and states use a completely different set of codes when constructing or renovating similar facilities. It's a particular problem for organizations with a national presence.

The International Code Council (ICC) - composed of Building Officials and Code Administrators International (BOCA), the International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO) and the Southern Building Code Congress International (SBCCI)- is working to consolidate the three model codes into one, the International Codes. ICC is also seeking to encourage states and local jurisdictions to adopt codes without technical amendments.

For facility executives already familiar with individual model codes, the impact of the International Codes should be minimal, says Ken Schoonover, vice president, codes and standards, BOCA. The individual model codes have been the basis for the International Codes. The main difference: Current model codes are prescriptive - they communicate compliance requirements. For example, if the code requires walls with a two-hour fire rating, it will also specify the amount of drywall, concrete or masonry needed. By contrast, the Inter national Code shifts to performance-based codes in which owners and designers will be responsible for determining that they are meeting code criteria.

"To the owner of an existing facility, the new code may not have a huge impact until the remodeling of a building built under a different code," says Jim Quiter, a senior vice president with Rolf Jensen and Associates. "At that point, the facility owner has the burden of proving that what he did was safe under performance codes, instead of having the cookbook of the prescriptive code to fall back on."

While this approach offers greater flexibility, it also requires greater design expertise and expense. Further, many feel performance-based codes will be unenforceable and leave too much responsibility to the code officials in each jurisdiction. Local code officials won't have the time needed to devote to each project to review compliance, according to Scott Nacheman, architectural designer and engineer, LZA.

In some areas of the country, facility executives will notice technical differences between codes because different codes now exist in different regions.

The International Codes will be ready in 2000. "Some states and local communities will adopt the International Codes quickly, others over a period of years," says Schoonover. "And some will continue to use individual model codes."

International Fire Code

Originally, the International Fire Code (IFC) was being developed jointly by the ICC and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Due to philosophical and political differences, collaboration was halted. Since then, the ICC has proceeded to develop the IFC. NFPA has also continued its work on the Fire Prevention Code.

"It is unfortunate that this parting of the ways occurred," says Nacheman. "The partnership was formed to establish a single code under a single title without any reference to other codes and standards. The code was to have been comprehensive in itself, and there was to have been no problem determining which code to use on certain overlapping issues. Now there will once again be competition."

Unlike the International Building Code (IBC) - which applies only to new construction, alterations or changes in occupancy type - IFC will apply to all buildings.

According to the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International, the current IFC draft could impose additional requirements on new construction, extensive retrofits in existing buildings and operational obligations on facility professionals. For example, says BOMA:

The draft has requirements for new construction that exceed those in the IBC. For example, the IFC would require sprinklers in any new building greater than 55 feet tall - not 75 feet, as in the IBC.

In existing buildings, the IFC draft includes two layers of existing building requirements -- areas where specific provisions for existing buildings are included (such as sprinkler and fire alarm requirements), and those where no differentiation between new and existing buildings is made; in the latter cases, BOMA believes, the requirements would apply to both new and existing buildings.

*These new codes are still in their early stages," says Nacheman. "Until more validation of performance criteria can be finalized, it is hard to say what is adequate."

Ellerbe Becket and ADA

When the architectural firm Ellerbe Becket was contracted to design sports arenas and stadiums, it followed the letter of the ADA, but not its spirit, according to the U.S. District Court of Minnesota.