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White paper

Effective Planning for

Fire/Life Safety Upgrades

Facility executives have two choices for upgrading fire/life safety systems. One

is to wait until the entire system is so old that it has to be replaced. The other

alternative is to modernize the system in smaller, regular steps. This phased

modernization enables facility executives to budget more effectively for

upgrades while accelerating the adoption of new technology. Phased

modernization also reduces the cost and difficulties of maintaining aging fire/

life safety systems.

This white paper addresses crucial fire/life safety issues that facility

executives should consider when planning upgrades including:

• Advances in fire/life safety system technology

• Problems with aging fire/life safety systems

• Why most facility executives use phased modernization

• Budgeting for fire/life safety system upgrades

• Minimizing disruptions with upgrades

Summary of content (5 pages)

PAGE 1
Effective Planning for Fire/Life Safety Upgrades Facility executives have two choices for upgrading fire/life safety systems. One is to wait until the entire system is so old that it has to be replaced. The other alternative is to modernize the system in smaller, regular steps. This phased modernization enables facility executives to budget more effectively for upgrades while accelerating the adoption of new technology.
PAGE 2
Whether it’s alarms, detectors, control panels or monitoring and reporting systems, today’s fire/life safety systems are far more advanced than systems that are 10 years old or older. New systems are addressable and often offer Internet connectivity and emergency announcement capabilities. They have networking capabilities and may use management station/computer-based annunciation and control. Upgrades to new technology can bring significant benefits.
PAGE 3
control panel the first priority. One reason the modernization might begin at the panel is that the phased modernization will be adding more alarm/detector lines in subsequent years. The panel is connected to the existing periphery units, which then can be replaced line-by-line as necessary. Advantages to starting with the control panel include integration of security and building automation systems. Facility personnel benefit immediately from the control panel’s ease of use, as compared to older panels.
PAGE 4
“Available capital dollars” drives phased modernization of the fire/ life safety system at Rapides Regional Medical Center, says Butterfield. Fire/life safety modernization is “always in competition for the same monies that are used to replace CT scanners, lab equipment and the newest surgical device,” he says. But he finds funding is “no more difficult than funding any other worthwhile project.
PAGE 5
When such projects span several phases, the contractor installing the system ends up coming back to the site multiple times. “Pricing strung out in this manner will end up costing the building owner more,” says Baldassarra, “as compared to mobilizing the fire/life safety installers once on the site and getting it over with.” But phased modernization makes sense in most cases. Simply waiting until capital funds are available to do a wholesale replacement on an aging system can be risky.