Essential Hospital Life Safety Design: Compliance with IBC and NFPA 101
Designed to be both informative and actionable, this session equips attendees with tools to better collaborate with engineers, code consultants, and authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) to create projects that are both compliant and safe.
About the live course
Designing health care facilities requires a deep understanding of life safety systems that protect patients, staff, and visitors. This presentation is tailored to expand designers’ knowledge of life safety requirements and gain practical tools for integrating these critical elements into hospital and ambulatory care design. Through an exploration of passive fire protection strategies, attendees will gain clarity on the often complex and overlapping requirements found in the International Building Code (IBC) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards. We will look at egress requirements tailored to health care occupancies and explore how to approach egress planning that meets code, supports operations, and prioritizes life safety.
The session will address active systems in addition to passive strategies, offering an overview of basic design requirements for fire alarm and sprinkler systems. Designed to be both informative and actionable, it equips attendees with tools to better collaborate with engineers, code consultants, and authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) to create compliant and safe projects.
Hosted in partnership with the Academy of Architecture for Health (AAH).
- Understand passive fire protection strategies, including similarities and differences between the IBC and NFPA requirements for each system.
- Identify the requirements for each passive system, including wall construction, door hardware, duct penetrations, and firestopping.
- Analyze and understand how to implement egress requirements in hospital and ambulatory health care settings.
- Consider basic design requirements for fire alarm and fire sprinkler systems as well as highlight common deficiencies.
Learn practical strategies for inclusive design through a real-world case study at the Washington State School for the Blind.
