Fire Alarm

and Mass Chapter 9

Notification
Systems
Overview

Fire alarm systems are the primary life safety system for every building. Prop-
erly deployed, a fire alarm system reduces the probability of injury or loss of
life and limits damage due to fire, smoke, heat and other factors. Because of
their criticality, the codes, regulations and standards affecting the design and
installation of fire alarm systems are wide ranging and detailed. Their design
and installation must involve qualified, licensed, experienced professionals
and more important, the coordination and approval of the local authority hav-
ing jurisdiction (AHJ).

© 2010 Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.

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 104 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders

The two main organization addressing codes and standards for fire alarm
systems are the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Underwri-
ters Laboratories (UL). NFPA 70, 72, and 101 address the National Electrical
Code, National Fire Alarm Code, and Life Safety Code, respectively.
The National Fire Alarm Code addresses system design, location of devices,
testing procedures, performance requirements, and maintenance procedures.
The National Electrical Code covers the equipment and wiring of fire alarm
systems. The Life Safety Code covers more than buildings per se as it identifies
construction, protection, and occupancy features necessary for life safety.
Underwriters Laboratories is an independent product safety certification
organization that tests products and writes safety standards for fire alarm sys-
tem components such as control panels, smoke detecting heads, horns, and
pull stations.
Even given their life safety nature fire alarm systems are starting to utilize
IP-based functionality and should be integrated with other systems within a
smart building. The integration to other systems plays a critical role in mini-
mizing the effects of the fire. A fire alarm system will initiate communications
to other building automation and security systems to facilitate evacuation
from the building and containment of the fire.
Such systems include the following:

n Signaling the HVAC system to restrict and contain smoke, heat and fire
through dampers and fans
n Using the access control system to clear a path for building evacuation
by opening doors, unlocking secured doors, and releasing powered
exterior doors
n Using the access control system to contain and prevent the spread of
fire and smoke by closing interior doors
n Triggering emergency power for the fire alarm system and related sys-
tems operation, exit signs, and lighting for building exit routes
n “Capturing” the elevator and shutting down its operation

The fire alarm system must communicate with and control its system com-
ponents and it must also communicate with offsite facilities and organizations
such as the fire department and emergency services. The networking of the fire
alarm system components, like other systems, is accomplished with a cable
infrastructure and communication protocols.
The reliability of a fire alarm system is partially dependent on the system
cabling. Both the National Electrical Code and NFPA have specific guidelines
 Fire Alarm and Mass Notification Systems 105

to ensure proper system operation. Most alarm system devices must be cabled
so that there is a redundant wiring path from the control panel to ensure that
the device will function in the event that the cabling is damaged. Survivability
is critical.
Cabling between control panels may be standard structured cable, such as
twisted pair or fiber optic, allowing the parts of the fire alarm system to use
the same structured cable infrastructure that is used by other smart building
systems.
The communications protocols used by major fire alarm systems manu-
facturers typically conform to a BAS protocol such as BACnet or LonTalk
while some have introduced use of the IP protocol between major components
(Fig. 9.1).

Annunciator
Zone Zone Zone
1 2 3

Manual Fire Alarm Horns

FIRE FIRE FIRE

Water Flow Bells

Switches

HD HD HD Heat Detectors Chimes

Flashing
SD SD SD Smoke Detectors
Lights

Fire Alarm
Initiating Devices Control Panel Indicating Devices

Connections to
Power and
Other Systems
Emergency Power
and LAN

Figure 9.1 Basic fire alarm system.

 106 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders

Fire Alarm Control Panel

The heart of a fire alarm system is the primary fire alarm control panel
(FACP). The FACP monitors system integrity and starts all sequences of oper-
ation for system detection, suppression, and notification. FACPs are typically
microprocessor based with software for communications, processing and deci-
sion making.
FACPs gather data from system detection or indicating devices, process the
data, and then act on the data if need be; managing system alarms and sup-
pression systems as well as other building automation, security, and life safety
systems. FACPs can also detect failures within the system that require repair
and maintenance (Fig. 9.2).
Depending on the size of a building or the number of buildings on a campus,
an overall system may have a single central control unit or may have distributed
control units networked together to provide a unified and transparent system.
Field or remote control panels can be networked to a central panel. The relation-
ship between the central and field panels can be “peer-to-peer” or “master-
slave.” Field panels can be deployed for narrower, more specific functions such
as simply supplying power to alarm devices or used as a remote annunciator.
System devices assigned to a zone can be connected to the FACP either
through a direct connection, bus or loop topology. The NFPA designates
the performance of these connections or circuits. Class A circuits must be able

Figure 9.2 Fire alarm control panel.

 Fire Alarm and Mass Notification Systems 107

to transmit a signal even with an open or ground fault on the circuit while
Class B circuits need not. The loop connection can be “fault-tolerant” thus
allowing continual operation if there is a break in the cable or a device failure.
The connection of the FACP to the devices can be “addressable” or “super-
vised.” Before devices were addressable an alphanumeric display at the control
panel indicated which zone was affected. Addressable means that the FACP
can communicate to a single device or a group of devices depending on the
functions required and know the exact location of the device. Supervised
devices are monitored to ensure that they are still connected to the FACP
and are operational.
Regardless of whether devices are supervised or addressable the system is
required to continuously monitor their status. For addressable devices moni-
toring is accomplished by polling individual devices. For nonaddressable
devices monitoring is accomplished by sensing electric current. The FACP pro-
vides a small current which, if interrupted, indicates trouble such as a failed or
missing device.
A control panel is fed by standard branch-circuit wiring and typically
includes alphanumeric display and touchpad to provide information on the
state of the system. This allows a technician to shun an alarm or reprogram
or reset the systems. The panel may include batteries to provide power for
its operation if AC power fails.

A NNUNCIATOR P ANEL

A major component to the system is the annunciator panel attached to the

FACP. The annunciator provides visual and audible indications that an alarm
has been initiated as well as the location of the alarm. It may also identify the
functions that could affect the fire and the building occupants in the area.
A basic annunciator panel may have an alphanumeric display, and switches
to acknowledge and silence the alarm. More sophisticated annunciator panels
are equipped with a monitor or include a personal computer with a GUI
displaying floor plans of the building and the location of the alarm.

F IRE D ETECTION

Fire consists of smoke, heat, and light. The system components that detect the
fire and initiate an alarm monitor one or more of the fire’s characteristics. The
detection components of a fire alarm system are typically located in ceilings,
HVAC ducts, mechanical and electrical areas and equipment rooms.
 108 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders

They include but are not limited to the following:

n Pull stations, in which a person sees a fire and pulls the fire alarm
n Thermal detectors, which sense a rise in temperature or the high tem-
perature of a fire
n Smoke detectors, which sense vapors of small particles of carbon matter
generated by burning, including in-duct smoke detectors
n Flame detectors, which sense radiation and visible light from a fire
n Sprinkler water–flow sensors
n Fire-gas detectors, which sense gases such as carbon dioxide and
carbon monoxide
n Air-sampling fire detectors, which are the most sensitive type of detec-
tion available, and are used in high-value and critical environments
such as churches, clean rooms, hospitals, museums and communications
or network equipment rooms; this system typically uses tubes to contin-
ually draw air samples to a highly sensitive detector, and can detect a
precombustion stage of a fire prior to any visible smoke or flame

S UPPRESSION S YSTEMS

Fire suppression systems include the following:

n Wet sprinkler systems, which may comprise various switches and flow-
detection equipment that is monitored and managed
n Dry sprinkler systems, which may include pressure switches that are
monitored and managed
n Fire suppression systems may also include monitoring and supervision
equipment

N OTIFICATION D EVICES

Once a fire is detected a building’s occupants must be notified to evacuate the

building. Fire notification devices use audio, visual, or a combination signaling
to notify occupants. These devices are typically DC-powered so that they can
operate on backup batteries and they must also adhere to product compliance
 Fire Alarm and Mass Notification Systems 109

as determined by Underwriters Laboratories testing and listing guidelines for

use as a fire alarm notifier.
Fire alarm notification devices include, but are not limited to, the following:

n Bells
n Chimes
n Horns
n Speakers
n Strobes, including strobe lights combined with other devices

Monitoring

There are two fire alarm system classes:

1. A protected premise system, which is a single building or campus of

buildings under control of one owner and protected by a single system
where the system is monitored locally or remotely by the owner
2. A supervised station system, which is much like a protected premise sys-
tem except that the system is continuously monitored by a third-party
security or central monitoring company; monitoring is addressed in
the following ways:
 Local monitoring—When activated, a local alarm announces an
alarm in the area that it covers
 Remote monitoring—When activated, a local alarm will be monitored
remotely by building or campus personnel through a communica-
tions network
 Supervised station—When activated, a local alarm will be monitored
by an offsite company that provides recording, supervision and man-
agement of the fire alarm system

Communications and IP

The fire alarm system must call out in case of alarm. The NFPA code requires
that a fire alarm’s digital alarm communicator/transmitters (DACTs) be
connected to two independent means of communication to a supervising sta-
tion. Traditional fire alarm communications have used two dedicated phone
lines to call out to a supervising station or a primary telephone line with the
 110 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders

second method of communication being a cellular telephone, active multiplex,

derived local channel, one-way private microwave or one-way or two-way
radio frequency link.
In 2002 the NFPA 72 code adopted standards for IP technologies and later
stipulated requirements for use of other communications technologies includ-
ing a packet-switched data network (PSDN) such as IP and Ethernet. Internet
connections are now being used for one and possibly both communications
paths depending on the local AHJ. The Internet connection is faster, more
secure and costs less.
The Internet connection to fire alarm systems uses a dual-destination IP
receiver address, which provides for redundancy, can be encrypted, and can
be tested on a regular and frequent basis. Some central station receivers can
support up to three destination IP receiver addresses for extra equipment
redundancies providing more configuration options.
In addition to supplying another type of communications to the supervising
station, the two-way communications of an IP network are used by technicians
and managers to upload and download information to the control panel, such
as downloading alarm panel data, uploading program updates or performing
system tests remotely. Fire alarm systems are starting to deploy some use of
IP communications protocols in other areas such as between fire panels.
There is still substantial reliance on communications protocols developed
for building automation systems, such as BACnet and LonTalk; however,
these protocols can be easily routed to an IP system and embellishments of
some protocols, such as BACnet/IP, are evolving as the dominance of the IP
protocol is becoming more widely recognized.

M ASS N OTIFICATION S YSTEMS

Mass notification systems (MNS) are used to provide real-time descriptive

information and directions to people during fire and nonfire emergencies.
For example, many fire alarm systems have a paging system to notify building
occupants of a fire situation en masse. Mass notification systems cover not
only buildings, but campuses, cities, regions, and the globe; thus, MNS types
are for buildings, wide-area notification, and distributed notification. MNS
are used for fire situations, public alerts, emergency situation conditions and
warnings such as for severe weather.
MNS use a range of technologies to provide information and instructions to
people including speakers, electronic digital-message displays, computer inter-
faces (desktop alerts), reverse 911, SMS text messaging, commercial radio broad-
cast, cable TV, PDAs, cell phones, digital signage, strobe lights, and paging.
 Fire Alarm and Mass Notification Systems 111

Figure 9.3 LED signage for emergency notification.

A typical MNS includes a central server or control unit, a system adminis-

trative terminal or operating consoles, and a network of notification devices
such as speakers and digital signage. The system may be connected to the
Internet or a cellular service to broadcast notifications via those media. Out-
door systems may include outdoor speakers and sirens providing voice signals
or alarm tones such as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
weather warning tones. MNS have now been mandated in all U.S. Department
of Defense facilities (Fig. 9.3).
The MNS server or control unit, along with the administrative terminal, is
used to monitor and control notifications, that is, it generates and sends live or
prerecorded messages. The control unit is typically integrated with the fire
alarm control panel (FACP).
NFPA 72 has specific requirements for MNS and fire alarm systems. As of
this time, details of the design, installation, and testing requirements for MNS
are being developed for incorporation into a new chapter called Emergency
Communications Systems (ECS). The new requirements include risk analysis
of the probability and potential severity of events requiring emergency
response. There is also a requirement for two-way telephone radio communi-
cations service addressing the emergency responders on the ground communi-
cating with those in the building.

IP P AGING S YSTEMS

Legacy paging systems were typically a separate piece of equipment connected

to a PBX. Speakers were daisy chained in a paging “zone” and connected back
to the paging amplifier. Access to the paging systems was through a micro-
phone or a special call group in the telephone system.
Current systems are built on VoIP-type technology and IP end devices
including IP speakers. The network connectivity allows authorized users to
send and broadcast audio simultaneously to speakers and IP telephones. Some
 112 Smart Building Systems for Architects, Owners, and Builders

systems have the capability to concurrently send a multicast audio stream and
text messages that can be delivered to not only paging speakers and IP tele-
phones but also PCs and non-VoIP telephones.
Authorized users can create paging groups which are similar to the legacy
paging zones, but with much more functionality, thus allowing users to select
particular end devices for the group. Users can control broadcasts from a
PC or a web browser on an IP phone and send a live, recorded, or scheduled
broadcast to one or more paging groups.
The paging system uses IP-addressable speakers with the average speaker
utilizing power over Ethernet (POE) thus eliminating the need for local power.
Paging horns, which require about 20 watts, will need POE Plus. All speakers
can be centrally controlled and managed via the network.
Some manufacturers of IP paging systems have integrated their products
into contact closure devices, generally associated with an access control system
to monitor which doors are open or closed. The contact closure at a door is
integrated with the paging system so that an open contact or open door can
trigger a page.