YORK, PENNSYLVANIA—Municipal water authorities can easily resolve liability concerns regarding the suspension of water service to state-mandated residential fire sprinklers, according to Paul McCulloch, NICET III, lead fire protection designer for Fire Safety at Uponor Inc.

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“Potential liability issues have been successfully resolved by more than 400 jurisdictions across the country that already require sprinklers in new-home construction,” said McCulloch, speaking on Nov. 5 at a joint meeting in York of the Central Section Water Works Operators’ Association of Pennsylvania (WWOAP) and the North and South Central Districts of the American Water Works Association (AWWA) of Pennsylvania.

McCulloch, who was recently appointed to the Residential Fire Sprinkler Design and Installation Exam Development Committee by the International Code Council® Board for International Professional Standards (BIPS), cited a number of examples of how jurisdictions have effectively indemnified water authorities that terminate water service to homes with fire sprinkler systems.

“When water service is suspended, code officials typically deem the dwelling uninhabitable, so there is no need for an operating fire sprinkler system,” said McCulloch, adding that sprinklers are designed to give homeowners precious minutes to escape a burning home. “Some jurisdictions limit potential liability by requiring homeowners to sign a water-termination document, acknowledging that a home’s fire sprinkler system has also been disabled.”

The continuing-education seminar reviewed the role that local water authorities play in implementing the 2009 International Residential Code (IRC), which among other new-building standards includes a requirement for fire sprinklers to be installed in all homes built after Jan. 1, 2011. The Commonwealth is one of two states that have adopted the new residential life-safety standard, commonly referred to as the National Fire Protection Association Standard (NFPA) 13D.

In his remarks, McCulloch also referenced a 2008 study by the Washington Water Utilities Council that found that multipurpose (“flow-through”) fire sprinkler designs offer the lowest cost of installation and the lowest amount of ongoing maintenance by a homeowner.

More than 75 water professionals took part in the daylong seminar and continuing-education program that featured multiple topics and presenters.

Uponor, Inc. is a leading supplier of plumbing, fire safety and radiant heating and cooling systems for the residential and commercial building markets in the United States. Uponor, Inc. employs 380 people at its North American headquarters in Apple Valley, Minn. For more information, visit www.uponor-usa.com or call (800) 321-4739.

For more information about Uponor, visit the Uponor media room at uponor.oreilly-depalma.com/

For editorial assistance, contact John O’Reilly c/o O'Reilly/DePalma at (815) 469-9100; e-mail: john.oreilly@oreilly-depalma.com

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Uponor, Wirsbo and AquaSAFE™ are trademarks or registered trademarks of Uponor Corporation and Uponor, Inc.

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Paul McCulloch is NICET Level III certified and has been designing, installing and training on residential fire sprinklers for more than 12 years. File Name: PaulMcCulloch.tif Image Size: 4" wide x 7" high x 300 ppi (1500 x 2100 pixels); CMYK.

Paul McCulloch, NICET III, lead fire protection designer for Fire Safety at Uponor Inc., said that municipal water authorities can easily resolve liability concerns as Pennsylvania gets ready to implement the 2009 International Residential Code (IRC), which among other new-building standards includes a requirement for fire sprinklers to be installed in all homes built after Jan. 1, 2011. File Name: DSCN0111.tif Image Size: 3.4" wide x 2.5" high x 300 ppi (1024 x 768 pixels); CMYK.

A Joint Meeting of the Central Section Water Works Operators’ Association of Pennsylvania and the North and South Central Districts of the American Water Works Association of Pennsylvania featured experts (L to R): Mark Snyder, City of York, Penn. Water Authority Engineering Department; Paul McCulloch, NICET III, lead fire protection designer for Fire Safety at Uponor Inc.; and John R Waters, Chief Fire Marshal and director of codes enforcement for Upper Merion Township. File Name: DSCN0112.tif Image Size: 3.5" wide x 2.5" high x 300 ppi (1024 x 768 pixels); CMYK.

More than 75 Pennsylvania water authority professionals partook in a discussion of the Commonwealth’s new building code requirement for fire sprinklers to be installed in all new homes starting January 2011. File Name: DSCN0102.tif Image Size: 3.5" wide x 2.5" high x 300 ppi (1024 x 768 pixels); CMYK.