Chapter 12 Table of Contents. View the entire chapter in a PDF format. Please use the pdf for printing.

Requirements:
General (5.1)

The fire and life safety program at SLAC is based on specific DOE orders and federal regulations addressing quality assurance, facility safety, and worker health and safety. DOE Order 420.1B details the specific DOE-mandated elements of a contractor (for example, SLAC) fire protection program. . (See Section 3, “Standards”, for a list of DOE orders and regulations.)

Design and Construction Review for Conventional Facilities (5.1.1)

The four SLAC organizational units that may oversee conventional facility construction are the Facilities Department, Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL), Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), and the Environment, Safety, and Health Division (ES&H). Since most conventional facility construction projects with an estimated cost exceeding $2,000 are subject to federal Davis-Bacon provisions, most conventional facility construction activity at SLAC is subcontracted. Code compliance oversight for conventional construction design and construction is currently addressed through the Building Inspection Office.

Conventional Facility Plan Review (5.1.1.1)

All plans for construction and building modification projects will be reviewed for fire safety by the appropriate project engineer or building manager. The project engineer or building manager must obtain a documented review of plans, specifications, procedures and acceptance tests for construction and building modification projects from a fire protection engineer (see DOE O 420.1B). The fire marshal will perform this service in conjunction with the Building Inspection Office.

For construction work that is to be subcontracted, the fire marshal provides fire safety reviews of plans for modification of any part of an exit path or fire safety system in conjunction with the Building Inspection Office plan check process (see Chapter 42, "Subcontractor Construction Safety").

In addition to the above requirements, SLAC requires that building managers obtain a fire safety review from the Building Inspection Office before modifying any part of an exit path (see the Building Manager Program Manual [pdf]).

Fire Safety Inspection for Conventional Facility Construction (5.1.1.2)

For subcontracted projects, inspection is provided by the Building Inspection Office (see Chapter 42, "Subcontractor Construction Safety"). The building inspector may call upon the fire marshal for specialty reviews of passive and active fire protection systems.

Conventional Facility Acceptance (5.1.1.3)

Approval to occupy a building is given by the Building Inspection Office. For projects that may impact fire safety, the building inspector will consult with the fire marshal and verify acceptance of fire protection features prior to granting occupancy approval.

Fire Protection Self-assessment (5.1.1.4)

The Office of Assurance will conduct fire protection program self-assessments (see Chapter 33, "Line Management Self-assessment").

Design and Construction Review for Experimental Equipment (5.1.2)

Experimental equipment may be quite large, of high value, and contain significant potential fire or life safety hazards. Fire protection design oversight of such equipment is managed through the Fire Protection Safety Committee (see Chapter 31, "Institutional ES&H Committees"). At the request of the Safety Oversight Committee, reviews of specific conventional facilities may also be undertaken by the Fire Protection Safety Committee, thus overlapping with the building inspection review process.

Fire and Life Safety Inspection (5.1.3)

Fire Department Inspection (5.1.3.1)

The Fire Department will conduct annual fire safety inspections for occupied structures. Unoccupied structures (for example, storage containers) will be inspected at least triennially. After the inspection, the Fire Department will issue a report of any findings to building managers and the fire marshal. Building managers are responsible for implementing corrections. The fire marshal maintains a database of this building inspection information.

Annual and Quarterly Line Manager ES&H Inspections (5.1.3.2)

Line managers, including building managers, periodically conduct an ES&H self-inspection that contains fire safety elements. The inspections are conducted in accordance with requirements of Chapter 33 for line managers and the Building Manager Program Manual [pdf] for building managers.

Exit Path Safety Reviews (5.1.3.3)

Building managers will obtain a fire safety review from the Building Inspection Office before modifying any part of an exit path (see Building Manager Program Manual [pdf]).

Equipment and Facilities Maintenance and Use (5.1.4)

Fire protection systems can be active or passive.

Active systems include

• Automatic fire suppression systems, such as sprinkler, clean agents, carbon dioxide, and dry chemical systems
• Water supply mains, hydrants, and fire lanes
• Portable fire extinguishers
• Smoke and heat detectors and evacuation alarms

Passive systems include

• Fire doors and dampers
• Fire barrier walls and penetrations

In addition, there are life safety components in the building exiting system, including

• Emergency lighting
• Exit signs
• Handrails in exit stairs
• Exit door hardware

Requirements for such equipment will generally be established as part of design review and fire safety inspection. For more details on these systems, see Fire and Life Safety: Fire Protection Equipment Guidelines [pdf].

Fire Protection and Life Safety Exiting Systems Maintenance and Modification (5.1.4.1)

Both passive and active fire protection systems and life safety exiting systems are maintained in-house by the Facilities Department, except for the following systems or components, for which maintenance is contracted out:

• Portable fire extinguishers (serviced by the Stanford Fire Marshal's Office)
• Fixed wet chemical and dry chemical fire extinguishing systems
• Five-year fire sprinkler system testing

Active fire protection systems may be shut down or restored only by Facilities fire technicians after notifying the Fire Department and the fire marshal. Removal of a system from service is subject to fire marshal approval. The relevant building manager must be notified prior to anyone performing activities that will modify fire barriers, affect building exiting, or interfere with active fire protection systems (see Fire and Life Safety: Fire Protection System Impairment Procedures [pdf]).

Exiting system components are the responsibility of the building manager. Impairments of passive fire protection systems are conducted under the oversight of the building manager as well as of project managers for individual projects that affect those barriers.

Portable Fire Extinguisher Maintenance and Use (5.1.4.2)

Fire extinguisher locations are provided during facility design using NFPA 10 siting and selection requirements. (In particular, see annexes B and C of NFPA 10 for detailed selection guidance.) The extinguishers are provided as a part of the procurement contract. Fire extinguishers are classified by the government as collateral equipment.

Portable fire extinguishers will be inspected monthly by building managers or their designees (see Building Manager Program Manual [pdf]) and serviced annually by technicians from the Stanford University Fire Marshal's Office under an agreement with SLAC.

Portable fire extinguishers are provided for the use of trained personnel. Extinguisher training is provided by the Fire Department through arrangement with the ES&H Training Group (see Section 5.3, “Training”).

Fire Hydrant Flushing and Testing (5.1.4.3)

Fire hydrants are inspected and flushed once per year by the Fire Department. Flushing involves opening the hydrant butt(s) to flow water for the purpose of cleaning sediment and debris out of the hydrant and piping. Fire hydrant flow testing involves the same procedure as flushing except that the water flow and pressure are measured and compared to historical records. Fire hydrants are tested as requested by the fire marshal. Tests are conducted by the Fire Department. Hydrant flushing and flow testing are considered authorized discharges under SLAC's general permit for stormwater discharge (see Chapter 26, "Stormwater"). The Fire Department takes special precautions to dechlorinate hydrant flush or test water as it flows to the storm drain

Weed Abatement (5.1.4.4)

Grass and weed abatement is required on a periodic basis to ensure that the natural landscape does not present a fire threat to SLAC buildings and personnel. The weed abatement program is managed through Facilities, in cooperation with the Fire Department and the SLAC fire marshal.

Hazardous Activities (5.1.5)

Hazardous activities that pose a significant fire threat include open flame operations (such as welding and brazing), spark producing operations (such as metal cutting or grinding), storage or use of large amounts of combustible solid materials, handling of flammable or combustible liquids or oxidizers, and smoking. Electrical activities also have the potential to create a significant ignition hazards.

Fire Prevention Hot Work (5.1.5.1)

A permit is required for any fire prevention hot work, including hot work that is done outside, on SLAC property. Supervisors must obtain a permit before work may begin. In the event an active fire protection system is impaired in an area for which a hot work permit is requested, the fire marshal will normally deny or rescind the permit. Permits are available on a temporary (eight-day) or annual basis (see Fire and Life Safety: Fire Prevention Hot Work Procedures [pdf]).

Combustible Materials Handling (5.1.5.2)

Combustible materials will be handled in compliance with Fire and Life Safety: Limiting Fire Hazards Guidelines [pdf]. Materials handling represents a significant overlap between fire safety and hazardous materials management (see Chapter 40, "Hazardous Materials")

Flammable and Combustible Liquids and Oxidizers (5.1.5.3)

Requirements for flammable and combustible liquids and oxidizers used in laboratories or industrial-style processes are addressed in Chapter 40, "Hazardous Materials". Flammable or combustible liquids and oxidizers considered to be hazardous waste are addressed in Chapter 17, "Hazardous Waste".

Smoking (5.1.5.4)

Smoking on SLAC property is restricted to specifically designated areas. These designated smoking areas all must

1. Include fire-proof disposal containers
2. Be least 20 feet from readily combustible or flammable materials
3. Be at least 20 feet away from any doorway, walkway, air intake, or functional window
4. Not be in a pathway that a non-smoker must use to enter a building
5. Include signage reading DESIGNATED SMOKING AREA

Smoking is expressly prohibited along the linac roads, in any area near grasslands, and in SLAC or General Services Administration vehicles.

Barbequing (5.1.5.5)

Barbequing, as well as any other use of open flames, on SLAC property requires a fire prevention hot work permit (see Section 5.1.5.1, “Fire Prevention Hot Work”). A representative of the SLAC fire marshal will inspect the barbeque location to evaluate the risk and recommend controls. If the barbeque location is not viable, recommendations will be provided for safer barbeque locations.

Electrical Ignition Hazards (5.1.5.6)

Electrical ignition hazards are primarily caused by misuse or malfunction of electrical systems leading to inadvertent arcing or overheating. Two electrical hazards are of particular concern for fire prevention because they can arise in any office setting:

1. Overloading of electrical wall outlets (such as through daisychaining of extension cords)
2. Mis-use of portable office heaters, including the introduction of unlisted heaters that lack basic safety features and the placing of heaters too close to combustible material

(See Chapter 8, "Electrical Safety", for requirements to minimize these hazards.)

Personnel (5.1.6)

Design and Construction Review (5.1.6.1)

University technical representatives (UTRs) will be trained through the UTR program. Any fire protection engineer providing design and construction review services will be qualified under DOE criteria.

Inspection (5.1.6.2)

Building and area managers will be trained through the building manager program in the use of appropriate checklists and other aids for conducting effective building inspections. Firefighters conducting building inspections are trained through the Palo Alto Fire Department Fire Prevention training program.

Equipment Maintenance (5.1.6.3)

Maintenance of fire protection systems will be performed by personnel with appropriate trade and manufacturer training. In particular, fire alarm technicians modifying site fire alarm systems shall be certified by the manufacturer for the model of system on which they are working. Subcontractors engaging in fire suppression system installation must possess a current California C-16 contractor's license. Subcontractors engaging in fire alarm system installation must possess a current C-10 license.

Use of Portable Fire Extinguishers (5.1.6.4)

Only trained personnel may use portable fire extinguishers. The relevant training is required for individuals engaging in certain hot work; it is optional for others.

continue to Requirements, Roles & Responsibilities (5.1.7)