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The High-Piled Storage Application Guide was developed to assist code officials and design professionals in the proper application of Chapter 23 of the 2006 International Fire Code. High-piled combustible storage allows for a greater amount of combustible materials within a given floor area. This increased fuel load increases the potential for the development of a fire that can rapidly grow and spread, causing great property losses resulting from smoke and fire damage.
This Application Guide explains the requirements for the classification of commodities, including Group A, B and C plastics, the requirements for High Piled Storage Areas, and provides a detailed explanation of the various storage methods and how they contribute the growth and spread of fire. This Application Guide introduces the user to the requirements of the 2002 edition of NFPA 13, Installation of Sprinkler Systems, for storage occupancies. It includes information on the various methods of design, including control mode and suppression mode sprinkler and the variables that have the greatest impact on the design and performance of the automatic sprinkler system. Finally, the High-Piled Combustible Storage Application Guide includes a case study of a fire involving a sprinklered Group M Occupancy using High Piled Combustible Storage, and analyzes contributing factors to the performance of the sprinkler system.
Chapter 23 of the 2006 International Fire Code establishes minimum requirements for the protection of these storage occupancies. These include requirements for automatic sprinkler systems designed in accordance with NFPA 13: Installation of Sprinkler Systems when certain area thresholds are exceeded, separation of high hazard commodities from less hazardous commodities, controlling ignition sources, and providing a means for rapid fire department access. Other controls are specified throughout the chapter to address the hazards associated with solid pile, palletized, rack and automated storage systems.
The Application Guide:
- Explains the requirements for the classification of commodities including Group A, B and C plastics.
- Discusses the requirements for high piled storage areas.
- Provides a detailed explanation of various storage methods and how they contribute to the growth and spread of fire.
- Introduces the user to the requirements of the 2002 edition of NFPA 13 for storage occupancies.
- Includes information on the various methods of automatic sprinkler system design, including control mode and suppression mode sprinklers and the variables that have the greatest impact on the design and performance of the automatic sprinkler system.
- Contains a case study of a fire involving a sprinklered Group M Occupancy using high piled combustible storage that analyzes contributing factors to the performance of the sprinkler system.
From the Preface
Consumer demands are diverse, and multiple types and styles of parts or goods are constantly being manufactured and updated. As a result, high-piled combustible storage is used so that individual components are available to fulfill the desires of the consumer. High-piled combustible storage is economical to manufacturers and their logistics or supply chains because more goods can be stored within a given area through the use of solid-pile, palletized, rack, or automated carousel storage. This allows more material to be stored within a given building area, which reduces the cost of storage or display for each square foot of Group S (storage) or Group M (mercantile) building area.
High-piled combustible storage allows for a greater amount of combustible materials within a given floor area. This increased fuel load increases the potential fire-dollar-loss for each square foot of floor area. Property losses resulting from smoke and fire damage of goods within a building in many cases can surpass the construction cost of the building itself.
It is challenging in buildings housing high-piled combustible storage to verify the adequacy of the automatic sprinkler system. In the past 15 years, the fire protection engineering community has witnessed the proliferation of a variety of new automatic sprinklers that are designed specifically for high-piled combustible storage. The available methods of design have also increased, and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) requirements for automatic sprinkler protection contine to be extensively modified.
In addition to the new sprinkler designs, specific design criteria for large retail facilities has been added to NFPA Standard 13 as a result of full-scale fire tests performed in testing laboratories. These criteria are very detailed and are influenced by commodity arrangement, the layout of racks and shelves, and the method of commodity storage.
This High-Piled Combustible Storage Application Guide is intended to familiarize code officials and design professionals with Chapter 23 of the 2006 International Fire Code, "High-Piled Combustible Storage," and the requirements in Section 413 of the 2006 International Building Code. This Guide will also introduce fire code professionals to the requirements for storage occupancies in the 2002 edition of NFPA 13, Installation of Sprinkler Systems. It will include an analysis of the three methods of automatic sprinkler design for storage occupancies and the variables that can affect the performance of an automatic sprinkler system designed for the protection of high-piled combustible storage.
The information and opinions expressed in this application guide are those of the present and past authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the International Code Council. Additionally, the opinions may not represent the viewpoint of any enforcing agency. Opinions expressed in this publication are only intended to be a resource in the application of International Fire Code Chapter 23 and NFPA 13, and the code official is not obligated to accept such opinions. The code official is the final authority in rendering interpretations of the code and its adopted standards. |
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