Real-Life Communication
Good communication skills are as important in the field of fire protection
as technical knowledge.
Shannon Arnold is a fire protection technician.
Her work brings her in touch with the public, so she needs clear communication
skills. In fact, one part of the job requires her to enforce local standards
and codes, and may create some tense moments. But that has not been the case
yet, Arnold says.
She says the public is quite receptive towards her
and her colleagues because most people want to know how they can prevent fires.
"So I never really had a rough encounter [while on inspection]," she says.
You're
working as a fire protection technician. You inspect buildings for insurance
purposes, to make sure building owners are maintaining their buildings to
the proper insurable standards.
You have to know the building codes
and the fire safety codes.
One day you run across a particularly cantankerous
owner who wants you to explain to him why you're looking at the doors in his
apartment building's hallway. So you give him the page out of the fire safety
code book that tells why you're you inspecting the doors.
"I can't understand
all that mumbo jumbo -- just tell me in plain English what you're doing,"
he says.
Explain the following codes to the gentleman using plain English.
2.2.2.2
Closures
- 2.2.2.4. Inspection and Maintenance
- (1) Defects that interfere with the operation of closures in fire separations
shall be corrected, and such closures shall be maintained to ensure that they
are operable at all times by:
- a) keeping fusible links and other heat-actuated devices undamaged and
free of paint and dirt,
- b) keeping guides, bearings and stay rolls clean and lubricated,
- c) making necessary adjustments and repairs to door hardware and accessories
to ensure proper closing and latching and,
- d) repairing or replacing inoperative parts of hold-open devices and automatic
releasing devices.
- (2) Doors in fire separations shall be inspected daily to ensure that
they remain closed unless the door is equipped with an acceptable hold-open
device that will permit the door to close automatically in the event of a
fire.
- (3) Doors in fire separations shall be operated at least monthly to ensure
that they are properly maintained in accordance with Sentence (1)
- (4) Closures in fire separations shall not be blocked or wedged open.
- (5) Fire dampers and fire-stop flaps shall be inspected yearly to ensure
that they are in place and are not obviously damaged or obstructed.
Definitions:
Closure -- means closing
an opening through a "fire separation" or an exterior wall, such as a door,
a shutter, wired glass, or glass block. It includes all components such as
hardware, closing devices, frames and anchors.
Fire separation
-- a construction assembly that acts as a barrier against the spread of fire.