BuildingReports Blog

The following is a reprint from the October 2018 issue of Industrial Fire World Magazine. The article has been reproduced in its entirety for your convenience, but you can also read the original by clicking here.

According to a 2002 report by the National Fire Protection Association, an average of 228 fires or explosions were reported in or at petroleum refineries or natural gas plants per year from 1994 to 1998. A more recent April 2016 report uncovered the following statistics:

We are pleased to announce the availability of new feature for AHJ, BuildingReports Service Member users, and Complimentary ComplianceCenter users of the ComplianceCenter report submittal system. Depending on your user type, you will see different options when clicking the new Help button while logged into the portal.

The BuildingReports development team launched a few updates to the portal overnight that you may have noticed upon logging in today. The following is a quick summary of those changes.

In the publication's March 27 Field Service Special issue, CIOReview not only honored BuidlingReports' suite of mobile inspection applications and web-based compliance reporting solutions, but also featured an interview with BuildingReports' President & Chief Technology Officer, Jason Kronz.

In today's advanced technological landscape, smart phones (perhaps more accurately described as mobile computers) and the "Internet of Things" (devices, vehicles, buildings and other items which are embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and network connectivity) are the norm. We can manage the temperature in a building remotely, we can start our cars with our cell phones and, in fact, those cars may be driving themselves before too long.

Given the fire and life safety industry has been relatively slow to adopt technology versus some other industries, it may not be surprising to learn there are a number of misconceptions about technology when it comes to code compliance and reporting. In fact, all primary Fire Codes now allow for electronic inspection reporting:

As a Facility Manager or Building Owner, you have to make sure your up to code keeping all of your tenants safe. But being up to code means more than just fixing a few electrical issues. There are hundreds (if not thousands) of ways to fail your building's fire inspection. That's why we've pulled together 10 of the most common shortcomings in the infographic below.

Did you know BuildingReports provides for the ability to include monitoring information on web-based inspection reports?

According to the changes in the 2010 updates, NFPA 72 now explicitly approves the use of alternative digital voice technologies, like Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP), and communication service providers, like cable companies, for fire monitoring purposes. All providers, including legacy analog phone companies, must meet the same monitoring performance requirements. BuildingReports has included the more detailed information in it's online reporting solution to satisfy these stricter requirements since the announcement went into effect.

As a sponsor of the 51st American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) Annual Conference and Technical Exhibition August 3-6 in Chicago, Illinois, BuildingReports provider event goers with an early glimpse at healthcare facility compliance performance. The data and analysis are based on data from the inaugural Fire & Life Safety Inspection Benchmark Report.