The time has finally come for me to clear out my office in preparation for 3 new specwriter apprentices to join the New England SSC. I have been working from my home office for years and will be temporarily relocating (more on that later), so today is the day I clean house.
I love when door-related issues go viral, and "regular" people focus on doors for a change. Unfortunately, it usually takes a broken door to make people notice. Just in time for Fixed-it Friday, here's one from the Milwaukee Brewers blog, about when Bob Uecker and his crew got stuck in the radio booth during a game (click the photo to visit their blog)...
Instead of Wordless Wednesday, I need some help identifying a product. It's in a detention facility. If you know the manufacturer, model number, and/or purpose, leave a comment!
Last week I published a blog post on my excitement about the upcoming CoNEXTions event, which was cancelled later that day because of ongoing civil unrest in Baltimore. I received the Karpen Steel newsletter today which shares Rachel Smith's perspective, and I asked for permission to share this letter here...
This article, which appears in the May 2015 issue of Doors & Hardware, is a good explanation of lock functions that might be helpful when a school is considering how to address classroom security. I will add this to the list of resources on my Schools tab (above)...
Christy Cross of Schiller Architectural Hardware sent in today's Fixed-it Friday photos of a lock repair seen on a restaurant mens' room...
A fire door is being credited with keeping flames contained at a Sturgis manufacturing building...Three people were found unconscious in a stairwell filled with smoke...As Fire Chief Drake put it, the simple act of closing the door can save the lives and contents behind it...
The IBC allows key-operated locks in some locations - do you think this lock is compliant with the language below if the required signage is included? And for extra credit, who knows what kind of lock this is? :)
I can understand politicians would have a hard time voting against anything that’s supposed to help protect children in an active shooter situation. On the other hand, I’m not happy with the rationale that suggests that because school fires are on the decline but active shooters are on the rise, this type of locking system can be used...
Wednesday, 2:00-4:30 p.m. and Thursday, 9:45 a.m.-12:20 p.m. I'll be in Room 337 teaching Code Jeopardy! Each session is 45 minutes long and there are 2 different sessions with completely different questions...
These Fixed-it Friday photos depict one school's method for providing classroom security. The outside lever is kept locked at all times, so closing the door is all that's required to secure the classroom during an emergency. But having a classroom door locked all the time can be inconvenient - someone has to open the door each time a student or staff member wants to enter...
The Door Security & Safety Foundation recently published their position on school safety and classroom barricade devices. I have added this link to the Schools tab above.
2015 IBC: 1010.1.9 Door operations. Except as specifically permitted by this section, egress doors shall be readily openable from the egress side without the use of a key or special knowledge or effort...
A couple of months ago I wrote a post about murals in health care occupancies and a change to the 2015 edition of NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code. I just read an article in Australian Ageing Agenda about the practice of disguising doors in memory care units, and how this affects the patients...
I'm spending time at a VA hospital, where my father is currently in hospice care. Even under these circumstances I can't help looking at the hardware, and I know my father would tell me to go ahead and share it. I haven't taken many photos but there are a couple below. In case I don't get a chance to post tomorrow, consider this an early Fixed-it Friday post...
I can't believe how many photos of duct-taped doors I have posted (here are a few: 1, 2, 3)! Debbie White of Allegion sent me this one. Wow...
Flush bolts are used on pairs of doors to secure the inactive leaf, projecting into the frame head and into a floor strike. In this application, the active leaf would typically have a lockset which latches into a strike mounted on the edge of the inactive leaf...
Here is one more whiteboard animation (for now)...this one explains some of the basic operations of a door closer. All of these videos, including the ones I previously posted on panic hardware, lock functions, and door handing, can be found on the Allegion Training videos page...
Most door closers used today are surface-mounted closers with a double-lever arm. These closers fall into two categories – application-specific, and universal. A universal closer is best when the field conditions are unknown, or when flexibility is a top priority. Application-specific closers give the specifier and supplier more control over how the door closer is mounted...
In a post last week I shared a photo from John Gant of Allegion, showing a bank of doors with a floor-proximity illuminated exit sign. After reading some comments discussing whether the second set of doors was visible enough, John thought we might like to see a larger view of these doors. What do you think?
This is a shorter version of my article Barricade Device? Think Twice! that can be used in newsletters if the original article is too long. Please leave a comment below if you submit either article for publication, including the name of the publication and the approximate date.
This news report is a great Fixed-it Friday example of how the city of Barrie, Ontario is going to fix their fire code violations - by giving fire inspectors the ability to hand out tickets for violations on the spot. The fine for propping open fire doors? $350 each!
To all of my gal-pals who read iDigHardware, I hope you choose the beautiful door. :)
John Gant of Allegion sent me a very interesting question this morning (well, it was interesting to me anyway!). This photo was taken at a new athletic center in Vermont. The kick plates have luminous "EXIT" signage on them, and John was told that this was a code requirement...
Here is my second draft script for an upcoming whiteboard animation video. I really appreciate everyone who made suggestions for yesterday's script - I have made some changes. Please comment if there is anything I need to add or change for this video about a very important topic.
Why? Because it's easier and less expensive to secure the door when you don't consider codes or safety.
I have explained door handing hundreds of times during my career. I know some people still use the "butt-to-the-butts" method, but that doesn't work for all door openings because it doesn't take into account whether the door is inswinging or outswinging. I explained handing on this site a while back, but just to make it more fun...
When I stopped for a snack yesterday, I didn't expect to be called into service on a defective door that was threatening to crush someone while simultaneously preventing egress. The fun never stops...
I recently received a question from Al Rivas at Contract Hardware, which had me stumped. Al pointed out a mismatch in the opening protective requirements of the International Building Code (IBC). In the 2012 and 2015 editions, Table 716.5 establishes the required rating of the opening protectives for various types of walls...
I'm at the BHMA Codes and Government Affairs meeting in sunny Fort Lauderdale, and the "public service announcement" below was just shown during our discussion about codes that pertain to the use of barricade devices in schools. It illustrates the marketing methods used by some of the manufacturers of these locking devices. I will remain Wordless, but you don't have to!
I received today's Wordless Wednesday photo from both Don Funsch of Commercial Mill and Builders Supply and Chuck Park of Fire Door Inspection Service. Be forewarned. Don't exit unless you're willing to be run over.
Take a close look around the next time you’re in a school building. Notice the fire alarms, extinguishers, rescue windows and frequent drills? They can all be traced back to that fateful day, experts say. “All of that put together has made our school buildings so safe when it comes to fires,” said David G. Hess, Cleveland Hill’s director of facilities. “That fire has really made a difference.”
Lt. Joseph A. Hendry Jr. , CLEE - "As I'm reading the open source material on the German plane crash, I keep returning to one thought: Someone developed a fail safe way to keep people out of the cockpit, without adequately thinking about what would happen if the threat was already in the cockpit."
This photo may be one of my favorite Fixed-it Friday photos ever. It was sent to me by Michael Carney of Allegion. This application is in place on the roof door and all of the fire escape access doors in a dormitory high-rise. A very creative way to install an exit alarm, but I don't know how secure or how durable it is...
This video offers some good options for school security, along with predicted outcomes of the Sandy Hook lawsuit regarding security glazing and lockable classroom doors. We need to make schools SAFE AND SECURE - these goals are not mutually exclusive.
The Schlage® NDE Series wireless lock with ENGAGE technology has been selected as a finalist in the Architizer A+ Awards in the Hardware category! The winner is determined by the product that gets the most votes...you can vote here until April 3rd!
The Leelanau County Sheriff's Department received $128,750 from a Michigan State Police school safety grant, and Sheriff Mike Borkovich said every penny will go toward installing a tool designed to make doors impenetrable. "I think it's very much just like a caveman picking up a gigantic rock and putting it on the front of its cave," Borkovich said. "You are not going to be able to go through that door. It buys us time."
Today's Wordless Wednesday photo was sent to me by Lee Francisco and Jerry Rice of DH Pace. The "Remove for Exit" bar makes this exit non-compliant.
A question hit my inbox a few weeks ago that I had never considered before: Does a door with spring hinges require the same maneuvering clearance as a door with a door closer?
Many of you figured out right away that someone has taken fire exit hardware designed for a 3-foot-wide door and installed it on a 4-foot-wide door. The original mechanism tube has been replaced with one from a 4-foot device, and a filler plate fills the area where the wider touchpad should be...
I've edited this article and the downloadable PDF - feel free to share it!...There is a question currently under debate in several jurisdictions across the country – should barricade devices be used to secure classroom doors during an active-shooter incident?
Today's Fixed-it Friday photo was sent in by Rick Turcotte of Horner Commercial Sales. A few questions for you: a) This is a 4'-wide stairwell door. What's wrong with this picture?...
A bill to change the state fire code and allow barricade devices in Arkansas schools is moving through the legislative process, despite "strong objections" from State Police Capt. Lindsey Williams, who serves as state fire marshal. Several politicians including an Arkansas state senator are investors in a company that makes barricade devices - ULockitSecurity...
The National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM) has posted a document on their website which offers that support, by providing guidance on the use of classroom door security and locking hardware. The 6-page document includes a suggested classroom door checklist, with code references for each item on the list...
There was an important change to the 2015 International Building Code (IBC) that could help to reduce the occurrence of child abduction from hospitals. Many maternity wards have infant abduction systems that use a sensor to activate a delayed egress lock when a baby is taken near the exit. But for some facilities, delayed egress locks may not be enough...
Today's Fixed-it Friday photo was sent to me by Jeff Tock and Joan Yewell of Allegion. The story I heard was that the contractor didn't know how to remove the lock, and this was how he addressed the problem. It's unfortunate, since the door was supposed to be reused!
Last week I posted a couple of videos explaining some basic code requirements and terminology for panic hardware. The next videos in the series address a topic that I KNOW many architects and others struggle with (because I've personally explained it at least a thousand times) - lock functions...
I've been holding onto these photos for over a year, not knowing exactly how to address the issue of a propped-open fire door in a fire station, of all places. Then I saw a news report about a fire that occurred in a fire station while firefighters were sleeping...
As most of you know, the code development cycle is typically 3 years, which means that the codes are constantly evolving. The 2015 editions of the International Building Code (IBC) and NFPA 101 - The Life Safety Code were recently released, and I have revised the Allegion Code Reference Guide to include these changes...
Two posts in one day! :) I just read an article about fire doors in Fire Engineering, and thought y'all might like it...
