I recently received this Quick Question from a locksmith at a university medical center: On patient room doors in a hospital, is it code-compliant to install traditional classroom function locksets which allow free egress from the room?
Last week I spent an afternoon touring a hospital under renovation after a large electrical fire (more to come on that), and I saw this modification that left me wordless. What do you think?
Today's Quick Question has come up several times lately with regard to the code requirements for hospitals, nursing homes, and similar types of facilities: What is the difference between a "corridor door" and a "smoke barrier door" in a health care occupancy?
Beginning with the 2015 edition of NFPA 101 - Life Safety Code, a section was added that allows doors in some types of health care units to be disguised with murals. This updated post includes a clarification from the 2021 edition of the code.
Yesterday morning, a 10-alarm fire occurred at Brockton Hospital, a 216-bed health care facility in Massachusetts. The fire reportedly began in the main transformer room of the hospital, and approximately 160 patients were evacuated. More in today's post...
I'm putting the finishing touches on my lunch and learn presentation for this Thursday, September 29th (1 PM Eastern). If you work with health care facilities in any capacity, this virtual session will help keep you up to date on some of the code requirements specific to these occupancies.
Today's Quick Question: On a pair of non-fire-rated corridor doors in a health care facility, is one automatic flush bolt required for the inactive leaf, or are two bolts required (top and bottom)?
On September 29th (1 PM Eastern), I will be presenting a virtual lunch and learn for the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE), and it is open to anyone who would like to attend. There's more info in today's post!
The difference between delayed egress and controlled egress systems can be confusing...hopefully this new infographic will help. It explains how these systems work, where they are used, and how to choose the correct application.
Would a pair of doors with a hollow metal removable mullion and locksets on both door leaves be more reliable and require less maintenance than a pair with flush bolts and a lockset? What are the challenges with this application? WWYD?
There has been a lot of confusion over the last decade or two about smoke barrier doors in hospitals, nursing homes, and other types of health care facilities. The answers to these FAQs should help to clarify the requirements.
I received a Quick Question last week that has come up before: What is the difference between a roller latch and a roller strike? Are both prohibited on fire door assemblies?
While the installation of an electromagnetic lock can be relatively simple, the code requirements that apply to mag-locks are somewhat complicated and may be confusing. These answers to frequently asked questions should help.
Low energy automatic operators are the type of automatic door operators that are typically actuated by a “knowing act.” There are several questions about these operators that come up frequently...
Corridor doors in health care facilities - like those leading to patient rooms - will help to protect patients in their rooms from the smoke and flames if a fire occurs. Here are some of the most frequently-asked questions about these assemblies...
What are the top trends and challenges in today's health care facilities? From the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to the rise of electronics, our research explores changes in the market. Download the information today.
Webinar Wednesdays continue, along with a new Security in 30 session coming up this month! Electrified hardware, hollow metal doors and frames, fire doors, panic hardware, and a Security in 30 on some important health care research!
As I said in my previous post about fire door FAQs, I will be posting more groups of FAQs in the coming months, to try to fill in some gaps where there is still confusion. In this post I am answering a few common questions on controlled egress doors in health care facilities.
I will be publishing several sets of frequently asked questions this year, with more detailed supporting articles on each topic. If you have a FAQ that you'd like to add to the list, leave it in the comment box and I will include it in a future article.
Is there a code requirement that would prohibit the installation of automatic operators above an acoustical tile ceiling? Would the working space required by NFPA 70 - National Electrical Code apply here?
This article on controlled egress locks in health care facilities will be published in Locksmith Ledger, as a follow-up article to one I wrote last fall comparing the requirements of the model codes for delayed egress applications.
The 2022 edition of NFPA 80 includes some important changes related to the size and attachment methods for signage on fire doors. Can you spot what's new in the updated standard?
Sixty years ago, 16 people were killed in a fire at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. This fire, which began when someone dumped smoldering cigarette ashes down a trash chute, resulted in many code changes related to health care facilities.
We've got a boatload of classes coming up...on health care, electrified hardware, masterkeying, accessories, and hollow metal - and the Thursday class offers continuing education credit for AIA!
This is a quiet week for training because of the holiday, but there is a very informative webinar coming up next week, presented by Melany Whalin and Connie Alexander of Allegion. The webinar offers continuing education credit for AIA, and registration is open!
I was just talking with someone the other day about how hard it must be to get on-the-job training while working remotely. If you or someone you know is new to the industry or new to the Allegion brands, check out Allegion 101!
My webinar addressing the changes to the 2021 model codes is this Thursday, August 26th! If you need to know what's new (don't we all?), join me at 11am or 2pm Eastern. And we have other great classes this week to choose from!
There's more online training available this week...whether you are new to the industry, responsible for maintaining a facility, or interested in one of this week's Webinar Wednesday topics, there are lots of classes to choose from!
There are so many options for online training this week! Whether you're an architect, end user, distributor, locksmith, installer or security integrator, new to the industry or with years of experience, there's something for you to learn.
Thank you for all of your comments and feedback on last week's Fixed-it Friday post - I really appreciate the help! I'd love to hear what you think about fire door assembly labels as an educational tool for building occupants.
Last year when I wrote a Decoded article and hosted a webinar addressing the code requirements related to touchless openings, many people asked me about the performance of copper. There's more in today's post...
There are so many online classes to choose from this week! Which one(s) will help you stay up to date on what's happening in the door and hardware industry?
In the next two weeks, the Allegion training team is offering online education for architects, integrators, end users, installers, distributors, locksmiths - really anyone who has an interest in understanding doors and hardware - including a new series called Door Drills!
Next week's Security in 30 session covers a topic that is near and dear to my heart - coordinating the Division 08 specification section that covers door hardware with the Division 28 section addressing access control.
Last week's Fixed-it Friday post prompted a Quick Question from one of iDigHardware's newer readers: "What is a swing-clear hinge and how would I know when to choose this type of hinge over other hinge types?"
Fabricating this protector and welding it to a rated frame to protect the door edge from cart/bed traffic would not be allowed by the frame manufacturer's listings - at least not any listings that I've ever seen. WWYD?
You know me...when I go somewhere new, I never pass up the chance to share photos of the interesting doors I encounter. Unfortunately, my latest trip was a 3-night stay in the local hospital. It's always something.
Can a wave-to-open switch be used to actuate an automatic operator? Does the IBC allow any stairwell doors to be locked mechanically? What's new in codes for health care facilities? Find out in this week's classes!
How much do you know about the model code requirements for doors with delayed egress locks or controlled egress locks? Here's a short quiz to help you find out.
A few weeks ago I posted a recorded class on delayed egress and controlled egress locking systems. If you'd prefer to listen to that presentation live, I will be conducting the class for the American Society for Health Care Engineering on April 22nd.
Past fires in hospitals and nursing homes - and the resulting fatalities - have shaped the codes that we use today. Although today’s codes do not typically require patient room doors to be fire door assemblies, these doors provide a critical layer of protection for patients.
Questions about double-egress cross-corridor pairs in health care facilities arise frequently, so I have updated this article to reflect the current requirements of the model codes.
Do you know the difference between these two types of systems - where they're allowed, what purposes they serve, and all of the code requirements that apply? This presentation covers these systems in detail.
Some of you have been anxiously awaiting my master class on the codes that apply to delayed egress and controlled egress locking systems, which was postponed when my computer died. Your wait is almost over!
Security in 30 is BACK, and I'm so excited that one of the requested topics is...CODES! If you are an access control integrator, please join me next Friday, February 19th at 12:30 EST, for Security in 30: Live with Allegion.
As many of you know, I have a webinar scheduled for this Thursday, which covers the detailed requirements for delayed egress and controlled egress locking systems...
Hal Kelton of DOORDATA Solutions sent me this photo of a pair of doors in health care facility, and it made me wonder...how would you handle the hardware for this pair?
I'm participating in three sessions at next week's virtual DHI conNextions conference...I hope to "see" you there!
A change to the 2021 edition of the IBC seems to allow egress doors in some health care units to have mechanical locks in the direction of egress, instead of fail safe electrified locks. WWYD?
Do you have some free time on Saturday? I'll be participating in a (free) virtual trade show and I'd love to have you stop by my virtual booth and visit!
