Hello,
We have a question concerning fire pumps in buildings sprinklered throughout.
Referring to NFPA 20 § 4.7.1*:
"Fire pumps shall be dedicated to and listed for fire protection service."
Annex A for 4.7.1 states the following:
"This subsection does not preclude the use of pumps in public and private water supplies that provide water for domestic, process, and fire protection purposes. Such pumps are not fire pumps and are not expected to meet all the requirements of this standard. Such pumps are permitted for fire protection if they are considered reliable by the analysis mandated in Section 4.6. Evaluating the reliability should include at least the levels of supervision and rapid response to problems as are typical in municipal water systems.
If a private development (campus) needs a fire protection pump, this is typically accomplished by installing a dedicated fire pump (in accordance with this standard) in parallel with a domestic pump or as part of a dedicated fire branch/loop off a water supply."
Given the above:
1- Does 4.7.1 strictly imply that fire pumps used for fire fighting purposes shall be UL listed?
2- Can the fire pumps in sprinklered buildings be based on European Norm EN 12845 (Fixed firefighting systems. Automatic sprinkler systems. Design, installation and maintenance) instead of UL listing?
3- Annex A for paragraph 4.7.1 states that pumps used in private water service can be used for fire fighting. Doesn't this suggest then that any pump can be used for fire-fighting (listed or not), by solely satisfying the requirements of NFPA 20 § 4.6?
4- From the same Annex, "such pumps are not expected to meet all the requirements of this standard."; does this mean that pumps used in supplying water for the sprinklers system do not need to fully comply with NFPA 20?
Thank you for your answers.
Best Regards,
Elias,
Unfortunately this is not a question I can answer for you. You will need to speak with the authority that is responsible for enforcing the applicable codes and standards. The use of EN 12845 would need to be considered under the equivalency clause in section 1.5 of NFPA 20:
1.5 Equivalency
Nothing in this standard is intended to prevent the use of systems, methods, or devices of equivalent or superior quality, strength, fire resistance, effectiveness, durability, and safety over those prescribed by this standard.
1.5.1 Technical documentation shall be submitted to the authority having jurisdiction to demonstrate equivalency.
1.5.2 The system, method, or device shall be approved for the intended purpose by the authority having jurisdiction.
Essentially, this allows you to deviate from the prescriptive requirements of the code as long as you can prove that the level of safety is not compromised and the authority having jurisdiction approves.
Important Notice: Any opinion expressed in this correspondence is the personal opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the official position of the NFPA or its Technical Committees. In addition, this correspondence is neither intended, nor should it be relied upon, to provide professional consultation or services.
Janna Shapiro
Fire Protection Engineer
NFPA