How would you encourage a church to install sprinklers?

[mark handler]

No it would just be a significant loss.

How Many of your family members would it take to be a "significant loss of life".

 

[brudgers]

I don't think anyone intends to suggest that a single fatality is "insignificant." While the more recent data paints a picture of 5 fatalities/year due to church fires, more lives can be lost in a single church incident based on historical experience (1958, 1964, 1983... next?).

1983 looks more like Darwin at work:

[h=1]AROUND THE WORLD; 25 Are Killed in Mexico In Church Explosion[/h]

TLAPACOYA, Mexico, May 9— Barrels of gunpowder to be used for fireworks at a religious fair exploded in a crowded Roman Catholic church in this town 45 miles southeast of Mexico City, killing 25 people and injuring more than 350, officials said today.

The cement church crumbled in the blast on Sunday, they said. The area was crowded with hundreds of people celebrating the Day of the Holy Cross.

 

[FM William Burns]

Easy now all

 

[brudgers]

How Many of your family members would it take to be a "significant loss of life".

More than are likely to attend church.

 

[Builder Bob]

It would be interesting to see how many historical churches have added sprinkler systems to protect the structure - Is the vatican sprinklered? Sometimes, the history created by a structure will drive the owner(s) to protect the strucutre by any means available - However, most are more concerned with crime and do have a security system installed///

What if security systems were mandated.......???

 

[RJJ]

First I would appeal to the biblical principles they are supposed to adhere to. First being to be a good Steward of what God has provided them. The Pastor, priest etc are to be the Shepard of the flock and a basic principle is to care and protect the sheep. In this light, most church people respond to what is needed form a totally different vantage point. In most cases it hits home, far more than statistics or chapter and verse from the code which has no real meaning. IMHO

 

[Darren Emery]

Thanks indeed - great discussion - expecpt maybe for that whole loss of life thing, but every thread deserves a tangent, right?

An update, and clarification. The architect from day one has been on board with a sprinkler system. The building committee has asked very good questions, been open minded, and has had good discussion over the weeks and months leading up to this decision. (full disclosure - I'm on the committee, and do wear many hats during the meetings.) All along, the focus has been on protection of life first and foremost, protection of the building second, and good stewardship of the funds entrusted to us always.

At the last meeting the decision was made to fully cover all new construction, and retrofit any portion of the building modified 50% or greater. Fully updated detection and reporting system for the ENTIRE structure. Pretty happy with this decision - I think it is a good compromise.

 

[globe trekker]

At the last meeting the decision was made to fully cover all new construction, and retrofit any portionof the building modified 50% or greater. Fully updated detection and reporting system for the ENTIRE structure.

Pretty happy with this decision - I think it is a good compromise.

By fully cover, do you mean with an approved type of fire sprinkler system, or the detection & reporting system only? Thanks!

.

 

[Darren Emery]

Sorry - not very clear on that post. Approved fire sprinkler system in all new construction and modified areas.

By fully cover, do you mean with an approved type of fire sprinkler system, or the detection & reporting system only? Thanks!.

 

[FM William Burns]

First I would appeal to the biblical principles they are supposed to adhere to. First being to be a good Steward of what God has provided them. The Pastor, priest etc are to be the Shepard of the flock and a basic principle is to care and protect the sheep. In this light, most church people respond to what is needed form a totally different vantage point. In most cases it hits home, far more than statistics or chapter and verse from the code which has no real meaning. IMHO

That's what and how we used it but you said it much better

 

[cda]

did not think to use the carpet arguement,

Maybe if somehow they can get some rough bids from a few companies, than take that and divide it by the sq footage, to show them how much a system costs per sq foot, and than compare that to some other feature they might put in the buildiing

 

[RJJ]

FM: With a Church most can not identify with all the code A to Z's. They just don't understand. Then if you through in the stats for loss of life the eyes gloss over. For us these are all reasonable arguments and for developers and DP's they can understand at least to a point. With a church group, if you approach to their level of responsibility, base on their charge they begin to identify with the need. At that point you can work towards the technical parts as related to code.

The same problem exist with big Tents! Not that they need sprinklers, but flame spread.