IF you want to comply with NFPA 75
nfpa 75 2009 edition
1.1 Scope. This standard covers the requirements for the protection of information technology equipment and information technology equipment areas.
1.2* Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to set forth the minimum requirements for the protection of information technology equipment and information technology equipment areas from damage by fire or its associated effects — namely, smoke, corrosion, heat, and water.
5.1.3* The information technology equipment area shall be separated from other occupancies within the building, including atria or other open-space construction, by fire-resistant-rated construction. The information technology equipment room shall be separated from other occupancies in the information technology equipment area by fire-resistant-rated construction. The fire resistance rating shall be commensurate with the exposure but not less than 1 hour for both.
5.1.3.1 The fire-resistant-rated enclosures shall extend from the structural floor to the structural floor above or to the roof.
5.1.3.2 Every opening in the fire-resistant-rated construction shall be protected to limit the spread of fire and to restrict the movement of smoke from one side of the fire-resistant-rated construction to the other. The fire resistance rating for doors shall be as follows:
(1)
2-hour fire-resistant-rated construction — 11/2-hour fire-resistance-rated doors
(2)
1-hour fire-resistant-rated construction — 3/4-hour fire-resistance-rated doors
A.5.1.3 Experience with fires affecting information technology equipment rooms has demonstrated that the fire often starts in areas other than the information technology equipment area and that the fire and its related products, including smoke, soot, and heat, can enter the information technology equipment room if it is not adequately separated by sealed, rated walls. Consideration should be given to raising the rating of perimeter walls to 2 hours where adjacent walls are already rated 2 hours or greater.
The prudent facilities manager would do well to limit the exposure fire hazard by locating an information technology equipment facility in a fully sprinklered building.
The rooms shown in Figure A.5.1.3 are symbolic and do not denote size, shape, or location, nor are the rooms in Figure A.5.1.3 necessarily required in the information technology equipment area. The information technology equipment area includes only those support rooms served by the same special air-conditioning/air-handling equipment as the information technology equipment room. Information technology equipment rooms normally have a raised floor.