Fire Alarm Timeline

FIRE ALARM TIMELINE

1. Normally it takes time to have system designed (3 weeks), time to bid the project out (2 weeks), time to review the bids and award the winning bidder (1 week) time to get the winning fire alarm contractors plans done (3 weeks) and time to get a Fire Marshal review or third party review or both (3-4 weeks) So plan on 3 months to 4 months from planning to the point of when the system can be installed. Plan ahead because the fire marshal will not issue a certificate of occupancy without the fire alarm and the fire sprinkler system. Not having these installed and certified can stop your occupancy.

2. When you buy a new building or remodel a building make sure that you consider the fire alarm and fire sprinkler systems and inspections. Both are different.

3. If the building occupancy is changing or if it is a significant remodel you will need bring the building up to current fire alarm and fire sprinkler code and so you will need to consider the cost of doing this as well as the monthly cost of monitoring through a UL listed Central Station.

4. Normally an Electrical Engineer / Architect will have the fire alarm design in the construction documents and often the low bidder will get the project and often change orders needs to be done if the drawings were not done to current code.

5. During the bidding process there is a chance to submit RFI Request for Information requests and often I ask about code, spacing and I point out the items that may be missing from the drawings and specifications.

6. Often one or more General Contractors will put the project out to bid and the Electrical Contractors will get fire alarm prices from fire alarm contractors then they will bid to the general contractors.

7. You can get bids for test and inspection for both fire alarm and for fire sprinkler as well as fire extinguishers. Here at Johnson Controls Fire Protection we can help you get those inspections and we do all of them in house. Often a fire alarm company will inspect the fire alarm but not the sprinkler or extinguishers so going with a company that does it all makes your life easier to only deal with one company.

8. If you don’t want to go through the bidding process with a General Contractor and electrical contractors you can contact 3 fire alarm companies and provide all three with the plans, counts and specifications and they can bid directly to the owner. An electrical contractor will charge less for the installation of conduit, wire and devices than a fire alarm company will charge so hiring an electrical contractor for the high voltage and for the installation is prudent. You can have the fire alarm company include the installation in their bid and most of them will have their own electrical contractors bid the project.

9. Call Larry Love Larry.Love@jci.com 801 898 6003 for more information about this process or when you have corrections Larry can help you or come to your project site as well. Call Larry for owner direct and or new construction

10. Call Shandie Gorney Shandie.a.Gorney@jci.com 801 214 5668 for pricing on tests and inspections, service, upgrades or remodels.

11. Call Jackson.Jones@jci.com 801 403 3461 for service or test and inspection quotes.

12. Call Matthew.Bingham@jci.com 801 419 1379 for Owner direct inquires as well as new construction.

    These are local numbers for Utah and Wyoming