Commercial Office Spaces
Comprehensive Safety Solutions for Secure, Collaborative Commercial Spaces
Commercial offices have distinct requirements for secure buildings and spaces, driven by the need for collaboration areas and intellectual property protection. These demands often lead to extensive tenant improvement projects in existing buildings, where each fire and life safety element requires a tailored code approach.
​The architectural design drawings review validates the proposed design against the fire protection and life safety requirements of the applicable codes and standards. This includes elements such as means of egress, fire-resistive separations, occupancy classification, allowable area and height calculations, fire separation distance, exterior walls, and opening protection. The review identifies design issues, potential solutions, and topics for discussion with the Authority Having Jurisdiction to secure their acceptance in the early stages of the project.
Construction Type Analysis
Some tenant improvement projects may necessitate a construction type upgrade due to changes in occupancy, requiring a more robust construction type to meet the allowable height and area requirements for the proposed use. We guide the project team through the design process by explaining code requirements, assessing existing site conditions, and identifying potential design changes to the building.
Change in Occupancy Review
Some tenant improvement projects may necessitate a change in occupancy due to a change in use, requiring an in-depth code analysis to confirm that the existing building can accommodate the new occupancy. We guide the project team through the design process by explaining code requirements, assessing existing site conditions, and identifying potential design changes to the building.
Phased occupancy includes occupying a portion of the building while the remainder or adjacent portions are under construction. New building construction and tenant improvement projects may need a phased occupancy. We offer review of proposed construction phasing, and prepare a report to document the construction phasing sequence and associated fire protection and life safety features and local fire department requirements.
