I certainly will share the document with the group and hope to tap into the knowledge of the list members to make something useful. My intent is to compile any individual responses and arrange questions into some logical order as I did in the fire alarm contractor guide. Then, once I get something into a draft format, post a link to the document and hope folks would provide some additional feedback. Once it's done, any other AHJ can simply swap the logo and use at their own will or those of you on the private side can share with your local AHJ's to see if they could use it. You've hit below on the exact problem we're facing. When we show up to do a fire inspection of a building and ask to see copies of the confidence test reports, there seems to be a disconnect. We want to develop this form as well as another that explains what the requirements are; expecting that our local contractors will also carry copies to use as a basis as to why their prices are so much higher. I can't believe how often I have to explain to a business owner about the difference between someone walking through their property to verify that the sprinkler heads are 'there' versus actually testing the system by flowing water or doing a trip test. That doesn't even touch on the fact of whenever an FDC cap comes up missing, they need to backflush or do in internal inspection to verify nothing was stuffed inside. That is if the FDC hasn't been stolen by the meth addicts............ For those wondering, WA state has adopted NFPA 25 through the legislative process by the reference in Table 901.6 of the IFC. David Smith, Deputy Fire Marshal Vancouver Fire Department Vancouver, WA 360-759-4408 Office
________________________________ From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] on behalf of George Church Sent: Thu 7/26/2007 7:09 AM To: [email protected] Subject: RE: Questions to ask when selecting a contractor with respect to replying off-forum, agreed assuming you'll share the final product- which looks like you would - thank you! One of the largest variances we see is when folks ask for an "Inspection" vrs ITM, which is what they would request if they understood the difference. Just the "Inspection" portion is not much. From the lack of wrench marks on 20 year old paint on strainers to WMAGs, we can tell that almost every new inspection account we get has been only "inspected". Great project to undertake, and thanks for sharing work to date. glc -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Smith, David (VFD) Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2007 9:56 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Questions to ask when selecting a contractor I have been asked to develop a bulletin that we can provide to our local business community that provides them with guidance in selecting a sprinkler contractor. I completed one for selecting a fire alarm contractor which includes questions such as, 1) will you need a man lift and will that cost me extra 2) does your pricing include testing of all duct detectors or 3) is sensitivity testing of detectors included in your bid, along with all of the other typical questions regarding business licenses, etc. In the way that the folks on the alarm list helped me, I am asking the kind folks on this list to provide in a private email, questions that your potential clients should ask so that they don't just select the low bid. I am trying to provide our business community with information so that they don't get hit with hidden costs after the fact when for instance they're told that a 5 year flush wasn't part of the contract price after our agency kicks the confidence test report back as incomplete. This is mainly geared towards IT&M but will appreciate questions for new installations too. Even if you don't have a specific question in mind but can relay some experience or situations that you've come across, I can try to come up with the question myself. If you are interested in seeing an example of what I put together for the fire alarm contractor selection, you can download a copy by following this link: http://www.cascadesfpe.org/phpBB2/download.php?id=166 I will be happy to share the document with the anyone that is interested when it is in a draft format for further comments and suggestions. Thanks in Advance, David Smith, Deputy Fire Marshal Vancouver Fire Department Vancouver, WA 360-759-4408 Office _______________________________________________ Sprinklerforum mailing list [email protected] http://lists.firesprinkler.org/mailman/listinfo/sprinklerforum To Unsubscribe, send an email to:[EMAIL PROTECTED] (Put the word unsubscribe in the subject field)
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