20
The adoption of yet another “local option” code will further accelerate
the return of the commonwealth to a fragmented building regulatory
system such as existed prior to 1972. That would lead to confusion
in the design and construction industry, added time and delay in the
design and construction of buildings, increased cost of construction to
businesses and homebuyers, uneven code enforcement, a weakening
of public safety standards and the arbitrary approval or denial of the
use of certain materials or construction methods.
Cost
In addition to the above-cited concerns, the HBRAMA is opposed to
mandating the installation of fire sprinkler systems in new one and
two-family homes because to do so will substantially increase the cost
of building new homes in the commonwealth and serve as a barrier to
homeownership for thousands of young families, first-time homebuyers
and others. The State Fire Marshall has estimated in the past that
requiring the installation of fire sprinklers will add approximately
$4,500 to $6,500 to the cost of a new single-family home. That
cost balloons to approximately $8,000 to $12,000, depending upon
whether or not a tank system is needed. The HBRAMA believes the
actual average end cost to a new homebuyer will be far greater than
that estimated by the State Fire Marshall.
As was noted in The 2009 Report Of The One And Two Family
Residential Sprinkler Committee (OTFRC) of the State Board of
Building Regulations and Standards, the cost of installing a residential
sprinkler system depends greatly on a number of factors. For
example, NFPA 13D recognizes a variety of permissible system types.
Accordingly, the OTFRC report stated:
“Fire Sprinkler design requirements and installation costs are
influenced by the size and layout of the house and by water
availability (volume flow rate and acceptable pressure). Water may
be available from a municipal source or may have to be drawn
from a well or from a stand-alone tank. Where water is available
from a municipal source, fire sprinkler system design is presently
further influenced by requirements (initial and possibly ongoing, “in
perpetuity” monetary charges) of the local Water Purveyor who may
additionally dictate a particular design over the numerous designs
acceptable under NFPA 13D.”
The cost of a residential sprinkler system is also affected by whether
or not a stand-alone pump and tank and/or stand-alone pressured
tank is required:
“Stand-alone pump and tank and or stand-alone pressurized tanks
providing the water source, flow rate and necessary pressure appear to
cost in the $2400 to $4500 range (as reported by a particular vendor
of such pump and tank systems – prices could be different for other
manufacturers’ products) provided that supervision of the system is not
imposed (NFPA 13D does not require supervision) and this cost is for
the pump/tank/pressurized tank and not for the entire fire sprinkler
system. If battery back-up of electric pumps is chosen (not required by
the Standard), then applicable first costs do increase.”
In addition, the OTFRC report identified a number of labor issues that
will have a direct impact on the expense of designing and installing
residential sprinkler systems:
(a) The design of a residential fire sprinkler system invokes the
practice of engineering and a Massachusetts-Registered Professional
Engineer, competent in the field, is required to design the fire sprinkler
system except where the provisions of MGL c.112 § 81R apply.
(b) Multipurpose piping systems, believed to be the least expensive
fire sprinkler systems, cannot be readily installed in Massachusetts
as dual licensing is required for installation of the potable system (a
Massachusetts-licensed Plumber) and concurrent capturing of the fire
sprinkler system (a Massachusetts-licensed Sprinkler Contractor) – this
legitimate labor issue invariably results in the fire sprinkler system,
within the building, being a separate system from the potable system.
(c) Municipality-approved “drain layers” generally are not
Massachusetts-licensed Sprinkler Contractors, yet, where the fire
sprinkler system is independent of the potable water system (starting
at the street), a Massachusetts-licensed Sprinkler Contractor (not a
“drain layer”) is presently statutorily-required to oversee the fire main
installation (MGL c.146 § 84).
Finally, the OTFRSC found that fees that may be imposed by a
municipality or other water purveyor would influence both the cost of
installing and maintaining a residential sprinkler system:
“Fees presently imposed by Water Purveyors are variable from
community to community and fall into essentially three categories; one
of fixed costs associated with installing fire main and/or supporting a
“water development fee”; one of continuing, “in perpetuity” costs for the
right to retain the fire sprinkler system and another fee associated with
backflow preventer testing and where such backflow preventer testing
may be required one or more times per year.”
The experience of the members of the HBRAMA, based upon a survey
of its members installing NFPA 13D systems, found that the average cost
to the homebuyer in Massachusetts was $13,574.59 per home or $4.02
per sq. ft. National data has shown that the costs can be substantially
greater. In 2006, the National Association of Home Builders Research
Center surveyed homebuilders across the country in jurisdictions where
fire sprinklers have been mandated. Survey results from over 1,500
installations in homes on public water systems in jurisdictions other than
Scottsdale, Arizona, show that the cost of installation ranged as high as
$6.88 per square foot. When overhead and other factors are added in
such as interest, installation costs to homebuyers escalate further.
If most communities who adopt the mandate of fire sprinklers in one
and two-family dwellings also impose fees water and inspection fees
such as those identified above, the average cost to a new homebuyer
could be thousands more.
BBRS White Paper
The State Board of Building Regulations and Standards issued a white
paper for public comment on May 13, 2014 regarding fire sprinklers
systems in certain residential structures. Entitled, “The Cost and
Effectiveness for Health, Safety, and Security of Fire Alarm systems and
Fire Sprinkler Systems in 3 to 6 Unit Residential Buildings,” this 32-
page document exhaustively examines a variety of issues attendant to
the installation of fire sprinklers in residential buildings, including:
trends in home values versus income and affordability of housing; cost
1
Report of the NFPA that is based upon cost data gathered from the town of North Andover relative to three single-family homes ranging in size from 3,084 to 5,422 square feet of living space.
A F FA I R S
Government
