Integration:

Building automation and fire alarms The building automation system can control all aspects of a building

or campus, including its fire alarm system. This outlines best practices

for integrating a fire alarm into a BAS.

BY JON KAPIS, RICK LEWIS, AND CRAIG STUDER, PE; The RJA Group Inc.

Learning objectives

• Understand the efficiencies of integrating building auto­mation with fire protection systems.

• Name various communica­tion protocols, such as BAC­net and LonTalk.

• Learn about inspection and testing of systems.

he responsibilities of a chief build­ing engineer are becoming more

challenging as technology advanc­es. Bigger and taller buildings are being constructed with an increasing emphasis

on energy efficiency and comfort, and the

ever-increasing demand to keep construc­tion costs and operating expenses down. In addition, building codes are changing

the way these buildings are constructed in order to improve safety with an eye on new construction methods and materials.

There is also the somewhat traditional mind-set among those within the design

and engineering community that building automation and fire alarm systems should

maintain a significant level of separation with minimal connectivity or interaction. Most of this belief stems from the fear of

the unknown and the desire to mitigate risk along with the old adage of "This is the way we've always done it." In real­

ity, the integration of building automation

and fire alarm systems can result in overall reduction in equipment, installation, and maintenance costs while still maintaining

the level of safety required for these sys­

tems to operate. W ith the advent of smart building

technology, heating, cooling, electrical, lighting, security, and other systems need monitoring and intercommunication for

<%) Con s ulting -Specifying Engineer • AUGUST 2013

optimized efficiency and operation. With sophistication comes the need for a build­

ing automation system (BAS) to allow for nearly seamless operation of these various

interrelated equipment. Like BAS, fire protection and alarm

systems have also evolved into sophis­ticated computer-based systems, which

integrate fire detection and emergency communication systems as part of over­all building operations during an emer­

gency event. Often fire protection and alarm systems

must interact with other building systems to provide a proper level of protection.

While the fire alarm system is fully capa­ble of performing and initiating the neces­sary actions to accomplish the fire alarm

and building systems' responses, efficien­cies can be obtained by integrating with the BAS. These efficiencies include mini­

mizing additional equipment, expediting

system acceptance testing, reducing instal­lation costs, and sharing and consolidating information at a central location where all

of the building systems can be prec isely monitored during emergency incidents.

Smoke control systems are a good

example of the marriage of bui lding mechanical systems with fire protection/ fire alarm systems. Fans are starting or

stopping, dampers are opening or closing,

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Figure 1: This modular build­ing controller containing

open processors gateways

with communication drivers is used when integrating building automation systems

with other equipment com· municating over a multitude

of communications proto­cols. Courtesy: Siemens

and doors may be closing or unlocking while elevators being recalled. Although

both the BAS and fire alarm systems have specific tasks to perform, there is a cer­tain level of priority and sequences that

must be followed. Failure to fo llow the

proper priority or sequence may not only be non-code compliant, it may also lead to equipment damage or risk to human life.

For example, if a smoke control fan oper­ates before dampers open, ductwork may be damaged or door opening forces may

be increased beyond acceptable levels for egress.

Communication

When the fire alarm system takes con­trol of equipment that is not a listed com­ponent of the fire alarm control unit, the

fi re alarm system must either override

the natural operating mode of the build­ing equipment or pass off that command via a simple switch or data communica­

tions to the building mechanical systems. Likewise, each manufacturer's BAS has its own protocol for monitoring condi­

tions and communicating operational commands to maintain the proper building environment and efficiency. There are also

standard open communication protocols

such as LonTalk and BACnet that can be used to communicate with a multitude of

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Integration examples

U sing a fire/smoke damper that is part of an engineered smoke control system complying with International Building Code Section 909 as an example, at each damper location we have a

smoke detector for detection of smoke, an actuator that controls the opening and closing of the damper, and an end switch to provide positive confirmation of the damper open and closed posi· lion. Because the fire alarm system already needs to have circuitry to this location for individual smoke or duct smoke detectors, that same pair of wires can be used to monitor the open and closed position of the damper, essentially eliminating two pairs of wires back to the BAS control­ler. The position status signals of the damper can then be transmitted from the fire alarm system, through the gateway, and into the BAS along with the active alarm point information. This leaves the wiring to the actuator as the only BAS wiring needed at the damper location.

As another example, let's use a stairway pressurization fan that is being controlled by a variable frequency drive (VFD). Typically, a VFD would be connected to the BAS via a digital signal while the fire alarm system would provide override of the VFD using dry contacts to stop it or put it into a smoke mode condition. Allowing the BAS to perform all of the control functions permits the adjustment of the fan speed through the BAS to regulate for atmospheric conditions by employing other equipment connected to the BAS, such a digital differential pressure sensors. Using the BAS solely for control eliminates any connection to the fire alarm system, with the activation com­mands being sent through the gateway.

Taking advantage of the aforementioned efficiencies gained by integrating the BAS with the fire alarm system requires planning in the design process. This planning process is the same whether it is a design build or a design assist type of project delivery. The building owner and operator must be involved in the process of establishing the design criteria or at the least have influence over it. In a typical design build or design assist process, the integration of these two systems is an afterthought and often never considered. The end user must be made to understand that the efficiencies gained by integration will pay dividends long into the lifecycle of the building.

equipment from various manufacturers in

order to ach ieve an integrated building system.

The communication protocol for a fire

alarm con trol unit to communicate to

and from its indicating (input), initiat­ing (output), and sometimes notification appliances is typically an analog or digital

communications signal carried over what is referred to as a signaling line circuit (SLC). Because communications signals

are typically proprietary protocol, each

SLC is dedicated to a specific manufac­turer's equipment and cannot include con­nection of incompatible devices that use a

different signal protocol. Therefore, in order to integrate system

alarm and control functions with the BAS

in a manner other than relay logic, fire alarm system manufacturers had to also

design and support the open communica­tion protocols used for building automa­

tion, in a manner that would not compro­mise the integrity or the operation of the fire alarm system. This process of sharing

information between both fire alarm and BAS came to be known as bridging, or

open gateway processing. Because of the strict code and listing requirements of fire

alarm systems, much of this communica­tion has been primarily limited to one-way communication. However, some of the

manufacturers of both fire alarm and BAS do produce equipment such as gateways that are listed for bi-directional commu­

nication with their equipment.

The use of these open gateway pro­cessors has the potential to eliminate the need for costly interface equipment and

enclosures. A single gateway can replace hundreds of conventional or electronic relays and input sensors for control and

monitoring while also eliminating the

need for multiple wire terminations that can decrease the potential for system fail­ure points.

How to know whether to integrate There are advantages and disadvantages

to consider when determining whether to

integrate a BAS and a fire alarm system. The most common consideration is when

the building has a complex smoke con­trol system. An integrated system is also

seen in facilities involved in process con­trol that may be affected by a fire a larm event. For the purpose of this article, when

used primarily in controlling the spread of smoke, integration of the various sys­tems that normal ly have independent

connections helps to facilitate improved

communication, redundancy, and cost sav­ings. Additionally, the building engineer will have the ability to determine from a

Consulting-Specifying Engineer • AUG UST 2013 G

Integrating BAS and fire alarms

single source what is causing the mechani­cal equipment to operate, shut down, open, or close.

Take a case of a building with separate building automation and fire alarm sys­tems: When the building engineer receives a call from an occupant complaining about increased temperature or whistling air within the ductwork and finds that the fan is shut down or a damper is closed, the building engineer is more apt to call a controls contractor to investigate the problem before he calls their fire alarm service provider. Should a -

and thus simplifies the troubleshooting process.

Because many components that affect air and smoke movement within a building are shared between HVAC and fire alarm systems, let's take a step backward in the evolution of the building process. When building systems are being commissioned for proper operation by either an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) or an indepen­dent third-party group, coordination must occur between multiple trades. At this

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as low-voltage systems that communicate to their respected devices through an ana­log or digital signal. Their wiring meth­ods and materials are similar, and often their respective equipment is located in the same general area and is performing the same basic functions with one sig­nificant difference: the fire alarm system uses individual point addressable monitor and control modules while the BAS uses digital input/output driver assemblies that ·communicate with different protocols.

Why is this important? Because

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the BAS still requires individual pairs of conductors to each point being controlled or monitored by the digital input/output module, resulting in more wire being need­ed and longer installation time.

systems, not only does the build­ing engineer have to wait for the controls contractor to diagnose the problem, he also has to call the fire alarm contractor to come out and fix the problem. This process can take time to correct; meanwhile, building occupants are uncomfort­

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Creating a code-compliant integrated system

able and inconvenienced. Figure 2: In this integrated building management system

When considering system inte­gration, the ability of the BAS to control a smoke control system operation falls under the auspice of the jurisdiction's building code,

Sometimes this can even lead display, various aspects of the facility can be reviewed to finger-pointing between the in one screen. Courtesy: Siemens two service providers as to whose problem it really is. In this scenario, the fire alarm control of a fan or a damper is required to be ahead of the hand-off-auto switch for the power to the equipment so the inadvertent shutdown of the equipment does not inhibit the operation of the fire

point in the construction process, each trade is independently looking to complete its own scope of work and more often than not is under pressure to finish the specific scope in a designated timeframe. Some­times this leaves a disconnect between

alarm feature. A failure of the fire alarm the fire alarm and mechanical trades that system control relay could shut down the fan or close the damper without an alarm being present on the fire alarm system or fault condition occurring on the fire alarm control unit.

With an integrated building automation and fire alarm system, this scenario plays out in a different manner. The BAS, when listed accordingly to UL Standard 864 UUKL listing, to provide code required smoke control functions, can rely on a digital alarm signal from the fire alarm system, passed through a gateway, as the only means outside the BAS to influence control over the bui lding mechanical systems. The responsibi lity for fan and damper control is solely with the BAS

results in disruption during start-up and commissioning.

The integrated system approach allows for those individuals responsible for con­trolling a ir movement to be focused on proofing and balancing the mechanical system, while the fire alarm contractors focus on the detection and annunciation of the alarm events. Much in the same manner as referenced in the previous example, the problems can get resolved more expeditiously and the systems can be brought on-line.

If we focus on the installation of a build­ing management system (BMS) and a fire alarm system, we see many similarities. Each of these control systems is classified

~ Consulting-Specifying Engineer • AUGUST 2013

often based on the model build­ing codes. The lBC has been adopted by a large portion of the United States and is used in this article as an example. lBC Section 909 covers smoke control systems, the procedures for determining system parameters, the acceptable methods that may be used to accomplish smoke con­trol, and the requirements to document the system's actual performance. It recognizes that the smoke control system is a life safe­ty system and must maintain the same high level ofreliability required for any type of fire protection or fire alarm system.

Section 909 requires smoke control sys­tems to be initiated by sprinkler system or smoke detection system operation, depend­ing on the type of system being designed. It also requires systems providing control input or output to the mechanical smoke control systems to comply with Section 907 (Fire Alarm and Detection Systems) and NFPA 72: National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code, and states that such sys­tems must be equipped with a control unit

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that complies with UL 864 and has to be listed as smoke control equipment.

UL 864 requirements cover control units and accessories that are used to meet the requirements of many NFPA standards, including NFPA 72, NFPA 92A: Standard for Smoke-Control Systems, and NFPA 92B: Guide for Smoke Management Sys­tems in Malls, Atria, and Large Areas. Each system is tested by UL, which then lists the complying equipment under the "UUKL" designation in the prod-uct directory. The fire alarm and building automation systems must meet these requirements and be listed in order to control a smoke control system and be configured as an integrated system.

Inspection and testing Integrated systems require

enough time to test and to verify that the system interoperability is functioning properly. lt is impor­tant that the engineer as well as the install ing contractor and the equipment vendors understand

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control systems is based on many variable conditions, including temperature, wind conditions, and the quality or "tightness" of the construction. These conditions tend to make testing and adjusting of the smoke control system difficult at best.

Integrating BAS can help minimize test stress by adjusting the fan speed of individual fans through programming. In a situation of excessive stair pressuriza-

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future opportunities to inappropriately change the settings, possibly making the system ineffective. Care must be taken to limit access to this programming and provide Jogging procedures to document when and why changes are made.

Documentation After all the work is done by the engi-

neers, contractors, inspectors, and theAHJ, the integrated system operation is approved and the owner receives its total cost of ownership and, eventually, its final certificate of occupancy. However, the project is not over. It is critical that the owner receives and care­fully stores all record documents related to the integrated system. As a building ages, things change and systems are modified. When changes occur, the contractors making the changes can use the documentation to maintain the

the impact of these requirements Figure 3: Integrated building management systems offer

interoperability of the integrated system as well as revise the draw­ings to reflect changes made. In addition, the modified systems should be retested to confirm on providing an approved and many possibilities. Courtesy: Honeywell

code compliant installation. Due to the complexity of these systems

and the required integration, testing must confirm that the functions and sequences work correctly under both automatic and manual modes.

The inspection and testing of integrated systems is usually exasperating and time­consuming, and often requires multiple rounds of retesting before all the deficien­cies are corrected. This is often caused due to all of these different systems being completed late in the schedule and not enough time to "get the kinks out" prior to final testing. Anything that can expedite the commissioning process is beneficial to the overall project.

One of the advantages of using the BAS as an integrated part of the smoke control system is the system's abi lity to modify operating conditions to accommodate actual ambient conditions through the use of VFDs. The design of the smoke

tion, the individual fan can be adjusted to limit its airflow to the stair, resulting in a lower level of pressure affecting door opening forces. Similarly, for individual zone smoke control system performance, the fan speed can be adjusted on a zone­by-zone basis, based on the fire alarm sig­nal received by the BAS.

The downside to this operation is that the BAS controls are typically located remote­ly to the fire alarm control panel and the firefighters ' smoke control panel, both of which normally reside in a fire command room. BAS controls and system components are usually located for the convenience of the building's staff and HVAC equipment. Under test conditions, additional personnel may be required to monitor the BAS controls to make any required modifications.

While modifying fan output for each smoke zone condition is a more expedient method to obtain approval, it also provides

their revised performance. Docu­mentation of the testing should be incorpo­rated with the existing record documents.

Integrating fire protection and fire alarm systems with BAS can be cost-effective and provide a more efficient operation. It is imperative that the design and installa­tion is well planned and coordinated, and that the system is properly maintained over its lifetime. lc sel

Jon Kapis is the operations manager in the Seattle office of The RJA Group, and has more than 32 years of experience in fire alarm and building systems integration. Rick Lewis is a senior consultant in the San Francisco office of The RJA Group, with more than 28 years of experience in the fire and security alarm industry. Craig Studer is vice president in the Chicago office of The RJA Group, with more than 30 years of consulting experience in build­ing commissioning and system integration.

www.csemag.com Consulting-Specify ing Engineer • A UGUST 2013 <I)