Commercial Fire Alarm Systems

Workplace Emergency Action Plan

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires most employers to have an emergency action plan for various scenarios, including fires in the workplace.

There are two main steps businesses need to take for their fire emergency action plans:

Create a plan: Your plan should be a part of your employee onboarding materials, as well as posted accessibly in public spaces in your workplace. An emergency action plan should have details on how to alert employees, how to report the fire, and how to evacuate the facility.
Train your employees: Create annual training opportunities for your employees that review the workplace emergency action plans and to go over any changes that have taken place.

Types of Fire Alarm Systems

Fire alarm systems alert the occupants of a building and serve to notify firefighters to an emergency. There are multiple options for fire alarms, including manual and automatic fire alarms.

Manual Fire Alarms

Manual fire alarm stations usually come with a pull-lever operation—one pull on the handle breaks the glass rod and sounds the alarm. However, manual fire alarms are only useful if someone is present, awake, and alert in the building where the fire starts.

Automatic Fire Alarms

Automatic fire alarms solve the issues that manual ones do not. Automatic fire alarms imitate the human senses of smell, touch, and sight, providing an alert when people are not present. Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors detect fire in its early stages, while it is smoldering and producing smoke or senses a build-up of certain chemicals in the air. When these detectors are activated, they will warn anyone in the building and send signals to emergency personnel.

Professional Fire Alarm Monitoring

Nearly all professional fire alarm systems also offer monitoring services. While there is a fee for this service and usually requires a contract, you won’t have to worry about being available 24/7. With some systems, the alarms can even transmit specific floor plans to the fire department, so first responders know exactly where to go when they arrive on the scene.

Some businesses do require fire safety system monitoring due to NFPA 101®. Central monitoring is a code requirement for some types of businesses, depending on the type of business and number of occupants in the building. When you think about how fast a fire can spread, the monthly monitoring fee for your fire alarm system becomes a small price to pay for your peace of mind and to keep your employees, property, and business safe.

If an emergency is detected, the technicians in the central monitoring facility immediately notify the appropriate emergency response personnel and get help on the way. It is important to note that not all alarms are for fire emergencies. In some cases, there could be a carbon monoxide leak, or the fire alarm could sound due to the detection of smoke or high temperatures. Regardless of the emergency, monitoring technicians do their best to ensure that the right help and resources are sent to your location as quickly as possible.

Fire Alarm Inspections

Inspection and testing of fire alarm systems are required annually by NFPA 72. As a commercial business or building owner, you are required to have the fire alarm systems test yearly by a certified firm. In other words, you cannot test it yourself unless you are a NICET certified or a state licensed fire alarm technician. At FSS Technologies, our NICET and state licensed fire alarm technicians will test and visually inspect your system as required by NFPA 72. FSS will also provide you with a full inspection report, which will advise you of any deficiencies in your system. Call us today to get a quote to have your system tested.

Features of Our Commercial Fire Alarm Systems

Fire Alarm Control Panel

The control panel is the brains of the fire alarm system. Through it, all other devices are controlled. The FACP also allows firefighters, you, and us to get a full picture of what is going on in the building at all times.
Smoke Detectors

Smoke detectors spaced correctly will provide you with greater life and property protection. The self-diagnostic functionality in the products helps to ensure reliability, as well as reducing service costs.
Combination Heat & Smoke Detectors

This detector conveys advanced multi-sensor innovation and increases effectiveness, reduces costs, and increases your life and property well-being. The onboard self-diagnostics tools guarantee unwavering quality as time goes on. The detector provides a smoke sensor and a rate-of-rise heat sensor with a fixed temperature setting. Together these sensors effectively identify smoke or excess heat.
Combination Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Detectors

The detector combines the functionality of early smoke detection with carbon monoxide sensing capabilities. As a result of the detector's double duty, your property is monitored continuously for any sign of fire and its deadly companion carbon monoxide.
Pull Stations

The Manual Pull Stations offer a positive pull-lever operation, one pull on the station handle breaks the glass rod and turns in a positive alarm, ensuring protection plus fool-proof operation. Presignal models include a general alarm key switch for applications where a two-stage procedure is required. The up-front highly visible glass rod discourages tampering but is not necessary for proper operation.
Horn Strobes

These devices act as warning devices for the public. They typically sound with a loud temporal pattern and flash when an alarm is initiated. In many larger building rather than a temporal pattern, you may hear an alert tone followed by a voice evacuation message. Listen carefully because they provide instructions on exiting the facility.
ADA Compliant Devices

We offer a vast selection of ADA compliant devices for use with your fire alarm system. We offer low frequency audible horns for both sleeping and non-sleeping rooms. Also, we can provide and install audible-visible appliances according to established visible device guidelines.
Elevator Recall

Elevator Recall is the operation of an elevator when it is recalled to a specific landing and removed from normal service because of activation of firefighters' service, either automatically or manually.
Area of Refuge

An area of refuge is a location in a building designed to hold occupants during a fire or other emergency, when evacuation may not be safe or possible. Occupants can wait there until rescued or relieved by firefighters.
Two-Way Voice

Two-way voice devices offer a way to communicate with a central station operation that can give you assistance until the fire department arrives to assist.
Voice Evacuation Mass Notification

Fire alarm voice evacuation system uses speakers and amplifiers to notify occupants with an alarm tone followed by a voice instead of the traditional horn or bell. Also provides ability for live voice announcements by the fire department or emergency personnel through a local paging microphone. These voice notification systems are most commonly installed in places of assembly or high rise buildings.