Sprinkler Age A Publication of the American Fire Sprinkler Association
Happy New Year! 2025 will be an exciting and busy year as it kicks off the revision cycles for the 2028 editions of NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems, NFPA 13R, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems in Low-Rise Residential Occupancies, NFPA 13D, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems in One- and Two-Family Dwellings and Manufactured Homes, NFPA 20, Standard for the Installation of Stationary Pumps for Fire Protection, NFPA 24, Standard for the Installation of Private Fire Service Mains and Their Appurtenances, and NFPA 291, Recommended Practice for Water Flow Testing and Marking of Hydrants, and the 2027 edition of NFPA 14, Standard for the Installation of Standpipe and Hose Systems. While the public input window will be closed for NFPA 14 at the time of publication, there will still be plenty of time to make your mark on the standards being revised for their 2028 editions. The public input window for those standards will close on June 4, 2025. That may feel like a long way away, but be sure to submit early and often as the years seem to keep flying by.
Along with the new year, AFSA has new regional boundaries and has increased from seven regions to 10 regions! This means that AFSA’s Technical Advisory Council (TAC) will be expanding, too. Currently, the TAC is made up of 15 voting contractor members and alternate plus a number of ex-officio associate members. With the additional regions, the TAC will be expanding to include 20 voting contractor members, with each region being represented by at least one voting member. Contractors Category 15 and higher spanning multiple regions will receive an automatic seat. If you have any interest in participating in the TAC in an official capacity, please make sure you reach out to be considered.
Keeping with the New Year’s theme, here are some resolutions we are aiming to achieve for the standard development process this year:
- Continue to lead by example on NFPA Technical Committees.
- Protect the principles of merit shop contractors.
- Address knowledge gaps in NFPA 88A for parking structures to provide prescriptive approaches based on technically substantiated research.
- Ensure NFPA 420 adequately addresses water-based fire protection systems and contains applicable, user-friendly requirements.
- Make common sense requirements for minimum power ratings for fire pumps.
- Reorganize NFPA 13! (Just kidding!)
If there is anything you would like to see addressed, do not hesitate to reach out to AFSA’s Engineering and Technical Services Department at technical@firesprinkler.org.
Current Representation on NFPA Technical Committees:
45 Documents (Codes, Standards, Guides, and Recommended Practices)
57 Technical Committees
119 Committee Representatives
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Kevin Hall, M.Eng., P.E., ET, CWBSP, PMSFPE, is the senior manager of engineering and technical services for the American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA). He is a member of several National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) technical committees responsible for developing the model codes and standards, including, NFPA 1 Fire Code, NFPA 13/13R/13D Installation of Sprinkler Systems, NFPA 20 Installation of Stationary Fire Pumps for Fire Protection, NFPA 25 Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems, and NFPA 200 Hanging, Bracing, and Anchorage of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems. He also represents AFSA on numerous UL technical committees responsible for revising and maintaining the product standards used in the sprinkler industry. He is a registered professional engineer in Delaware and Maryland, NICET III certified in water-based system layout, a certified water-based system professional through NFPA, and a professional member of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE). He earned his Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degrees from the University of Maryland College Park in fire protection engineering. In 2021, he was recognized as one of SFPE’s “5 Under 35” award recipients. Prior to his association and committee work, he worked for Reliance Fire Protection in Baltimore, Maryland as a project manager overseeing projects of various sizes and complexity.
