Hotel fire safety is a necessity. As a property manager or hotel owner, you want to keep your guests safe. But, with changing code requirements, a range of fire protection technologies, and a number of fire sprinklers, fire alarms, intercom systems, fire extinguishers, and more to keep track of, it can be tough to remember every aspect of your hotel fire safety requirements.

Whether you’re trying to figure out when to have your sprinkler system inspected, or what kind of fire extinguishers you need, this article on hotel fire safety requirements will provide you with the information you need to know to keep your hotel safe.

Basic Hotel Fire Safety Best Practices

While hotel fire safety requirements can differ depending on your hotel’s location, the size of your building, and the amenities you offer, there are a few basic hotel fire safety best practices that every hotel needs to follow. Some of these basics include:

• Ensuring hallways, doors, and stairwells are kept clear of obstructions
• Evacuation plan. Your hotel evacuation plan should be established and posted throughout the building. Learn how to develop an effective fire evacuation plan.
• Employee fire safety training. Employees should be trained on emergency response protocol. Fire drills should be practiced regularly and according to your local code requirements.
• Hotel has an established fire response team on call. Staff is familiar with contact information for the fire response team and knows who to call in the event of a fire.

In addition to some of these simpler features, your hotel will require building-wide fire prevention technology. Larger-scale fire protection and prevention tools like fire extinguishers and fire sprinkler systems must be regularly tested and serviced to ensure they are able to function properly in the event of a fire. Here are the basic guidelines for these systems in regards to hotel fire safety:

Portable Fire Extinguishers

Every hotel requires portable fire extinguishers. The type of fire extinguisher your building needs will depend on the fire hazards present. For example, you’ll require kitchen-specific fire extinguishers for restaurant areas and a different fire extinguisher class for places like hallways and meeting rooms. Use this guide to choose the right fire extinguisher for each location in your hotel.

In addition to choosing the right fire extinguishers for your hotel, you’ll also need to ensure they are installed properly. Portable fire extinguishers should be correctly placed in either a wall cabinet or hung on the wall to ensure they are easily accessible in the event of a fire. Fire extinguishers should not be set on the floor.

Fire extinguisher training for employees

It is important to ensure that employees receive periodic hands-on fire extinguisher training. Basic training ensures that employees know how to properly use fire extinguishers, and can respond appropriately to a fire hazard, helping to keep your guests safe.

Fire extinguisher testing, inspection, and maintenance.

Your hotel must follow regular fire extinguisher testing, inspection, and maintenance requirements. If your fire extinguishers are not properly maintained, you are potentially putting your staff and your guests in danger. For a full list of code requirements for fire extinguisher testing, inspection, and maintenance, see Vanguard’s Code Requirements Guide, and check out this blog to determine when to replace your commercial fire extinguishers.

Hotel Fire Sprinkler System

Hotels are also required to implement a fire sprinkler system. Fire sprinkler systems are remarkably effective at suppressing hotel fires. They’re designed to activate as soon as a fire starts, and they work to stop a fire before it grows out of control, providing the time your guests need to evacuate the building safely, while also working to contain any damage to your building.

But, fire sprinkler systems only work if they are implemented properly, and regularly tested and serviced. Your hotel fire sprinkler system should be:

• Installed with sprinklers in every room
• Installed in compliance with NFPA standards
• Regularly maintained by qualified technicians

If you’re new to hotel fire safety, this blog helps explain the different types of fire sprinkler systems. Depending on the type of fire sprinkler system installed in your hotel, you’ll need to meet certain testing, inspection, and maintenance requirements. To help keep you on the right schedule, here’s a guide to How Often to Have Your Fire Sprinkler System Tested.

Special Hazard and Kitchen Fire Suppression Systems

The final component of your hotel fire safety system that we’ll discuss today is any special hazard or kitchen fire suppression system.

Most hotel fire sprinkler systems are wet systems, which means they use water to cool and prevent the spread of fire. But, if your hotel has a restaurant, kitchen, or any other special hazard, you’ll also need a special hazard or kitchen fire suppression system.

These fire suppression systems are designed to combat the unique fire hazards presented by things like kitchen or grease fires. They are another essential component of your hotel fire safety plan, and require different testing, inspection, and maintenance schedules.

There’s a lot that goes into an effective hotel fire safety plan, but every precaution and fire safety requirement is essential to ensuring you’re providing a safe, comfortable environment for all of your guests. If you’re new to hotel fire safety, and just aren’t sure where to start when it comes to scheduling regular inspections and maintenance, the Nohmi Bosai team is here to help walk you through. From designing & provisioning of your fire sprinkler system to fire protection system trainings and more, we can be your go-to resource for hotel fire safety.

Does your facility have an energy storage system (ESS)? If yes, your facility might be at a higher fire risk, so we recommend you to put in place effective fire detection and protection system which can prevent future mishap.

Various aspects including fire detection & fire suppression related to installation of stationary energy storage systems are covered in NFPA 855. From the various types of battery energy storage systems (like: lead-acid, nickel-cadmium, etc.) we’re going to focus mainly in this blog to ESS that have lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium-ion battery energy storage systems have been known to pose the greatest fire risk for facilities where these are installed. Here’s a little more information as to why, as well as to how you can protect your facility and people against fire risk posed by Li-ion battery ESS. 

Fire Hazard Associated with Lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage Systems: 

As long as lithium-ion batteries are stored and maintained properly, they don’t pose significant fire risks. However, for many facilities, it becomes easy to forget about them or keep up with regular inspections and maintenance and of course, there’s always a chance that something unexpected happens. That’s why it’s important to understand the potential hazards and do your best to prevent and prepare for them. 

Thermal Runaway:

The main fire hazard associated with lithium-ion batteries is thermal runaway. Thermal runaway is a chain reaction that occurs as heat builds up in a lithium-ion battery faster than it can be dissipated. Here’s a more detailed run-through of how thermal runaway works:

When a lithium-ion battery malfunctions or suffers physical damage, it will likely experience an increase in internal temperature, which can be either gradual or sudden. 

As temperature increases, the battery releases a toxic and explosive gas, which is what causes thermal runaway to occur. 

Then, the chain reaction leads to an explosive release of all thermal and electromechanical energy stored in the cell, and the ignition of the toxic gas that’s been released.

Fire Safety Tips for Lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage Systems:

All that being said, it’s wise to dedicate time, energy, and money to figure out a plan of action to protect your facility from the threats that thermal runaway can bring. To do this, you’ll have to consider the following safety tips for fire safety of lithium-ion battery energy storage systems: 

1. Build Your Battery Energy Storage System In Accordance with NFPA 855
   NFPA 855 is a standard that discusses a list of requirements to ensure fire safety, and it’s critical to read and follow them carefully. By building your battery energy storage system in accordance with NFPA 855, you can ensure you’re doing the best you can to prevent any risk and protect your property, products, and people.
   It’s important to note here that NFPA 855 is updated fairly frequently, often on an annual basis. Industry experts are continuously learning more about lithium-ion batteries and the risks associated with them, so you should refer to the most current safety standards available for adequate protection. 
   
   
2. Develop an Emergency Operations Plan in Conjunction with Your Local Fire Department and AHJ
   If you’re planning to install a lithium battery energy storage system in your facility, you must consult with your local fire department and authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) to develop an emergency operations plan. This plan should be different from your emergency operations plans for other fire hazards, as lithium-ion battery energy storage systems pose different, often more severe, fire risk. Your local fire department and AHJ will likely have a greater understanding of lithium-ion fire risks, and will therefore help in creating a more successful plan. 
   
   
3. Create Signage to Identify the Contents of Lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage System
   As you install your lithium-ion battery energy storage system, you should also implement some signage around it. This signage should include information about the contents within your system. This helps to alert facility operators or first responders of the potential risks associated with the installation. 
   
   
4. Equip Your Facility with Explosion Protection Devices
   NFPA 855 requires that any facility with a lithium-ion battery energy storage system should be equipped with an adequate special hazard fire protection system, namely an explosion protection device. While there are a variety of explosion protection devices to choose from, explosion vent panels are some of the most popular. These panels are installed on the top of the battery energy storage system to safely direct the explosion upward, away from most of your people and property. 
   
   
5. Install a Sprinkler and/or Suppression System
   Sprinkler system and suppression system are essentially required to prevent risk posed from fire in protected space. These systems effectively combat fire, or at least control the fire until local fire department can reach to your facility. If your facility doesn’t currently have one, you’ll want to invest in one (or both!) of them. 
   What’s the difference between sprinkler systems and clean-agent gas suppressions systems? Sprinkler system releases water, while suppression system releases clean-agent gases like (IG-100, IG-541, NOVEC 1230 etc.), or chemical powders, or foam agent. In most cases, it’s recommended that facilities with highly combustible substances install a fire suppression system since water isn’t as effective as compared to clean-agent gases/chemical powder/foam.
   
   
6. Install Specialized Hazard Detection Systems
   One of the most important choices you can make for limiting fire and explosion damage from battery energy storage systems is which specialized hazard detection system you install. There are a variety of detection options that can detect the conditions that precede thermal runaway from temperature increases to off-gasses, smoke, or flames. 
   
   The earlier your malfunctioning battery is detected, the sooner you can notify first responders, sound your alarms, evacuate the premises, and activate fire sprinkler system and/or gas suppression system. Depending on your unique application, some detection options may suit your facility better than others. Consult with a fire detection expert to help make the best choice. 

Lithium battery storage is essential to your facility’s operations, but it can also present significant fire hazards, especially if you don’t have the right fire protection and detection solutions in place. Contact our team to get help discovering, implementing, and maintaining the fire protection and detection systems that will ensure safety of your premises & people.