Florida Building Commission
Plenary Session
February 4-5, 2013
TradeWinds
5500 Gulf Boulevard,
St. Pete Beach, FL 33706
LEGAL
REPORT
1.
DS 2012-081 – By Joseph Scofield of Advanced
Manufacturing & Power Systems Inc.
1. A Client intends to install an electrical generator set in an
enclosure to provide emergency backup power to a hospital in the event of a
loss of utility power. There will be no other debris impact
protection aside from the generator enclosure.
According to FBC 419.4.2.9.6 “The emergency
generator(s) shall be air or self-contained liquid cooled and it and other
essential electrical equipment shall be installed in a protected area(s)
designed and constructed to meet the structural requirements of the code and
debris impact requirements of Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4”.
a. Is the generator enclosure required to be tested
and approved per Section 1626 of the 2010 Florida Building Code and bear either
appropriate Florida Product Approval numbers or Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance
approval?
Answer: As per Section
419.4.2.9.6 of the 2010 FBC, Building “the Code”, the generator enclosure in
question must be constructed to meet the structural requirements of the Code
and the debris impact requirements of Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4 as
applicable. Further, in order to demonstrate compliance with the
debris impact requirements of the Code, the generator enclosure or its
components must be either tested to TAS 201, 202, and 203 in accordance with
the requirements of Sections 1626.2 and 1626.3 as applicable or
designed/constructed to meet the deemed to comply standards of
Section 1626.4 as applicable. Product approval of the enclosure in question as
meeting the debris impact requirements of the Code is subject to the review and
discretion of the authority having jurisdiction.
2. A Client intends to install an electrical generator set in an
enclosure to provide emergency backup power to a Nursing Home in the event of a
loss of utility power. There will be no other debris impact protection
aside from the generator enclosure.
According to FBC 420.4.2.9.6 “The emergency
generator(s) shall be air or self-contained liquid cooled and it and other
essential electrical equipment shall be installed in a protected area(s)
designed and constructed to meet the structural requirements of the code and
debris impact requirements of Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4”.
a. Is the generator enclosure required to be tested
and approved per Section 1626 of the 2010 Florida Building Code and bear either
appropriate Florida Product Approval numbers or Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance
approval?
Answer: As per Section
420.4.2.9.6 of the 2010 FBC, Building “the Code”, the generator enclosure in
question must be constructed to meet the structural requirements of the Code
and the debris impact requirements of Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4 as
applicable. Further, in order to demonstrate compliance with the
debris impact requirements of the Code, the generator enclosure or its
components must be either tested to TAS 201, 202, and 203 in accordance with
the requirements of Sections 1626.2 and 1626.3 as applicable or
designed/constructed to meet the deemed to comply standards of
Section 1626.4 as applicable. Product approval of the enclosure in question as
meeting the debris impact requirements of the Code is subject to the review and
discretion of the authority having jurisdiction.
3. A Client intends to install an electrical generator set in an
enclosure to provide emergency backup power to an Enhanced Hurricane Protection
Area (EHPA) as part of an Educational Facility Public Shelter in the event of a
loss of utility power. There will be no other debris impact
protection aside from the generator enclosure.
According to FBC 423.25.5 “When generators
are installed, the facility housing the generator, permanent or portable, shall
be an enclosed area designed to protect the generators from wind and missile
impact. Air intakes and exhausts shall be designed and installed to meet the
wind load and missile impact criteria. Generators hardened by the manufacturer
to withstand the area’s design wind and missile impact criteria shall be exempt
from the enclosed area criteria requirement.”
a. Is the generator enclosure required to be tested
and approved per Section 1626 of the 2010 Florida Building Code and bear either
appropriate Florida Product Approval numbers or Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance
approval?
Answer: According to Section 423.25.5 of the 2010
Florida Building Code, Building (the Code); the generator enclosure or its
components is required to be designed to protect the generator from wind and
missile impact and thus the generator enclosure or its components must be
tested and approved as meeting the impact requirements of Section 423.25.4.1 of
the Code.
4. A Client intends to install an electrical generator set in an
enclosure to a commercial facility located in a High Velocity Hurricane Zone
(HVHZ) to provide emergency backup power in the event of a loss of utility
power. The generator Set and enclosure will be installed on the roof
of the facility. There will be no other debris impact protection
aside from the generator enclosure.
According to FBC 1601.1 “The provisions of
this chapter shall govern the structural design of buildings, structures and
portions thereof regulated by this code.
Exception: Buildings and structures located within the high-velocity
hurricane zone shall comply with the provisions of Sections 1615 through 1626,
and, as applicable in flood hazard areas, Section 1612.”
a. Is the generator enclosure required to be tested
and approved per Section 1626 of the 2010 Florida Building Code and bear either
appropriate Florida Product Approval numbers or Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance
approval?
Answer:
Yes.
The enclosure in question is part of a building which must be constructed to
meet the structural requirements of the Code and the debris impact requirements
of Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4 as applicable. Further, in order
to demonstrate compliance with the debris impact requirements of the Code, the
generator enclosure or its components must be either tested to TAS 201, 202,
and 203 in accordance with the requirements of Sections 1626.2 and 1626.3 as
applicable or designed/constructed to meet the deemed to comply standards
of Section 1626.4 as applicable. Product approval of the enclosure in question
as meeting the debris impact requirements of the Code is subject to the review
and discretion of the authority having jurisdiction.
5. A Client intends to install an electrical generator set in an
enclosure to a commercial facility located in a High Velocity Hurricane Zone
(HVHZ) to provide emergency backup power in the event of a loss of utility
power. The generator Set and enclosure will be installed on the
ground floor of the facility. There will be no other debris impact
protection aside from the generator enclosure.
According to FBC 1601.1 “The provisions of
this chapter shall govern the structural design of buildings, structures and
portions thereof regulated by this code.
Exception: Buildings and structures located within the high-velocity
hurricane zone shall comply with the provisions of Sections 1615 through 1626,
and, as applicable in flood hazard areas, Section 1612.”
a. Is the generator enclosure required to be tested
and approved per Section 1626 of the 2010 Florida Building Code and bear either
appropriate Florida Product Approval numbers or Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance
approval?
Answer:
Yes.
The enclosure in question is a building which must be constructed to meet the
structural requirements of the Code and the debris impact requirements of
Sections 1626.2 through 1626.4 as applicable. Further, in order to
demonstrate compliance with the debris impact requirements of the Code, the
generator enclosure or its components must be either tested to TAS 201, 202,
and 203 in accordance with the requirements of Sections 1626.2 and 1626.3 as
applicable or designed/constructed to meet the deemed to comply standards
of Section 1626.4 as applicable. Product approval of the enclosure in question
as meeting the debris impact requirements of the Code is subject to the review
and discretion of the authority having jurisdiction.
2.
DS 2012-094 - By Joseph Hetzel of DASMA
Question 1: Does the
term “protection of openings” mean the same as the term “opening protection”,
as found in the text of the referenced section, and specific to “protection
from windborne debris”?
Answer: Yes, the term “protection of openings” is analogous to the term
“opening protection” as referenced in Section 1609.1.2 of the 2010 Florida
Building Code, Building and specific to “protection from windborne debris.”
Question 2: Is the
non-glazed door required to comply with Section 1609.1.2?
Answer: No, Section 1609.1.2 is specific to glazed products.
Question 3: If the non-glazed
door is not required to comply with Section 1609.1.2, but it complies with the
wind load requirements of the code, would the door also comply with the code as
“opening protection”?
Answer: A non-glazed door is not required to be protected in accordance
with Section 1609.1.2 in a non-HVHZ zone
Question 4: Would the
state-approved, glazed garage door rated for non-HVHZ impact resistance be
acceptable for the job (which is outside the HVHZ) without an NOA?
Answer: Yes, if used as per the limits of use of the Product
Approval.
3.
DS 2012 -096 – By Ronald L. Rowe, Chief Building
Official, City of Ocala
RE: Project #1) In the scope of the work plan review for
permitting the process of stabilizing an interior concrete slab, on grade, for
a 2000 sq. ft. existing dwelling unit that was built in 2001, the application
consists of injecting pressurized structural polyurethane resin through the
slab, on grade, by using core drilled holes in which the polyurethane resin
expands to lift/stabilize the concrete slab. This process has no control of the
path of flow for the polyurethane resin in which direct contact with the slab
on grade concrete is possible.
Question –
Does injecting this pressurized structural polyurethane resin for
soil stabilization thru the slab on grade for existing dwellings, with possible
direct contact with the concrete slab on grade, constitute a violation of 2010
FBC-R Section 318.5?
Answer: No. The
application of Section R318.5 of the FBC, Residential is limited in scope to
new construction.
RE: Project
#2) In the scope
of the work plan review for permitting the process of stabilizing an exterior
foundation/footer for a 1450 sq. ft. existing dwelling unit that was built in
1985, the application consists of injecting structural polyurethane resin in
the ground outside of the existing dwelling unit to provide structural support
for the foundation /footer. This process has no control of the path
of flow for the polyurethane resin in which direct contact with the
foundation/footer is possible.
Question - Does injecting this structural polyurethane
resin into the ground outside the existing dwelling unit with possible direct
contact with the foundation/footer constitute a violation of 2010FBC-R
318.5?
Answer: No. The
provisions of Section R318.5 of the FBC, Residential do not apply to the
projects in question.
4.
DS 2012-097 – By Robert W. Moody, Jr. of Uretek
Holdings, Inc.
Question No. 1
Is the installation of a
rigid structural geotechnical polymer into the ground as a method of
soil stabilization
for an existing building prohibited by the 2010 Florida Building Code,
Residential, Chapter 3,
Code Section R318.5?
Answer: No. The
provisions of Section R318.5 of the FBC, Residential do not apply to the
projects in question.
Question No. 2
Are soil stabilization
techniques as discussed herein regulated by 2010 Florida Building Code –
Residential and/or Existing Building?
Answer: The applications of the soil stabilization techniques in
question fall within the technical scope of the 2010 Florida Building Code,
Existing Building and not the Florida Building Code, Residential.
“Legal counsel is
recommending dismissal of the declaratory statement for lack of jurisdiction.”