Overview
UCSF buildings, whether under construction or existing, are required to have fire protection and life safety systems that are integrated with each other; rarely are these systems operating in isolation. Systems such as fire alarms, fire suppression (including sprinklers), smoke control, elevator recall, emergency communications, HVAC, and security are designed to interact during emergency conditions.
These systems are typically tested individually in accordance with standards such as NFPA 13, 72, and 92. However, individual tests do not verify whether these systems will function together as intended. For example, even if a kitchen hood suppression system and a fire alarm panel pass their respective acceptance tests, there is no guarantee that a suppression activation will properly signal the fire alarm system unless an integrated test is performed. NFPA 4, Standard for Integrated Fire Protection and Life Safety System Testing, ensures that systems designed to work together have been demonstrated to work together.
For high-rise buildings, integrated testing shall comply with NFPA 4 per CFC 901.6.2.1, with an integrated test performed prior to issuance of the certificate of occupancy and at intervals not exceeding 10 years, unless otherwise specified by an integrated system test plan prepared in accordance with NFPA 4. Integrated testing is required for existing buildings when new systems are added and integrated, systems are modified, or site-specific software is changed.
Purpose of Integrated System Testing
- Ensure fire/life safety systems operate together as intended
- Validate sequence of operations across multiple systems
- Confirm no inter-system conflicts or failures
- Required when two or more systems rely on each other to perform function
CODE REFERENCES
California Fire Code (CFC) 2025 – Section 901.6.2.
Where two or more fire protection or life safety systems are interconnected, the intended response of subordinate systems must be verified during testing of the initiating system. Integrated testing shall comply with Sections 901.6.2.1 (High-Rise Buildings) and 901.6.2.2 (Fire Alarm with Smoke Control).
INTEGRATED SYSTEM TESTING REQUIREMENTS PER NFPA 4, 2024 EDITION
Systems Requiring Integrated Testing
- Fire Alarm Systems
- Automatic Sprinkler Systems (Flow/Tamper)
- Smoke Control Systems
- Elevator Recall and Shunt Trip
- Fire Doors/Door Release Hardware
- Emergency Power and Generators
- Fire Pumps
- Water tanks
REQUIREMENTS FOR IMPLEMENTATION
Assign an Integrated Testing Agent (ITA)
The building owner must designate a qualified ITA with demonstrable expertise in fire protection and life safety system integration. For smoke control, a mechanical engineer or smoke control consultant shall co-author the test plan. See further information on qualifications below.
DCFM to Review and Approve the Integrated Test Plan which includes the requirements of NFPA 4 4.5.1 and:
- Names, roles, and qualifications of plan authors
- List of contractors/vendors and prior project involvement
- Detailed existing conditions and modifications
- Initiating events and expected responses
- Responsibilities during testing
- Testing methods and validation tools
- Re-test procedures if failure occurs
FURTHER NFPA 4 2024 EDITION REQUIREMENTS
3.3.2 Basis of Design (BOD)
A document that describes the concepts and decisions used to meet the owner’s project requirements and the applicable governing laws, regulations, codes, and standards. The basis of design is used to assist in the plan review, inspection, and acceptance process.
3.3.19 Narrative
A written summary description of the building(s) or structure(s), including exterior property boundaries and all applicable fire protection and life safety systems and related integrated operational features.
Building owners benefit by knowing how their building’s fire protection and life safety systems work. The narrative provides a procedure including methods for testing and maintenance. A copy of the narrative report should be kept on the premises and should be available for review prior to testing and proposed modifications to any portion of the building’s fire protection and life safety systems.
Development Format. The narrative is prepared by a qualified, identified individual who has “taken charge” in the development of an entire coordinated narrative that includes all information regarding the design basis, sequence of operation, and testing criteria associated with all required or non-required fire protection systems set forth by applicable laws, codes, regulations, and local ordinances of the jurisdiction and applicable national and/or international standards.
The narrative should be submitted with plans and specifications for review and approval by the AHJ prior to the issuance of a building permit. The narrative should be written in a clear conversational format. The construction specifications should not be considered a narrative; however, some applicable portions of the construction specifications could be included to support or clarify the intent of the narrative. The narrative is a stand-alone document; it should be 81⁄2 in. × 11 in. for filing and ease of use by the AHJ and building owners; and it should include an administrative cover page identifying the project name, building address, and name, address, and phone number of the individual who has “taken charge” in the preparation of the narrative.
4.3 Qualifications
4.3.1 The personnel involved in integrated system testing shall meet the requirements of this section.
4.3.2 Team members shall provide evidence of their qualifications when requested by the authority having jurisdiction.
4.3.3 The integrated system test team shall have a working knowledge of the integration between systems for which testing is being performed.
4.3.3.1 The qualifications of team members shall be as required by laws, regulations, codes, and standards relevant to the specific individual system.
4.3.3.2 Where no codes or standards are applicable to a system or portion of a system, the required knowledge of team members shall be in accordance with industry practices relevant to the particular system or portion of a system.
4.3.4 The integrated testing agent shall have skills that demonstrate an experience or knowledge of integrated operations of the design, installation, operation and maintenance of the type of fire protection and life safety systems installed.
4.3.4.1 Where an integrated testing agent is not required for the team, the team shall collectively have an understanding of the design, installation, operation, maintenance, and use of the integrated systems.
4.5 Test Plan
For new systems, the minimum requirements for a test plan shall include the following:
- Written verification that the integrated system and its individual systems have been installed in accordance with the approved design documents
- List of the individual systems to be tested
- Documentation of the individual systems as required by the applicable codes or standards
- Integrated test team and additional entities required to be in attendance
- Equipment required for testing
- A comprehensive functional matrix depicting all system inputs and associated output functions
- List of necessary drawings, including riser diagrams and control diagrams
- Narrative description of the test scenarios, including what is needed for record of completion to document approval by the AHJ
- The extent of systems to be tested under the direction of the ITA
- Test schedule, including individual systems
- Periodic integrated systems test frequency
7.2 Minimum Required Test Documentation
7.2.1 The final test report shall summarize the results of the integrated testing.
7.2.2 The test report shall include a narrative or matrix describing each test and the response of the integrated system and individual systems.
7.2.2.1 The test report shall include a description of the status of each individual system for each test.
7.2.2.2 The report detail for each test shall identify the individual system where a condition was simulated or where a device state change was initiated.
7.2.2.3 The report detail for each test shall identify each individual system where a response occurred as the result of a simulated condition or a change in state for an initiating device.
7.2.3 The test report shall include a statement that all input and output functions of the integrated system have been tested and operate as intended.
7.2.3.1 Where any test result does not comply with the intended design, a description of the fault shall be made in an issues log.
7.2.3.2 Where any test result does not comply with the intended design, corrective action report shall be prepared.
7.2.4 The ITA shall maintain a record of faults, failures, and discrepancies discovered through the testing process in the issues log.
7.2.5 The issues log shall list each separate finding and its corresponding resolution, including dates of discovery and resolution.
7.2.6 Corrective action reports shall be prepared and shall provide a specific and detailed description of actions taken to remediate faults, failures, and discrepancies discovered during the testing process.
7.3 Completion Documents
7.3.1 Upon completion of testing and after all issues and discrepancies have been resolved, the ITA shall submit completion documents to the owner and, where requested, to other stakeholders.
7.3.2 All documents required by Section 7.2 of this standard shall be included in the completion documents.
7.3.3 A copy of the test plan required by Section 4.5 shall be included in the completion documents.
7.3.4 The completion documents shall include all documentation required by the integrated system design documents or by other governing laws, codes, or standards.
For further information, please reach out to [email protected]