Property Loss Prevention

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Property Loss Prevention

August 12, 2024
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Left Panel Of George Julian Zolnay’s Allegorical “Academic, Business & Manual Education” Granite Frieze At Francis L. Cardozo High School (Washington, DC)

All fifty United States have their own “signature” disaster with which to reckon; some more than others.   California has earthquakes, Florida has hurricanes, Missouri has floods; and so on,  Life and property loss are preventable; but losses will persist because technical solutions notwithstanding, culture determines human behavior.  It is impossible to be alive and safe.

FM Global is one of several organizations that curate privately developed consensus products that set the standard of care for many industries; education communities among them.  These standards contribute to the reduction in the risk of property loss due to fire, weather conditions, and failure of electrical or mechanical equipment.  They incorporate nearly 200 years of property loss experience, research and engineering results, as well as input from consensus standards committees, equipment manufacturers and others.

If you want FMGlobal as your insurance carrier, or to supplement your organization’s self-insurance program, then you will likely be assigned an FMGlobal conformity professional.

A scan of its list data sheets indicate a number of noteworthy updates of documents establishing minimum requirements for safety technologies common in education facilities:

Technical Reports Supporting Code Change

Note that the bulk of the safety concepts in the foregoing titles incorporate by reference the safety concepts that cross our radar every day   FM Global provides direct access to the full span of its documents at this link:

FM GLOBAL PROPERTY LOSS PREVENTION DATA SHEETS

Note FM Global updates its standards every three months:

Standards in Progress

To respond to calls for public consultation you will need to set up (free) access credentials.

We keep FMGlobal titles — and the literature of other property insurers involved in standards setting — on the standing agenda of our Risk, Snow and Prometheus colloquia.  See our CALENDAR for the next meeting.

Issue: [Various]

Category: Risk, Facility Asset Management


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Deloitte University: Innovation in Insurance

University of Pennsylvania demonstrates the critical importance of sprinklers in dormitories

Syracuse University presents an eclectic mix of risk management challenges

Jackson Laboratory

Representative force majeure clauses.

Example 1: Basic Force Majeure Clause

“Neither party shall be liable for any failure or delay in performance of its obligations under this agreement due to events beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, war, terrorism, civil commotion, labor strikes, and natural disasters. The affected party shall promptly notify the other party of the force majeure event and take reasonable steps to mitigate its impact on performance. During the continuance of such events, the obligations of the affected party shall be suspended, and the time for performance shall be extended.”

Example 2: Detailed Force Majeure Clause

“In the event that either party is unable to perform its obligations under this agreement due to a force majeure event, the affected party shall promptly notify the other party in writing, specifying the nature and anticipated duration of the force majeure event. Force majeure events shall include, but are not limited to, acts of God, strikes, lockouts, government action or inaction, war, terrorism, epidemics, and natural disasters. The affected party shall use reasonable efforts to overcome or mitigate the effects of the force majeure event. If the force majeure event continues for a period of [specified duration], either party may terminate this agreement by providing written notice to the other party.”

 

 

Unibrass: Olympic Fanfare

August 11, 2024
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Unibrass


Watersport

August 9, 2024
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Athletic Competition Timing Standards

Today we update our understanding of best practice catalogs for outdoor and indoor watersport; primarily swimming and rowing.  Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.

Natatoriums 300: Advanced Topics

Sapienza – Università di Roma

USA Swimming and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Swimming are two distinct organizations that oversee different aspects of competitive swimming in the United States. USA Swimming governs competitive swimming in the United States across all age groups and skill levels, while NCAA Swimming specifically focuses on collegiate-level swimming and diving competitions within the NCAA framework. Both organizations play crucial roles in the development and promotion of swimming in the United States.

Governing Body:

USA Swimming is the national governing body for the sport of swimming in the United States. It is responsible for overseeing competitive swimming at all levels, from grassroots programs to elite national and international competitions.
NCAA Swimming: NCAA Swimming is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which governs intercollegiate sports in the United States. NCAA Swimming specifically deals with collegiate-level swimming competitions among universities and colleges.

Scope:

USA Swimming is responsible for organizing and regulating competitive swimming for all age groups and skill levels, from youth swimmers to Masters swimmers (adults). It oversees swim clubs, hosts competitions, and develops national teams for international events.
NCAA Swimming: NCAA Swimming focuses exclusively on college-level swimming and diving competitions. It sets the rules and guidelines for swimming and diving programs at NCAA member institutions.

Membership:

Individuals, swim clubs, and teams can become members of USA Swimming, allowing them to participate in USA Swimming-sanctioned events, access coaching resources, and benefit from the organization’s development programs.
NCAA Swimming: NCAA Swimming is composed of collegiate athletes who compete for their respective universities and colleges. Athletes are typically student-athletes who represent their schools in NCAA-sanctioned competitions.

Competition Format:

USA Swimming hosts a wide range of competitions, including local, regional, and national meets, as well as Olympic Trials and international events. Swimmers compete as individuals, representing their swim clubs or teams.
NCAA Swimming: NCAA Swimming primarily consists of dual meets, invitational meets, and conference championships at the collegiate level. Swimmers represent their respective universities or colleges, earning points for their teams in dual meets and competing for conference and national titles.

Scholarships:

USA Swimming itself does not offer scholarships. Scholarships for competitive swimmers are typically awarded by colleges and universities based on an athlete’s performance and potential.
NCAA Swimming: NCAA member institutions offer scholarships to talented student-athletes in various sports, including swimming. These scholarships can cover tuition, room, board, and other expenses, making NCAA swimming an avenue for athletes to receive financial support for their education.

 


 

Swimming, Water Polo and Diving Lighting

Pool, Fountain, Agriculture & Water Infrastructure Electrical Safety

August 9, 2024
mike@standardsmichigan.com

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2026 National Electrical Code Workspace

“The Bathing Pool” / Hubert Robert (French, 1733–1808) / Gift of J.P. Morgan

Education communities have significant assets tied up in swimming pools, immersion pools, fountains, hydro-therapy installations (in hospitals and athletic training facilities) and flood control facilities (in congested, non-permeable parts of urban campuses) we have been keeping an eye on leading practice discovery for these installations in the 2020 National Electrical Code.

With electrical safety — i.e. shock protection — as the focus of this post*, the relevant parts of the 2020 NEC reside in Articles 680 and 682 are described below:

Article 680 applies to the construction and installation of electrical wiring for, and equipment in or adjacent all swimming, wading, therapeutic and decorative pools, fountains, hot tubs, spas and hydromassage bathtubs, whether permanently installed or storable, and to metallic auxiliary equipment, such as pumps, filters, and similar equipment.  The term body of water used throughout Part I applies to all bodies of water covered in this scope unless otherwise amended.

Article 682 applies to the installation of electrical wiring for, and the equipment in and adjacent to, natural or artificially made bodies of water not covered by other articles in the NEC, such as, but not limited to aeration ponds, fish farm ponds, storm retention basins, treatment ponds and irrigation (channel facilities.   Water depths may vary seasonally or be controlled.

When the 2020 NEC is released there will be hundreds (more like thousands) of experts who make their living on each NEC revision fanning out across the globe able and ready to interpret, advise and train.  We are not primarily a code training enterprise but we do get down into the weeds of electrical safety technical discussion where leading practice discovery discussion is recorded:

2020 NEC Article 680-682 Public Input | Pages 240 – 501

2020 NEC Articles 680-682 First Draft Report | Page 59 – 152

2020 NEC Articles 680-682 Public Comment Report

2020 NEC Articles 680-682 Second Draft Final Ballot

Transcripts superseded.  We refer to the 2026 Workspace linked at the top of this page.

We find interest in corrosion control, water bottle fill stations, water heating technologies, LED illumination as well as the usual editorial, correlation and concepts movement between articles.  From these transcripts it should also be plain that grounding and bonding practice, GFCI protection, luminaire location and wiring, corrosion management continue to be of primary interest in electrical safety assurance.   Related safety concepts appear in NFPA 70B and NFPA 70E.   Anything having to do with water; or the areas around water, are regions of elevated risk.

We are happy to discuss electrical safety standards any day at 11 AM Eastern time and host a monthly breakout teleconference dedicated to Electrical Power Safety in education facilities.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting.  We also collaborate closely with the IEEE Education & Healthcare Facilities Committee which meets online four times monthly in European and American time zones.

Issue: [16-102]

Category: Electrical, Risk Management, Water,

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Jim Harvey, Kane Howard

*We leave the technical specifics of footcandle distribution to another, future post.


LEARN MORE:

2017 NEC changes for electrical safety in swimming pools

2020 NEC Changes (All Articles)

 

 

 

Dostojno jest

August 8, 2024
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The Cracow University of Economics campus is located in the centre of Krakow in the close neighborhood of the main railway station and bus station Kraków Główny.  The University owns 15 buildings where lectures and classes take place, including other facilities like: language centre, library, sport facilities, canteens and cafes, career centre and university clinic.

Campus Facilities

History of Western Civilization Told Through the Acoustics of its Worship Spaces

Polska

Air Conditioning

August 8, 2024
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Ancient Air Conditioning | CLICK ON IMAGE

Today at 15:00 UTC we will review the latest in best practice literature for air conditioning systems.  Note that we have broken out this topic from the standing Mechanical colloquia.  Our approach features interoperability and system considerations.  Catalogs on the agenda:

ACCA

Air Conditioning System Construction & Maintenance

Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute

Standards and Guides

ASHRAE International

Standard 90.1-2022—Energy Standard for Sites and Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings

Standard 90.4 Energy Standard for Data Centers

Acceptable Performance Standard for District Cooling Systems

ASME

Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Systems

European Standards

EN 14511 Specifies the requirements for air conditioners, liquid chilling packages, and heat pumps with electrically driven compressors.

IEEE

Occupant-Based HVAC Thermal Setpoints

International Code Council

International Building Code Interior Environment & HVAC Systems

International Mechanical Code Chapter 11 Refrigeration

NFPA

National Electrical Code Article 430: Motors, Motor Circuits and Motor Controllers

Standard for the Installation of Air-Conditioning and Ventilating Systems

Underwriters Laboratories (largely product standards, not embedded system nor interoperability titles)

Uptime Institute

Implementing Data Center Cooling Best Practices


Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page


University of Rochester Central Utilities Plant Absorption Chiller

Issues: [11-67, 15-124, 15-135, 15-165]

Category: Energy, Mechanical

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Larry Spielvogel, Richard Robben


 

 

Air Conditioning System Construction & Maintenance

August 8, 2024
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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Ancient Air Conditioning | CLICK ON IMAGE

The Air Conditioning Contractors Association of America is an accredited standards developer for the design, maintenance, installation, testing, and performance of indoor environment systems.   We find several ACCA best practice titles referenced as in education facility design guidelines and construction contracts.  Much of its catalog forms the foundation for the technical curricula in trade schools.  Its library is linked below:

ANSI/ACCA Home Page

It welcomes original public input and public comment on titles in its standards catalog at the link below:

ACCA Standards Development Home Page

As of this posting the ACCA has not released any titles for public comment.  We encourage our colleagues to interact directly with the ACCA standards team: Air Conditioning Contractors Association, 2800 Shirlington Rd, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22206, (703) 575-4477, membership@acca.org.

We maintain the ACCA suite on the standing agenda of our Air Conditioning and Mechanical teleconferences.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

 

LEARN MORE:

 

Lingonberries

August 8, 2024
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True North Kitchen: Nordic Wild Berry Almond Smoothie

Lingonberries almost completely prevented weight gain in mice fed a high-fat diet, a study at Lund University in Sweden has found – whereas the ‘super berry’ açai led to increased weight gain. The Scandinavian berries also produced lower blood sugar levels and cholesterol.

Swedish Institute for Standards

Warrior Coffee Project

August 7, 2024
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Standards Pennsylvania

Financial Statement 2023


Campus Chapel

Summer Soiree event on the Upper Quad during First Weekend.

Buildings & Grounds


 

Willa Cather: “Pennsylvania is a beautiful state, filled with history and the evidence of hard work.”

Harper Lee: “In Pennsylvania, there’s a sense of history that’s palpable. You can feel it in the air.”

John Updike: “Pennsylvania is old and it’s new, it’s modern and it’s historical; a place where the past meets the present.”

James A. Michener: “Pennsylvania is a land of deep rivers and tall mountains, fertile valleys and ancient forests.”

H.G. Wells: “Pennsylvania has always been a dream to me, a place where hard work and determination lead to success.”

Tennessee Williams: “There’s a depth of character in the people of Pennsylvania, a resilience that comes from their history.”

David McCullough: “Pennsylvania is a cradle of American history, a place where the very fabric of our nation was woven.”

Louisa May Alcott: “The rolling hills of Pennsylvania are a testament to the enduring spirit of the American people.”

Annie Dillard: “Pennsylvania is a state of great beauty, with a landscape that inspires and a history that humbles.”

John Steinbeck: “The people of Pennsylvania have always struck me as the backbone of America, hardworking and proud.”

Edgar Allan Poe: “The streets of Pennsylvania cities hold many secrets, whispers of the past in every cobblestone.”

Mark Twain: “Pennsylvania is a state that embodies the very essence of the American spirit.”

F. Scott Fitzgerald: “There’s a timelessness to Pennsylvania, a sense of enduring strength and quiet beauty.”

Henry David Thoreau: “In Pennsylvania, nature and civilization coexist in a way that’s rare and beautiful.”

William Faulkner: “Pennsylvania’s history is written in its landscapes, its cities, and its people.”

Sylvia Plath: “The beauty of Pennsylvania’s seasons is a metaphor for the resilience of its people.”

Emily Dickinson: “Pennsylvania’s hills and valleys sing a song of history and hope.”

 

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