What types of buildings are acceptable for a UL Central Station? I have a copy of the UL spec, but it says things like "the roof is required to be a class A" with no other explaination. What is a class A roof? I know a block building with a gravel roof is acceptable but I am wondering what other construction types are?
Central Station Construction
Sep 11, 2005
4 Replies
Thanks for the reply, we are not ready to go full blown UL due to not having enough accounts to truly support it. But we are shopping for a bigger building and I would like to get one that can be easily "transformed" into a UL building.
James
Good-luck on your project James...
If this would help, please note the little hand-book we have on setting up Central Stations:
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It would give a basic idea of how to setup the interior of the Central Monitoring Station.
Good luck once again.
There's a UL standard that defines Class A, B, and C fire-resistive roofs, UL 790. But you don't need to become a roofing expert to build a central station. If you're building a building, just tell your architect. If you're buying one, get a roofing contractor to give you a letter. Spanish tiles and slate roofs can provide Class A protection, for example, but what's underneath the tiles is also important. Basically, Class A means it doesn't burn easily, and can resist a severe fire exposure. Think in terms of someone throwing a Molotov cocktail onto the roof of your building, or a wildfire surrounding the building.
If you have a copy of UL 827, you have the construction specs for the walls and ceiling, and the physical security requirements. One option that often works is an upper floor in a multi-story office building, since newer tall buildings are built with fire-resistive construction. However, there are special problems with multi-tenant buildings. Protection of the central station phone lines, emergency power, and a fire alarm system for the entire building are points to remember.
Good luck with your project.
- badenov
You can get listed as a UUFX and you don't need any of that stuff. You need
2 people there all the time, standby power and the doors must lock but thats about it.Then when you have enough accounts you can invest in a new building.
Or you can simply build four walls inside of your current space using concrete blocks and pour a concrete ceiling for it. Then install heavy steel doors and a couple of tv cameras. You can build it in the corner of a larger space. Kinda like a large fallout shelter for those of you who are old enough to know what a fallout shelter is.
BTW, a UUFX is a vigilante headquarters.
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