DSA Fire and Life Safety SDFPA, February 2009 Craig Rush DSA Regional Manager

General Overview

3 About the Division of the State Architect (DSA)  DSA provides design and construction oversight for K–12 Schools, Community Colleges and State-Owned Essential Services Facilities. DSA specifically regulates building code and education code compliance for: Structural Safety (SS) Fire and Life Safety (FLS) Accessibility (ACS)  DSA has four regional offices: Oakland (Area 01) Sacramento (Area 02) Los Angeles (Area 03) San Diego (Area 04)

4 Project Phases  Plan Review Phase Review construction documents for code compliance. Occurs before any construction takes place.  Construction Phase Physical construction of the project occurs  Closeout Phase Initiated after construction is substantially complete.

5 DSA San Diego Contacts Fire Life Safety Contacts:  Assigned District Structural Engineer  Assigned Plan Checker  FLS Lead Efren Abrego  FLS Supervisor Don Fenlason  Regional Manager Craig Rush  Escalating issues (CAP)

6 Code Appeal Process (CAP)  DSA has in place a process CAP to appeal code decisions made by the Regional offices.  Total elapsed time 30 working days  Plan Reviewer  Technical Lead  Supervisor  Regional Manager  State-Wide Technical Team

Deferred Approvals

8 General Information  A deferred approval represents a portion of the construction that cannot be fully detailed on the approved drawings because of variations in product design and manufacture.  Approval of plans for such a portion may be deferred until the material suppliers are selected.

9 General Information (continued)  Deferred approvals must be submitted to allow DSA and the A/E of Record time to review and approve the submittal prior to fabrication and installation.  Fabrication and installation of these items shall not begin until approval is granted.  DSA Stop Work Authority is applicable to construction occurring without DSA approved plans including deferred portions of the plans.

10 Eligible Items for Deferred Approval  Steel joists/joist girders  Wood trusses  Elevator guide rails and support bracket anchorage  Window wall systems or storefronts with spans greater than 10 feet  Exterior wall systems  Skylights  Bleachers  Automatic fire sprinkler systems  Fire pumps and water tanks  Access floors  Stage rigging  Others as accepted by DSA (project-specific)

Submitting Deferred Approvals

12  Use DSA submittal guidelines for AFFS  Complete plans & specifications (2 sets)  Calculations and Cut Sheets (2 sets) STEP 1: Submitting Deferred Plans to DSA

13  Plans are reviewed in order received  FLS deferred approval reviews are conducted: 1. Structural - Structural Engineer 2. Fire & Life Safety - FLS Officer  Plans reviewed by first available plan reviewer (for all disciplines)  Plans are reviewed for “ Minimum Code Compliance” STEP 2: Deferred Plan Review

14  “Checksets” (SS, FLS,) returned to Architect when completed  “TRACKER” indicates status of each review (SS, FLS,) including when review is complete and returned to the Architect STEP 3: Reviewed Plans Returned to Architect

15  Architect coordinates Design Team review of DSA comments  Design Team makes needed revisions to plans and supporting documents  Architect returns 2 sets of revised plans and supporting documents to DSA (along with DSA checksets) STEP 4: Design Team Review of Checkset

16  DSA reviews the revised documents for Minimum Code compliance  In unusual circumstances Architect may schedule a “backcheck” appointment at DSA Regional Office  Architect and designers must provide experienced staff at the backcheck STEP 5: “Backcheck” and Approval of Plans

17  DSA approves the plans and stamps them “Approved”  DSA keeps one Record Set of plans and supporting documents  DSA Returns other set of plans and supporting documents to Architect.  The date on the Approval Stamp is the official DSA deferred plan approval date. STEP 6: Approving Plans & Specs

Tips for Doing Business with DSA

19 1. Follow DSA policies and processes. 2. Allow adequate time to complete the design so that quality is not sacrificed for expediency. 3. Provide a complete accurate design. 4. Plan review your design before submitting to DSA. 5. Fully respond to All DSA comments in a timely manner. (Respond in writing on the DSA checkset) Top Ten Tips for a Successful Project

20 6. Take a collaborative approach to working with the design professionals and DSA. 7. Avoid playing the “blame game.” 8. Elevate issues that are not being resolved. 9. Act professional – be respectful and courteous 10. Find Satisfaction and Enjoyment in your work! Top Ten Tips for a Successful Project

21 DSA Can Help  Visit our website at  Call our offices:  San Francisco Bay Area Regional Office: (510)  Sacramento Regional Office: (916)  Los Angeles Regional Office: (213)  San Diego Regional Office: (858)  Headquarters: (916)

THANK YOU!