April 27, 2007

Education

Manuals keep designers on top of developing issues

DON PROCTER

correspondent

The American-based Gypsum Association’s 18th edition of the Fire Resistance Design Manual Sound Control, published last June, isn’t the only directory offered to designers and contractors with information on fire resistive and sound control systems. It is simply the best, say industry pundits.

Bob Mercer, manager of CGC Inc. technical services, was on the technical committee which put the 18th edition together. Unlike the Underwriters’ Laboratories Inc. (UL) and the Underwriters’ Laboratories of Canada (ULC) directories, the new design manual is easy to use and written in plain English, he says.

The 162-page manual contains generic and proprietary assemblies for North America and includes systems of Canadian and American gypsum manufacturers. It covers walls, partitions, floor/ceilings, roof-ceilings, columns, beams, girders and trusses.

It identifies wood and steel assemblies by fire ratings so users don’t have to pour over other extensive directories to find the system they want, points out Bob Wessel, assistant executive director of the Gypsum Association and editor of the manual.

“We’ve organized our manual based on fire rating because the contractor or the architect knows the fire rating he needs but may not have decided on whether he wants to use wood or steel. It is much easier for them to find what they want in our book.”

That can be particularly important to designers, Wessel adds, because it is difficult for them to “stay on top of developing issues.”

Mercer calls it “a great book” which covers all the bases on the “dos and don’ts” of fire and sound assemblies. However, one of the problems Canadian users face is that some companies listed in the directory that have proprietary designs don’t produce or sell gypsum board in Canada. The manual’s language is geared to U.S. building codes. It is not referenced by Canadian code agencies simply because not all of the assemblies would comply.

Canadian users should check where the assembly was fire tested, he points out.

“For it to comply with Canadian building codes, someone would have to certify that the test was done in accordance with or equivalent to the national ULC standard for determining fire resistance ratings,” he adds. UL or Warnock Hersey International fire tested standards are examples that are acceptable.”

He notes U.S. companies using the manual face a similar problem in that if the data is fire rated by Canadian agencies it may not be recognized by U.S. building codes.

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