College Planning & Management

MAY 2013

College Planning & Management is the information resource for professionals serving the college and university market. Covering facilities, security, technology and business.

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just 53 percent of the residence halls and barracks that reported fires between 2006 and 2010. The NFPA also notes that fires in university buildings with no sprinkler system cause damage averaging $23,000 per event. The damage to educational structures protected by sprinklers averages just $9,000. Other Measures: Campus Fire Safety Right-to-Know Act While the case for requiring sprinkler systems in all student-housing facilities is strong, it won't happen until all 50 states require it. Other measures are enhancing fire safety in student housing, and may eventually lead colleges and universities to retrofit residence halls on their own. Chief among these other measures is the Campus Fire Safety Right-to-Know Act. This Act was part of the Higher Education Opportunity Act signed by then President George W. Bush in 2008. It took effect during the 2009-2010 academic year. The Act requires colleges to report fires and fire-safety measures to the U.S. Department of Education and to make those reports available to the public. According to Hormann, the reports must include: • The number of fires and the cause of each fire • The number of injuries and deaths related to a fire • The value of property damage caused by a fire • A description of the fire protection equipment, such as alarms and sprinklers, in each on-campus housing unit • The number of regular mandatory supervised fire drills • Policies regarding fire-safety education and training programs provided to students, faculty, and staff • Plans for future improvements in fi re safety "We believe that the components of the law, as intended, will help ensure that America's college students, their parents, and the public will have uniform, valid, and easy-to-understand information regarding fire safety," Hormann says. Not only that. Colleges and universities compete for students. For some institutions, these Right-to-Know reports will become competitive tools. They will not want to publicize that fi re safety may be lacking anywhere on campus. Public reporting may even provide an incentive to retrofit on-campus residence halls with sprinkler systems — even if state law doesn't require it. CPM EDFNXSIRUHYHU\V\VWHPRQFDPSXV DOOZLWKLQ\RXUEXGJHW 352/&'6HULHV (Q6SLUH6HULHV 352576HULHV 6WXGHQWDQGVWDIIVDIHW\GHSHQGVRQ32:(5 &RPSUHKHQVLYH3URWHFWLRQ; Minuteman's product line includes solutions ranging from enterprise-level Uninterruptible Power Supplies to single-outlet surge suppressors, simplifying the process of building a quality power protection system. Scan now! The safety of every person on campus depends on the security systems in place in each building. Whether those consist of a single camera DVR or a 400 camera supersystem stretching across multiple locations, Minuteman's line of power protection products will ensure they will remain operational when the power fails. Since 1982 we have provided reliable, comprehensive power protection solutions to 1000+ educational institutions. _ZZZPLQXWHPDQXSVFRP_ZZZVL]HP\XSVFRP 3DUD6\VWHPV,QF_/H0D\'U&DUUROOWRQ7; MAY 2013 / COLLEGE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT 39

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