Managing Risk & Life Safety with Effective Pre-Plans

02.25.10

Managing Risk & Life Safety Processes

Presented by David HowarkaExecutive Vice President, Real View, LLC

INTRO

Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen!

On behalf of RealView, I would like to first thank Building Engines for inviting us to participate in today’s webinar, and second, thank the “record number” of audience members who took time away from busy schedules to log in.

2.25.10 Managing Risk & Life Safety Processes

RealView LLC is a Chicago based mobile software development company. Two of our primary programs utilized by Real Estate Management to reduce risk:

-REALVIEW MOBILE INSPECTIONS-COMMANDSCOPE EMERGENCY PRE-PLANS

My name is Dave Howorka, I am Executive Vice President of RealView, LLC based in Chicago.


Many of us spend our days focusing on commercial real estate operations.Trying to create value for ownership; either through increasing income,reducing expenses, repositioning our assets as LEED properties, or cleaningup the mess that a leasing agent left for us with all their lease “give-aways”.

Minimal time is spent planning for Emergency’s. In today’s world, it’s no longer an “if” – it’s a “when”!

• When is a tunnel going to collapse under our city’s river and flood the basements of our commercial business district?

• When is a toxic agent going to be released in our public transportation system?• When is some depressed, tax delinquent individual going to fly his airplane into

the side of our office building?

Emergencies: it’s no longer “if” - it’s “when”


We can not prevent all emergency’s, but we can certainly be prepared toassist the professionals that are called in for help.

Management needs to:

• Stay current on the property “condition” to effectively repair, maintain, or replace.

• Keep current pre-incident plans to help minimize risks and improve tenant safety. These pre-plans provide First Responders with immediate building knowledge. This prevents responding by guesswork.

Inadequate preparation can be costly and deadly…..


Preparation is the Best Prevention

Case Study: Cook County Fire


http://abclocal.go.com/wls/video?id=6109542

Six people died; 14 + people injured$100,000,000.00 Award


$50,000,000 paid by City of Chicago

$24,000,000 paid by Building Management

$9,000,000 paid by Building Owner

Case Study: Cook County FireAward

The Governor of IL retained James Lee Witt Associates to conduct an independent review, in order to discover:

• the facts associated with this fire that led to the death and injuries

• to address the lessons learned• to make recommendations to improve

high-rise safety throughout the state


Case Study: Cook County FireAfter the Fire

Defendants: Cook County (Building Owner), Building Management, City of Chicago- Fire Department, and State of Illinois

Case Study: Cook County FireThe Witt Review


Numerous deficiencies and mistakes were tied to the above defendants. For the purpose of today’s presentation, we will focus on the recommendations for the Building Management Team which can help reduce risk and improve safety in all of our properties.

The Witt’s review found more than 80 examples of failures, inconsistencies, ineffectiveness and / or non-compliance on the part of several agencies, organizations and individuals, several of which directly contributed to injuries and loss of life.

However, beyond all of the findings, it is our opinion that four key factors directly contributed to fatalities:

1) Lack of automatic fire sprinklers that would have controlled or extinguished the fire in its early stages;

2) Failure by Chicago Fire Department to adequately search and account for occupants in the stairways prior to and during fire fighting operations;

3) Opening of the 12th floor southeast stairway door by the Chicago Fire Department that allowed smoke and heat into the stairway containing occupants; and,

4) Locked stairway doors that did not allow the trapped occupants to escape from thestairway.



Properly addressing any one of the four key factors would have changed the outcome of this incident and prevented loss of life from occurring. In addition, other important findings included:

• Failures or inconsistencies on the part of City of Chicago and its fire department,Cook County and the State of Illinois;

• Inadequate evacuation training of building staff and occupants;

• Ineffective communication among police department and fire department 9-1-1 dispatchers and between the 9-1-1 communications center and fire commanders on the scene;

• Inadequate incident command procedures that did not allow for effective fire groundmanagement and poor allocation of resources to address life safety demands;



1. Lack of an automatic fire sprinkler system. The building was not equipped with anautomatic fire sprinkler system that would have controlled or extinguished the fire in itsincipient stage.

2. Locked stairway doors. Locked stairway doors in the southeast stairway prevented occupantsfrom gaining re-entry into the building in order to find refuge from the smoky andhazardous conditions.

3. Ineffective occupant training / awareness regarding evacuation procedures. A survey ofbuilding occupants and staff revealed that 80% of respondents were unaware of the building’sevacuation plan and 48% were unaware that stairway doors would lock behind them.

4. Ineffective building staff training. Building staff (management, security and housekeeping)did not have a unified and clear understanding of the existing evacuations plans andprocedures or how to execute them properly.

5. Fire safety personnel. At the time of the fire, the building’s Fire Safety Director (FSD) wasnot in the building resulting in inadequate situation assessment and evacuation supervision.In addition at the time of the fire, the FSD’s certification had lapsed. Furthermore, BuildingManagement had not appointed a Deputy Fire Safety Director(s) as required by the MunicipalCode of Chicago.

Case Study: Cook County FireBuilding Management’s Liability


Non-compliant Municipal Code.

City of Chicago — Fire Department1. Ineffective search and rescue / occupant accountability operations. CFD did not initiatean effective search and rescue operation to account for, or ensure for, the accountability andsafety of all occupants that were evacuating through the southeast stairway prior to forciblyopening the stairway door on to the fire floor.

2. Inadequate Incident Management / Command System and Operating Orders / Procedures.In many cases priority was placed on firefighting operations over considerations for occupant safety andsearch/ rescue activities. In addition, there is no evidence suggesting that those charged with on-scene fire incident management responsibilities have been provided even the most basic training in regards to their ownstandards, pointing to significant concerns regarding professional leadership developmentwithin CFD.

3. Lack of knowledge and coordination in regards to building resources and information. CFD did not properly coordinate with building management staff or security officers when initially arriving on the scene where they would have received vital information about the building’s configuration or actions taken prior to their arrival.

2.25.10Managing Risk & Life Safety Processes

Case Study: Cook County FireCity of Chicago’s Liability

Adopt and implement nationally recognized incident management / command system (IMS). CFD should immediately adopt and implement a nationally recognized IncidentManagement System (IMS). The complete implementation of an IMS, department-wide,will address many of the specific issues identified in this report relating to fire groundoperations and leadership. A nationally recognized IMS will also address professionalleadership development by establishment of clear standards and expectations for membersof the department.

Increase comprehensiveness of inspections and review of building emergency plans.All inspections should be completely documented and rigorous compliance efforts should focuson follow-up to ensure that violations are corrected in a timely manner. CFD should alsoactively market their subject matter expertise in support of the City’s high-rise residential andcommercial structures and to enhance their relationships with building managers and safetypersonnel. CFD should also periodically review the quality and quantity of training providedto building occupants while ensuring that plans adequately address the needs of individualswith limitations and clearly articulate protocols for the proper coordination andhand-off between building management, security, and fire department personnel.

Case Study: Cook County FireCity of Chicago’s Fire Department


Cook County & Building Management

1. Install automatic fire sprinklers. An automatic fire sprinkler system should be installed asquickly as possible in the Cook County Administrative Building.

2. Ensure that stairway doors are unlocked during emergencies. A failsafe system for automaticallyunlocking stairway doors during emergencies should be installed as quickly as possibleat the Cook County Administrative Building.

3. Develop a building emergency action plan and incident management system. Cook County, as the building’s

owner, together with Building Management and the building tenants should develop both a Building Emergency Action Plan and an Incident Management System to provide the framework for coordinated response to emergencies. The plan should include an accountability mechanism and address the roles and responsibilities of tenants, security and fire department personnel taking into consideration the needs of those with physical disabilities and language barriers.

4. Management Oversight. Cook County should ensure that proper and adequate oversight ismaintained over the companies, individuals or entities contracted to provide management,security, emergency planning and operational functions in the Cook County AdministrativeBuilding.


Case Study: Cook County FireRecommendations

• Building Management Failed to Produce Uniform Emergency Management Documents.

• Building Management Failed to Fully Develop Emergency Protocols for occupants with disabilities and limitations.

• Building Management Failed to Identify All Critical fire department Concerns in Pre-Fire Plan.

• Building Management Failed to Provide Adequate Oversight of Security Operations Related to Fire Emergencies.

• Security Company Failed to Provide Adequate Training to Security Officers


Case Study: Cook County FireIndex of Findings

• CFD Personnel Failed to Obtain Copy of Pre-Fire Plan at Lobby Security Console.• CFD Personnel Failed to Secure / Develop a Floor Plan and Locate Stairways to be

Utilized.• Security Company personnel and Building Management personnel failed to

provide copy of pre-fire plan at lobby security console to CFD

REDUCE RISK AND LIABILITY

The key ingredients that improve building safety are property inspections, emergency pre-plans that can be accessed by the First Responders, and adequate emergency training for building staff and tenants

With the technology available in the market today, there is no reason buildings should not be regularly inspected to identify potentially hazardous situations and code concerns.

Additionally, electronic pre-plans have advanced to eliminate paper binders and even provide building data to First Responders mobile computers.


Common Inspection Issues

Most current inspections are paper-based Slow process, cumbersome Can be Inaccurate and subject to alterations (Security/Compliance Issues)

Inspections are very expensive and involve multiple steps/personnel

Current inspection processes are inflexible and do not keep up with trends, codes, or internal standards

Lack of management visibility across property portfolio


Inspections: Avoiding Mistakes

Streamline your Process- avoid too many “cooks in the kitchen” and communication pipelines (data entry, faxing, mailing,etc.). Store documents permanently and securely- and don’t allow changes!

Be Flexible – i.e. Customize inspection forms to meet your specific needs

Be Alert – Alert managers & maintenance staff immediately to emergency situations from inspection site. Create a work order on the spot to address the issue

Efficient and effective inspections mean safer buildings.Safer buildings mean reduced liability and satisfied tenants.Reduced Liability means lower insurance premiums.

The Importance of Pre-Plans

A “PRE-PLAN” IS A SUMMARY OF ALL THE CRITICAL BUILDING INFORMATION,REQUIRED BY FIRST RESPONDERS IN THE EVENT OF A FIRE OR EMERGENCY IN YOUR BUILDING!

What is the RISK of not having a Pre-Plan?

• First Responders don’t have information they need to safely respond to emergency’s at your property; thereby forcing them to act on trial and error vs. action with knowledge

• Increased liability and potential litigation costs

• Higher potential for property loss - $$$

• Higher potential for loss of life -

At a minimum, First Responders will need to have instantaneous access tocritical, life saving information including:

Building/Structure Information Fire Protection Details including Haz Mat Emergency/Contact Lists Floor Plans, etc

Effective Pre-Plans

Portfolio Pre-Plans should be standardized, accurate and secure

Effective Pre-Plans

Effective Pre-Plans

Additionally, your pre-plan should provide the following information in advance to all emergency responders:

- Floor plans and large scale maps showing evacuation routes and service conduits (such as gas and water lines)- Number of building occupants, how that varies per shift and any special evacuation needs- Length of challenging hose stretches to various points in building- Limitations on ground/aerial ladder access- Details on protection/detection features (fire and carbon monoxide detectors, hose connections, water supplies, fire alarm panels, etc.)- Means to ventilate the building- Elevator locations and how to control/access them- Location of hazardous materials- Where a spill in or around the building would drain- Information on confined spaces in the building- Location of potential medevac landing zones and triage areas- Door swing directions and other important "access" information

New Technology:Electronic Inspections & Pre-Plans

Mobile Web-based Inspection and pre-plan programs: One Step-Programs designed for immediate reporting Eliminate need for Manual/Paper Processes Utilizes customers inspection points and Standardizes Inspection forms, emergency data and reports

throughout a portfolio Creates and Sends Reports Electronically from Inspection Site Interfaces with existing electronic Work Order systems Single building or large portfolios Improves Efficiency while Saving Time & Money - GO GREEN Easily Manage, Update, and Share Property’s Emergency Building Data Interoperable Between all Computers-Management Office, Laptop, Security Desk, etc. Redundant data back up Help reduce Insurance Premiums

Questions?

RealView LLC414 N. Orleans, Suite 310

Chicago, IL 60654312.284.2030 (Office)

312.284.2031 (Fax)http://www.realviewllc.com

David J. Howorka

For More Information:

Building Engines275 Wyman Street, Ste. 111

Waltham, MA 02451781.290. 5300 (Office)

781.290.5305 (Fax)http://www.buildingengines.com

Sarah Fisher

http://www.realviewllc.com/

