Campus fire safety is a critical issue at colleges and universities. Fires in unsprinklered student housing continue to claim precious lives. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), each year an average of over 1,500 fires cause $9 million in damage in residence halls and fraternity housing. Even more tragically, 75 people have died in student housing fires since January 2000. Seven fatal fires occurred in the recent 2004-2005 academic year, killing 11 students.

Fire sprinklers can minimize the effects of these fires and help avert such tragedies. That's the impetus behind new fire sprinkler requirements that are being put in place in colleges and universities across the country. Experts say most parents and students don't realize that many residence halls do not have automatic fire sprinklers. With the history of deadly fires that have occurred, the Center for Campus Fire Safety now strongly suggests that parents and students "look for housing with automatic sprinklers." The Princeton review, in its assessment of colleges, has even instituted a fire-safety ranking.

As a leader in fire and life safety and a company with a wealth of experience with sprinkler retrofit projects, SimplexGrinnell can help higher education institutions through the retrofit process. Because of its experience and resources, many colleges and universities choose SimplexGrinnell to help keep their campuses safe.

SimplexGrinnell has been working on the campus of a New Jersey university for the past three years, retrofitting sprinklers in dormitories and classrooms. The senior project manager for the campus commented positively on SimplexGrinnell's work: "Understanding the magnitude of work and impact to the university, we came together with SimplexGrinnell and developed a plan. Here, SimplexGrinnell took the lead in addressing our concerns and questions and developed a working relationship with us that has proven to be more successful than we ever envisioned. To date, this work is ahead of schedule and under budget."

Some of the other potential benefits of working with SimplexGrinnell include:

Expediting the process: The bid process for a standard fire sprinkler retrofit often takes six months or longer. In most cases, SimplexGrinnell can start the shop drawings in as little as two weeks because the company has its own dedicated staff, including NICET-certified sprinkler specialists.

Cutting down on fees: Architectural and engineering fees associated with the bid process and project management often amount to a substantial amount of the total retrofit cost. Customers who work directly with SimplexGrinnell can save on the cost of these fees.

Knowledge and experience: SimplexGrinnell's heritage in the fire sprinkler business reaches back to 1850. The company has longevity in the industry and extensive knowledge of the latest technology, which can result in further savings.

Aesthetics: Because the company has been involved in so many retrofits, SimplexGrinnell offers a wide variety of concealment options. Careful routing of pipe to make it as unobtrusive as possible, and the use of pre-manufactured products such as non-metal DecoShield^® and metal Soffi-steel^™ from Grice Engineering, are technologies SimplexGrinnell has implemented to improve the aesthetics of fire sprinkler retrofits and expedite completion of projects.

Project management: SimplexGrinnell has nearly 100 trained project managers who know how to get a project completed within budget and on time. SimplexGrinnell can handle all the coordination, and will involve your college or university in the decision-making process for any subcontractors that may be required. Having SimplexGrinnell manage the project can save money, because typically the majority of the cost of the retrofit is the sprinkler work itself.

Lease financing: Institutions are sometimes concerned that a fire sprinkler retrofit might not be affordable due to cost and to budget restraints. SimplexGrinnell provides lease financing, and in some cases lease 100% of the project cost, including equipment, installation, maintenance, monitoring and training, with available terms of up to five years.

Comprehensive life-safety solutions: SimplexGrinnell is a full-service life-safety provider offering fire alarm, fire sprinkler, fire suppression and integrated security systems and service, as well as central monitoring. SimplexGrinnell has solutions to meet the full range of needs at higher education campuses, and serves customers through a network of 150 local offices. For more information or to locate the nearest office, visit www.simplexgrinnell.com or call 1-800-746-7549.