by Brianna Crandall — February 5, 2016—In the wake of the tragic mass murders at several schools, most recently Umpqua College in Roseburg, Oregon, approaches to remedies have ranged from armed guards and mental health treatment to anti-bullying campaigns. The construction industry has responded as well by offering some practical solutions to slow or drastically reduce the scope of a would-be assailant’s attack by locking down individual classrooms.
According to the American Architectural Manufacturers association (AAMA), the 2015 International Building Code (IBC) and International Existing Building Code (IEBC) now provide for classroom door locking devices for new construction and for renovation projects, respectively, that can be activated quickly and easily by the room occupants.
The installation of these locking arrangements is allowed, but not required. “This was a key element to this proposal being approved,” explains AAMA’s Code Consultant Julie Ruth PE. “The code officials did not want to mandate that a school district install these types of security systems. They only wanted to provide guidance for how it was to be done, if a school district did want to install them.”
IBC
The provision for the IBC reads as follows:
1010.1.4.4 Group E classrooms. Locking arrangements in educational occupancies. In Group E [K-12] and Group B [adult education, colleges or training centers] educational occupancies, egress doors from classrooms, offices and other occupied rooms shall be permitted to be provided with locking arrangements designed to keep intruders from entering the room where all of the following conditions are met:
- The door shall be capable of being unlocked from outside the room with a key or other approved means.
- The door shall be operable / able to open from within the room in accordance with Section 1010.1.9.
- Modifications shall not be made to listed panic hardware, fire door hardware or door closers.
1010.1.4.4.1 Remote operation of locks. Remote operation of locks complying with Section 1010.1.4.4 shall be permitted.
Ruth elaborated on the specific provisions, explaining that the IBC prescribes the number of egress doors required from any occupied space. If the occupancy is less than 50 people, then only one egress door is required. If it is greater than 50, more egress doors are required. The exact number is given in a table in the IBC. The IBC also prescribes how to calculate the occupant load for a room so the number of egress doors required can be determined. The typical classroom would only require one or two egress doors.
The door must be openable from inside the room without the use of a key or “special knowledge” — such as a lock combination. However, although this new section permits the installation of a system that allows the occupant of the classroom to lock the door from the inside to prevent an intruder from entering it, care must be taken that such a system does not prevent “authorized personnel” — such as school officials or first responders — from being able to open the door. This is particularly important in a fire scenario where the first responders or firefighters may need to evacuate the building.
If panic hardware (by which the door is unlocked and unlatched from the inside by simply pushing on the panic bar) is required on the door, the fire officials do not want to see anything installed that interferes with its operation in case of a fire. Even if panic hardware is not required on the door, and the door is not required to be a listed fire door, the IBC still has requirements for the door closer. This basically relates to the maximum force needed to open the door, and also to the rate at which the door closer closes the door.
Note that “Remote Operation of Locks” (1010.1.4.4.1) refers to a dedicated location (such as within the administrative offices of the school) where authorized personnel can operate the locks. This section merely says it shall be permitted. Again, it is up to the school district to determine if they want to install such a system.
IEBC
The IEBC has identical wording for sections 403.2 and 704.2, except that it adds the following:
“4. Modifications to fire door assemblies shall be in accordance with NFPA 80.” NFPA 80 gives the requirements for the installation of listed fire doors. This is basically just saying the existing installation cannot be modified in a manner that is not in compliance with the installation requirements for new construction, explains AAMA.
