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VERTICAL MARKETS: EDUCATION How to Crack Campus Compliance Codes In no small part due to increased real and perceived dangers, more than ever educational institutions are looking to electronic and physical security solutions to make campuses safer. This is opening opportunities for integrators, but only those well-versed in the specifc requirements and codes this market demands. By Lori Greene S ystems integrators designing security solutions for schools not only have to adhere to often tight budgets while satisfying expectations and delivering the highest possible level of safety, but also must comply with many codes and standards. Tis is particularly true where it comes to fre/life safety and its frequently intimate relationship with access control systems and devices. Security plan drawings typically include locations of credential readers, cameras, detectors and other types of hardware the system designer has in mind. Te latter could include electrifed locksets, panic hardware with electric latch retraction or electrifed trim, electric strikes or electromagnetic locks. To avoid hardships and hassles for yourself and potentially your client, it is important to thoroughly review and revise the plan to detect any conficts between the desire for security and the need to meet applicable codes. Let's take a closer look at the issues most likely to be encountered pertaining to schools accessibility, egress and fre protection. 98 / SECURITYSALES.COM / SEPTEMBER 2013 ENSURING UNRESTRICTED EGRESS It is not uncommon for a card reader to be specifed for the egress side of a door that is in the required path of egress. In the case of a particular university dormitory project, the facility manager wanted to restrict egress from the stairs to the exterior and only allow egress during a fre alarm. Te purpose of this restriction was to prevent students from opening the doors to allow friends to bypass the entry procedures. It is a common misconception that a door can be locked on the egress side during normal operation as long as it allows egress during a fre alarm. If a door is part of a required means of egress, it must provide free egress at all times with one motion to unlatch the door with very limited exceptions. When there is a desire to restrict egress, the access control system can incorporate an alarm and door position switch or a delayed egress device may be acceptable depending on the occupancy type and other factors. Te International Building Code (IBC) requires panic hardware for doors that latch or lock and serve assembly and educational occupancies with an occupant load of 50 people or more (100 occupants or more prior to the 2006 edition of