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Building Inspection Commission approves AB105 to document voluntarily sprinklered high-rises
Summary
The commission unanimously approved Administrative Bulletin AB105 on Nov. 21, 2012, creating an administrative umbrella permit to document fully sprinklered high-rise buildings so owners can use current code concessions more quickly.
On Nov. 21, 2012, the San Francisco Building Inspection Commission voted unanimously to approve Administrative Bulletin AB105, a new administrative permit to document buildings that are fully sprinklered though not required by prior law.
DBI staff said the bulletin creates an umbrella permit that compiles a building's permit history and a fire-protection engineer's field verification into a single document that lets plan reviewers accept a building as "fully sprinklered." "What AB105 does is it provides [a] voluntary process for documenting a fully sprinklered building," DBI representative Kirk Means told commissioners, adding the permit is administrative because the sprinkler work would already have been performed under separate permits.
The bulletin is intended to let owners and designers make use of current code concessions — for example reduced corridor separation or additional area and height allowances — without the delay of proving full sprinkler coverage piecemeal during plan review. Staff described the process: an independent fire protection engineer reviews permit history, inspects the building, identifies any missing protected areas, and the owner obtains final permits for those areas before an umbrella permit is issued.
Commission discussion clarified the scope of buildings covered. The Fire Marshal said these older high-rises are typically between roughly 75 feet or higher, "between 8 and 20 stories," and that routine inspections and five-year certifications remain in place once systems are in the program. Commissioners also asked whether the umbrella permit would speed plan review; DBI said that is the main goal.
After no public comment, Commissioner Walker moved to approve AB105 and the motion was seconded; the chair called the vote and the commission approved the bulletin unanimously.
The new administrative permit does not itself retrofit buildings; it documents existing coverage and requires any missing sprinkler work to be permitted and inspected before issuance. The department said the permit is meant to reduce plan-review friction for buildings that can demonstrate full sprinkler coverage.
The Commission expects DBI to publish guidance on the application process and the documentation required for the umbrella permit.
