Two filings, one department
The Fire Department reviews construction work from one angle: can we get to a fire here, and can we fight it. Two filings answer that question, and they answer it at different points in a project.
A fire protection plan documents what is installed. A letter of no objection asks permission for a condition that would otherwise be a problem. We file both.
Fire protection plans
The as-built record of a building’s fire protection systems. Not what was designed or what was intended, but what is actually in place and where it sits.
What the plan documents
Sprinklers. Coverage, heads, zones, valves, and the arrangement of the system as installed.
Fire alarms. Devices, panels, and the layout of detection and notification through the building.
Standpipes. Risers, hose connections, siamese locations, and the routes the department would actually use.
Fire egress. Stairs, exits, discharge paths, and how occupants get out of the building.
The value of an as-built plan is that it is true. A set that reflects design intent rather than site conditions is worse than no set at all, because it tells the department something that is not there.
A fire protection plan is read under pressure by people who did not build the building. It has to be legible, accurate, and current. That is a drafting problem before it is a code problem.
Letters of no objection
An LNO is a determination from FDNY that a proposed condition does not obstruct their access or their operations. You are not asking them to approve a design. You are asking them to state, on the record, that what you are proposing does not get in their way.
What we file LNOs for
Construction fencing in front of a fire hydrant. When the site perimeter has to enclose or pass a hydrant, the department needs to confirm access is preserved.
Hoist waivers on buildings that meet the criteria.
Temporary standpipe waivers.
Each of these is a case rather than a form. The filing has to show the condition, explain why it is necessary, and demonstrate that fire department operations are not compromised by it. We prepare the drawings, make the argument, and carry the request through to issuance.
How it fits the rest of the job
FDNY filings tend to sit on the critical path without anyone noticing until they do. A hydrant in the wrong place relative to your fence line will stop a site as surely as a missing permit, and the fix takes longer than the original filing would have.
If your site safety plan puts a fence, a shed, or a hoist somewhere the department is going to care about, the LNO should be moving at the same time as the plan, not after it comes back.
Where we file
All five boroughs, and across New Jersey.