Consulting / Engineering Support

Ino-Tek provides specialized hazardous materials engineering support for end-users, Architectural and Engineering firms and municipal governments across the United States.

Ino-Tek fills a GAP for each of these communities by leveraging our broad experience working with hazardous materials safety. End-users typically know better than anyone how they use the hazardous materials on site, but often lack knowledge about the Life Safety requirements contained in the Building and Fire Codes for their location. Architectural and Engineering firms usually have in-house fire safety expertise, but often lack Gas Detection, Leak Detection, and Life Safety expertise.

Municipal Building Officials have a similar challenge – they see fire protection issues every day but Life Safety around hazardous materials… rarely. An additional challenge for Municipal Building officials are facility upgrades and repurposing – where Certificates of Occupancy have been granted based on one use but the operations have evolved without oversight or reinspections. Sometimes, Building Officials only learn about the presence of hazardous materials in the aftermath of an incident. To assist municipal Building Departments, Ino-Tek audits submittals and Hazardous Materials Opinion and Reports (HMOR) to ascertain whether they are complete and accurate. Our consulting and engineering support services provide insights into best practices for hazardous materials safety along with the development of a path to code compliance for community inspectors overwhelmed by hi-tech hazards.

Ino-Tek balances at the fulcrum of these often competing interests. Our knowledge about the hazards and the requirements for keeping facilities and people safe are unmatched. Our understanding of the hazardous material sections of the Building and Fire Codes makes Ino-Tek a unique consultant to municipalities with challenges but limited resources. And finally, for end-users, Ino-Tek takes a Proactive Compliance approach – recognizing that securing building permit approvals in the first instance saves both time and money – in addition to assuring facility and occupant safety where hazardous materials are involved.

When designing a Life Safety / Hazardous Material Emergency Alarm System, our unique 15-step approach ensures code-compliance right from the start.

  • Our deferred submittal package includes a Hazardous Material Opinion and Report (HMOR) for the Building Official as required by MBC/IBC 414.1.3 whenever there are hazardous materials involved.
  • The HMOR will include classification and tally of all materials, our opinion of the proper Occupancy Classification(s) and outline the appropriate Methods of Protection. Our design submittal includes all applicable code references for the system based on the hazards, their quantities, pressures, temperatures and uses; plus devices used and functionality required.
  • Our system drawings include electrical and mechanical schematics and equipment details, interlocks to other systems, the sequence of operations, system alarm matrix as well as emergency power/battery load calculations.

The International Building Code and its counterparts, the International Fire Code and the International Mechanical Code – have been adopted by every state in the United States. These codes designate Gas Detection and Leak Detection systems as Life Safety / Hazardous Material Emergency Alarm Systems that, in turn, are designated as Fire Protection Systems. These critical systems must comply with State Building and Fire Codes, as well as other applicable standards like those published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and other industry standards and guidelines when appropriate.

By supplying this level of information, building officials can quickly perform plan reviews and provide building permit approvals with minimal delay.

When construction is complete, and the facility is ready for final inspection, Ino-Tek provides full commissioning and startup of the Life Safety/ Hazardous Material Emergency Alarm System. With the Fire Inspector on-site, we demonstrate all system functionality and complete all required documentation. This leads to quick acceptance and issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy.

Hazardous Material Opinion and Report

Our Senior Code Specialist for Hazardous Materials can assess if new construction or the addition of new materials will still meet the level of safety the codes and standards require.

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