Errcs

Emergency Responder Radio Communications Systems - ERRCS
Wayne D. Moore, P.E., CFPS, SET

Vice President & Technical Fellow
What’s Different – Why Worry? 117 Metro Center Boulevard, Ste. 1002
Warwick, RI 02886
Tel. 401-214-2896
wmoore@jensenhughes.com
Advancing the Science of Safety 2
Copyright © JENSEN HUGHES. All rights reserved.
QUESTIONS?
Don’t Hesitate to
ask during the
presentation!

Other Names for ERRCS
 Bi-Directional Amplifier or BDA

 Emergency Responder Communications
Enhancement Systems
 In-Building Radio Coverage Solutions

What is an ERRCS?
It is an EXTENSION of the
Public Safety Radio Network –
NOT a component of the fire alarm system

FCC Rule Section 90.219

Authority to Operate.
Non-licensees seeking to operate signal boosters must

obtain the express consent of the licensee of the
frequencies for which the device or system is intended
to amplify. The consent must be maintained in a
recordable format that can be presented to an FCC
representative or other relevant licensee investigating
interference.
2009 IFC – SECTION 510 EMERGENCY
RESPONDER RADIO COVERAGE
BOCA National Building Code – 1993 Edition – Section 403.0
2009 IFC – 510.1 Emergency responder radio coverage in
buildings.
All buildings shall have approved radio coverage for emergency
responders within the building based upon the existing coverage
levels of the public safety communication systems of the jurisdiction
at the exterior of the building. This section shall not require
improvement of the existing public safety communication systems.
Exception: 1. Where approved by the building official and the fire
code official, a wired communication system in accordance with
Section 907.2.13.2 shall be permitted to be installed or maintained
in lieu of an approved radio coverage system.
Advancing the Science of Safety
IFC, 2009 Appendix J
Appendix J Emergency Responder Radio Coverage.

This new IFC Appendix provides design, installation, testing and
maintenance requirements for the emergency responder communications
facilities where required by new IFC Section 510. Included are
requirements for system performance, primary and secondary power
supplies, signal boosters, radio frequencies, installer qualifications,
acceptance testing and system maintenance. Note that the provisions
contained in this appendix are not mandatory unless specifically
referenced in the adopting ordinance.

IFC 2012 and Forward
Moved from Appendix to Body

907.2.13.2 Fire department communication system.
Where a wired communication system is approved in lieu of an
emergency responder radio coverage system in accordance with Section
510 of the International Fire Code, the wired fire department
communication system shall be designed and installed in accordance with
NFPA 72 (Now moved to 1221)

2012 IBC & IFC
SECTION 915 EMERGENCY RESPONDER RADIO COVERAGE

IBC 915.1 General. Emergency responder radio coverage shall be
provided in all new buildings in accordance with Section 510 of the IFC,
International Fire Code.

What are the problems associated with ERRCS

designs and installations?
• Little emphasis on RF performance

requirements
• Too much emphasis on non-RF requirements
such as survivability, etc.
• ERRCS are being treated as fire alarm systems

What are the problems associated with ERRCS

designs and installations? (continued)
• ERRCS Not being treated as part of the Public
Safety radio network
• Local ordinances that mandate ERRCS are not
providing RF requirements
• Many jurisdictions do not have personnel who
are RF knowledgeable
• Many installers of ERRCS are not qualified
What is the result of improperly designed and

installed ERRCS?
• Systems do not provide adequate

communications for first responders
• Systems inject too much noise onto

the radio network
What is the result of improperly designed and

installed ERRCS?
• Systems that make a donor

site/tower inoperative when someone
is trying to talk to the tower
• Systems causing other problems or

difficulties for the radio network
Who are the Stakeholders in ERRCS Deployments?
• Building owner – system required for CO
• AHJ – requires reliable coverage with no

adverse impact to the radio network
• The jurisdictional license holder (FCC)


(continued)
• Systems integrator – cost effective system

installation that performs reliably
• Building and Electrical Code AHJs -

conformance with their codes


(continued)
Most Important Stakeholder:

First Responders who will rely on the system

• (ERRCS) requirements were initially in NFPA 72,

National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code
• The requirements have been moved from NFPA 72 to

NFPA 1221, Standard for the Installation,
Maintenance, and Use of Emergency Services
Communications Systems
• What is the key difference in the two?

The AHJ!
Fire Communications
Officer
Police
NFPA 72
Communications
Officer
Fire Inspector
• Many jurisdictions have now begun to use

this system for all emergency responders in
the jurisdiction including police, ambulance
and fire.
• What part can you play in the design,
installation and maintenance of these
systems?
 To Frequency discovery: While the fire marshal is normally the definitive authority
enforcing the requirement for an ERRCS, many will not have the information as to
what is actually required from a technical standpoint or how operations affect those
technical requirements. Many times, we will have to seek a meeting with the fire
marshal, points of contacts with the first responder organizations, and their
respective fire department "Radio Communications Director" to understand the
following information:
 First Responders: When you operate inside a building, what channels
are you operating on?
 To the Radio Communications Director: Those channels operate on:
 What frequencies?
 To/From what local transmission location?

The design will require that a field strength survey be accomplished to

ensure the right equipment is installed. It is preferable that a US FCC
General Radio Operator’s License (GROL) licensed contractor perform
the field strength test. It is also preferable for the GROL Licensed
contractor to install all signal boosting devices and amplifiers. A GROL is
a license granted by the FCC required to adjust, maintain, or internally
repair FCC licensed radiotelephone transmitters in the aviation, maritime,
and international fixed public radio services.

The intent of these systems is to provide reliable radio communications

for all first responders within all buildings in their jurisdiction. The building
codes now require these systems in lieu of firefighter telephones in high
rise buildings; however, many jurisdictions require ERRCS in all buildings
where a field strength survey indicates the need.

Since 1993, dedicated firefighter telephone (FFT) systems

were required in high-rise buildings to assist first
responders with the ability to communicate within the
building and to communicate primarily to the fire ground
commander located at the fire command center. In
addition, because the FFTs were generally supplied by the
manufacturers of the fire alarm systems, designers, AHJs
and installers wrongly assumed the FFTs were a part of the
life safety system and were required (they were, only in
lieu of not installing an ERRCS). Today the opposite is
true.

Since 2009, the building and fire codes require

the ERRCS in all new and existing buildings,
allowing the FFT only by permission of the AHJ.
Also, ERRCS has been introduced to serve not
only fire department personnel but all emergency
responders including law enforcement personnel.

NFPA 1, Fire Code requires in Chapter 11 that for

all new and existing buildings, “a minimum radio
signal strength for fire department communications
shall be maintained at a level determined by the
AHJ.” And where required by the AHJ, two-way
radio communications enhancement systems shall
comply with NFPA 1221, Standard for the
Installation, Maintenance, and Use of Emergency
Services Communications Systems.

Field
Strength
Survey!

NFPA 1 and NFPA 101 still require two-way

telephone communication service for fire
department use in accordance with NFPA 72. The
firefighter telephone communications system must
operate between the emergency command center
and every elevator car, every elevator lobby, and
each floor level of exit stairs. However, both codes
state that the FFT requirement does not apply
where the fire department radio system is
approved as an equivalent system.
Additionally, there is now a new UL standard, UL 2524 – In-building 2-

Way Emergency Radio Communications Enhancement Systems. The
scope of the Standard, originally published in 2018 and updated to the
second edition in 2019, states, “Requirements for items such as
repeater, transmitter, receiver, signal booster components, external
filters, and battery charging system components.”
It also aligns with requirements in Model Building & Installation Codes:
a) Standard for the Installation, Maintenance, and Use of Emergency Services Communications
Systems, NFPA 1221;
b) National Electrical Code®, NFPA 70;
c) National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code®, NFPA 72;
d) Fire Code, NFPA 1;
e) Life Safety Code®, NFPA 101®; and
f) International Fire Code
There has been a great deal of discussion regarding the need for the ERRCS to be
monitored for integrity and be installed using survivable cable. Many fire AHJs assume
because ERRCS are referenced in NFPA 72 that they have jurisdiction over the
installation. In fact, the jurisdiction’s Director of Radio Communications is the person
who should be, and is, responsible for ensuring the ERRCS is installed properly and
working in accordance with NFPA 1221. There
is no requirement that the
ERRCS be UL Listed, no requirement for internal
supervision, and no requirement for survivability under any
NFPA 72 requirements. The requirements of NFPA 1221 and the
ICC Codes are provided at the end of this technical guideline.

NFPA 1221-2016 does require the following:

9.6.13.1 Fire Alarm System. The system shall include automatic supervisory signals for
malfunctions of the two-way radio communications enhancement systems that are
annunciated by the fire alarm system in accordance with NFPA 72, and shall comply with
the following:
(1) Monitoring for integrity of the system shall comply with NFPA 72, Chapter 10.
(2) System supervisory signals shall include the following:
(a) Donor antenna malfunction
(b) Active RF emitting device failure
(c) Low-battery capacity indication when 70 percent of the 12-hour operating capacity
has been depleted
(d) System component failure
NFPA 1221-2016 does require the following:
9.6.13.1 Fire Alarm System. continued

(3) Power supply supervisory signals shall include the following for each
RF emitting device and system component:
(a) Loss of normal ac power
(b) Failure of battery charger
(4) The communications link between the fire alarm system and the two-
way radio communications enhancement system must be monitored for
integrity.

9.6.13.2 Dedicated Panel.

(1) A dedicated monitoring panel shall be provided within the fire command center to
annunciate the status of all RF emitting devices and system component locations.
The monitoring panel shall provide visual and labeled indications of the following for each
system component and RF emitting device:
(a) Normal ac power (d) Low battery capacity (to 70 percent
depletion)
(b) Loss of normal ac power (e) Donor antenna malfunction
(c) Battery charger failure (f) Active RF emitting device malfunction
(g) System component malfunction
(2) The communications link between the dedicated monitoring panel and the two-way
radio communications enhancement system must be monitored for integrity.
Similarly, the 2019 edition of 1221 requires the following:

9.6.13.1 Fire Alarm System. continued
(3) Power supply supervisory signals shall include the following for
each RF-emitting device and active system components:
a) Loss of normal ac power
b) Failure of battery charger

(4) The communications link between the fire alarm system and the
two-way radio communications enhancement system shall be
monitored for integrity.



Emergency Responder Radio Coverage System (ERRCS)

– Opportunity or Costly Risk?
What is your answer?

With Special Thanks and Recognition to:

Safer Buildings Coalition
https://www.saferbuildings.org
NFPA For Contents of NFPA 72 and NFPA 1221

QUESTIONS?
Contact
Wayne Moore
wmoore@jensenhughes.com
(401) 214-2896
117 Metro Center Blvd., Ste. 1002
Warwick, RI
For More Information Visit
www.jensenhughes.com
Content is Copyright 2019 © Jensen Hughes, Inc. All Rights Reserved


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Emergency Responder Radio Communications Systems - ERRCS

Wayne D. Moore, P.E., CFPS, SET

Advancing the Science of Safety 3

Other Names for ERRCS

 Bi-Directional Amplifier or BDA

Advancing the Science of Safety 4

Advancing the Science of Safety 5

FCC Rule Section 90.219

Non-licensees seeking to operate signal boosters must

Appendix J Emergency Responder Radio Coverage.

Advancing the Science of Safety

Moved from Appendix to Body

Advancing the Science of Safety

SECTION 915 EMERGENCY RESPONDER RADIO COVERAGE

Advancing the Science of Safety

What are the problems associated with ERRCS

• Little emphasis on RF performance

Advancing the Science of Safety 11

What are the problems associated with ERRCS

What is the result of improperly designed and

• Systems do not provide adequate

• Systems inject too much noise onto

What is the result of improperly designed and

• Systems that make a donor

• Systems causing other problems or

Who are the Stakeholders in ERRCS Deployments?

• Building owner – system required for CO

• AHJ – requires reliable coverage with no

• The jurisdictional license holder (FCC)

Advancing the Science of Safety 15

Who are the Stakeholders in ERRCS Deployments?

• Systems integrator – cost effective system

• Building and Electrical Code AHJs -

Advancing the Science of Safety 16

Who are the Stakeholders in ERRCS Deployments?

Most Important Stakeholder:

Advancing the Science of Safety 17

• (ERRCS) requirements were initially in NFPA 72,

• The requirements have been moved from NFPA 72 to

• What is the key difference in the two?

• Many jurisdictions have now begun to use

Advancing the Science of Safety 21

The design will require that a field strength survey be accomplished to

Advancing the Science of Safety 22

The intent of these systems is to provide reliable radio communications

Advancing the Science of Safety 23

Since 1993, dedicated firefighter telephone (FFT) systems

Advancing the Science of Safety 24

Since 2009, the building and fire codes require

Advancing the Science of Safety 25

NFPA 1, Fire Code requires in Chapter 11 that for

Advancing the Science of Safety 26

Advancing the Science of Safety 27

NFPA 1 and NFPA 101 still require two-way

Additionally, there is now a new UL standard, UL 2524 – In-building 2-

Advancing the Science of Safety 30

NFPA 1221-2016 does require the following:

NFPA 1221-2016 does require the following:

9.6.13.1 Fire Alarm System. continued

Advancing the Science of Safety 32

9.6.13.2 Dedicated Panel.

Similarly, the 2019 edition of 1221 requires the following: