NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, 2021 Edition

NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, is the most widely referenced source for occupant safety strategies based on construction, protection, and occupancy features in all stages of a building life cycle. Relevant to life safety in both new and existing structures, NFPA 101 covers everything from means of egress and features of fire protection to hazardous materials emergencies, injuries from falls, and emergency communications.

The code applies to nearly all types of occupancies and structures, including residential, business, mercantile, health care, daycare, and assembly occupancies.

The 2021 edition is your resource for getting up to date and compliant with critical life safety requirements.

NFPA 101 offers a flexible approach that adapts to new technologies, materials, and construction practices, innovations in design, and nontraditional uses of buildings. The 2021 edition provides the most current safety criteria with key revisions, including:

• Provisions making sprinklers mandatory in new daycare occupancies with more than 12 clients
• Enhanced sprinkler requirements for existing high-rise buildings containing ambulatory health care, business, industrial, or apartment building occupancies
• Amended construction limits for existing nursing homes
• Clarification that non-required fire doors are not subject to the requirements of NFPA 80, including annual inspection
• New provisions for temporary barriers to separate areas under construction in health care and ambulatory health care occupancies
• Updated criteria for special amusement buildings
• Requirements making sprinklers mandatory for new bars and restaurants with an occupant load of 50 or more
• Minimum requirement added for fire department two-way communication signal strength in all new buildings
• New carbon monoxide detection requirement for existing hotels and dormitories
• Introduction of a requirement for low-frequency fire alarm notification signals in new hotel, dormitory, and apartment building sleeping rooms per NFPA 72^®
• Expanded provisions covering burglar bars/grates on means of escape windows in residential occupancies