One of the primary reasons to install a fire alarm system is to notify the occupants of the building early enough so they have time to escape. In the last 15 years, since the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), there has been significant discussion about what installers can and cannot do with fire alarm notification appliances.
Everyone struggles with the code language and that leads to misinterpretations. One common misunderstanding is that NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm Code, requires fire alarm notification appliances to be installed. Not so! In fact, NFPA 72 doesn’t require anything to be installed with the exception of a smoke detector to protect fire alarm control units and a single manual fire alarm box when the fire alarm system has automatic devices such as smoke detectors or waterflow switches connected to it.