Retirement Homes New Regulations

NEWS & INFO
Retirement Homes New Regulations

Who’s affected?
Existing and new retirement homes and other care facilities in Ontario, as applicable by the Ontario Building Code and the Ontario Fire Code. The new requirements are part of the provincial government’s initiative to protect seniors and vulnerable Ontarians in care facilities.

When is compliance required by? The new fire and life safety regulations were released on May 9, 2013. They came into effect on Jan 1, 2014. Completion deadlines of the upgrades vary significantly depending on the upgrades necessary. In light of the recent tragic events of L’Isle-Verte, Quebec, these deadlines might be revised to speed up implementation of these new regulations.

What’s required for compliance?
This significantly varies and depends on the type, size and use of the facility as well as the existing fire and life safety systems currently installed in your facility. In most cases, an engineering assessment is required to determine the exact impact of these regulations on a retirement/care facility. Some of these requirements include:
  • New installation or upgrades of fire alarm systems including smoke detectors and fire alarm monitoring.
  • Addition of new sprinkler systems, or modification to existing sprinklers to achieve minimum code compliance.
  • Addition or modifications to emergency lights in affected areas.
  • Addition of door closers in all affected suites and sleeping rooms.
  • Addition of mass notification systems.
Who is responsible for achieving compliance?
Owners and operators of Retirement/Seniors Homes and Care Facilities are responsible for ensuring that the necessary steps are taken to meet these new requirements.

Determining which requirements apply to your facility:
  • As a licensed engineering firm, Fire Cube provides an unbiased engineering assessment, which details the applicable requirements to your facility and the mandatory steps necessary for compliance.
  • Our qualified team of designers and engineers will provide detailed designs and plans for the necessary work, negotiate with authorities and assist in obtaining building permits.
  • Once plans are ready, we work with fire protection service providers and contractors to competitively tender the scope of work, provide construction supervision and ultimately ensure a compliant installation.
For more details and a list of industries we serve please visit our Services page.

To book a free appointment at your facility, or to inquire about our services, please contact us at (905) 232 6636 or by email info@firecube.ca


Disclaimer- The information contained herein shall not be used as a comprehensive or complete guide for evaluating, designing, constructing or commissioning life and fire safety systems.