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Underwriters Laboratories (UL) is a trusted resource known around the world for product safety and service certification. Since being founded in 1894, UL examines and tests devices, systems, and material to determine how their performance affects life, fire, casualty, hazards, and crime prevention.

Integration in security refers to the interactivity between different parts of a security system. Here are some examples of what you can accomplish with an integrated security system.

You’re going about your day when you receive a letter from the City of New York informing you that your business has an ECB violation. Though resolving ECB violations isn’t fun, it doesn’t have to be difficult.

Emergency Control Function Interfaces allow fire alarm systems to communicate with other critical building systems during a fire emergency to ensure the safe evacuation of occupants.

Remote annunciators are smaller panels that provide a fire system status and a limited set of functional switches (e.g., acknowledge a signal or silence an alarm).

This article provides an overview of different types of fire alarm notification devices, which alert the building occupants to evacuate the premises or relocate using both audible and visual alarms when the fire system detects a possible fire. The most common notification devices installed today are strobes, horn strobes, speakers and speaker strobes.

All commercial fire alarm systems are required to be monitored 24/7 by an outside monitoring center that is equipped to respond to and handle fire alarm events. But what should you look for when selecting a monitoring center (also referred to as a "Central Station") for your fire system? This article explains the important role that monitoring centers play and provides a primer on how to select a qualified monitoring center.

Supervisory switches are a group of initiating devices that are installed at different parts of the automatic fire sprinkler system and are monitored by the Fire Alarm Control Panel (FACP). Their job is to monitor the sprinkler system to ensure that it’s in proper working condition and to transmit a supervisory signal to the FACP when an issue is detected.

This article provides an overview of manual pull stations and waterflow switches, which are both fire alarm initiating devices. We'll explain what they are, how they work and where they are used. In commercial fire alarm systems, initiating devices play a critical role of detecting an active fire and dangerous level of carbon monoxide as well as monitoring the sprinkler system to ensure that it's in proper working condition.

This article provides an overview of heat detectors, carbon monoxide (CO) detectors and multi-sensor detectors, which are all fire alarm initiating devices. We'll explain what they are, how they work and where they are used. In commercial fire alarm systems, initiating devices play a critical role of detecting an active fire and dangerous level of carbon monoxide as well as monitoring the sprinkler system to ensure that it's in proper working condition.

This article provides of smoke detectors, duct smoke detectors and beam detectors which are all fire alarm initiating devices. We'll explain what they are, how they work and where they are used. In commercial fire alarm systems, initiating devices play a critical role of detecting an active fire and dangerous level of carbon monoxide as well as monitoring the sprinkler system to ensure that it's in proper working condition.

The exact design of a commercial fire alarm system is determined by the commercial space’s occupancy classification and the local codes mandated by the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) for that specific occupancy classification. But regardless of the system design, all commercial fire alarm systems must have a Fire Alarm Control Panel (FACP).