The NFPA has announced that the San Juan Province of Argentina has signed a regulatory agreement to reference four key NFPA codes and standards in its provincial regulations.
The move, which took place in October 2024, represents a step forward in ensuring the safety of lives and property in the region- where nearly 1 million people reside.
Olga Caledonia, Director of International Development at NFPA said: “This is a monumental step forward in safety for the people of Argentina.
“Each of these newly referenced NFPA codes and standards addresses a unique and critical aspect of fire and life safety, from ensuring the systems meant to alert people of a fire or other emergency are in place to ensuring we have the appropriate and most advanced fire suppression systems working properly to help save lives and property.”
NFPA 25: NFPA 25, Standard for the Inspection, Testing and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems, provides the minimum requirements for inspecting, testing, and maintaining water-based fire protection systems, such as fire sprinklers, standpipes and fire pumps.
Compliance with NFPA 25 helps maximize system integrity to avoid failure and ensure fast, effective response in the event of a fire.
NFPA 20: Complementing the requirements in NFPA 25, NFPA 20, Standard for the Installation of Stationary Pumps for Fire Protection, outlines the requirements for the selection and installation of pumps to ensure that water-based fire protection systems will function properly and deliver adequate and reliable water supply.
NFPA 13: NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems, is the industry benchmark for the design and installation of automatic fire sprinkler systems. The standard addresses sprinkler system design approaches, system installation, and component options.
NFPA 72: NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code, provides the latest safety provisions to meet ever-changing fire detection, signaling, and emergency communications demands.
In addition to the core focus on fire alarm systems, NFPA 72 also includes requirements for mass notification systems used for natural disasters, violent events, and other emergency scenarios.
This new agreement to start using NFPA 25, 20, 13 and 72 is the first of its kind in the San Juan Province and demonstrates authorities’ dedication to improving fire safety and protecting its citizens.
The NFPA has also announced that testimonies from San Juan authorities and safety professionals have confirmed their commitment to this ongoing effort.
Victor Heredia is one of those professionals, as the CEO of San Juan-based fire protection engineering firm VINOX and a member of NFPA.
Heredia said: “In our province, a tremendous amount of industrial development has recently begun, including exponential growth of mining facilities located in remote and in some cases high-altitude areas.
“That is why it was decided to reference these international standards from NFPA.”
The NFPA has also announced that beyond referencing these codes and standards, the San Juan Province is also investing in training.
Approximately 40 fire and life safety professionals from across the province, in both the public and private sectors, will receive training on each of these four NFPA codes and standards. This training is being provided through Argentina-based company Fire/Safety Report.
Walter Grijalvo, Director of Fire/ Safety Report said: “It’s not enough to simply say, `Start using these codes.’
“Providing expert training and education will greatly increase the speed at which the use of these codes and standards can have a real, positive impact on the safety of people and protection of property in San Juan, Argentina.”
San Juan Province of Argentina has signed a regulatory agreement to reference four key NFPA codes and standards in its provincial regulations, say the NFPA.
Olga Caledonia, Director of International Development at NFPA said that this is a monumental step forward in safety for the people of Argentina.
