I think I have posted on this in the past. “Mercantile” is too broad a term
for today’s environment and does not reflect what is going on. You almost need
to have a Mercantile 1, Mercantile 2 and Mercantile 3 to adjust for different
hazards
>
> On Oct 28, 2021 at 1:48 PM, <Steve Leyton via Sprinklerforum
> (mailto:[email protected])> wrote:
>
>
>
> Here's a discussion topic: Today's Retail Environment As "stores" morph into
> "boxes", we are seeing more and more "industrial" displays, with unadorned
> shelving and in some cases rack fixtures (I'm thinking PetSmart among others)
> where merchandise is displayed for sale within reach of customers on the
> floor, but also where backstock is kept above those levels, sometimes driving
> up the interpreted "height of storage" to the point where the question arises
> as to whether this is still OH2 mercantile use or if we've pushed into
> Chapters 14-17. PetSmart uses racking, Bed Bath & Beyond is one of many who
> use wide gondolas, Party City is just a box full o' plastic... there are
> seemingly endless permutations of "retail" and of course we now have §20.3 as
> an option where it applies. But what about stores on the lower end of the
> occupancy hazard class where it may or may not be so cut and dried? Discount
> shoe stores, loaded with synthetics for sure, but if they display shoes in
> boxes on shelves to 8'-0" or 10'-0" in only part of the store, does this
> retail store (that doesn't have a stockroom and keeps all its merch on the
> sales floor) really represent a "storage" use? What triggers the post is a
> Burlington store in SoCal where the fire authority has requested a technical
> report to justify keeping an older OH 2 or 3 system in place in lieu of
> upgrading to protect "storage of plastics to 8'-0" AFF". There are just a few
> shelving fixtures in this 40,000+ sq. ft. store that hold merch up to that
> level and not all of it will be synthetics. It begs the question: When does
> retail display become storage when it's not exclusively representative of the
> use? Does a row of comforters at 7'-0" in the bedding section require
> specific address? Or the closeout wall in the shoe department? It's much
> easier when the entire store is typically fixturized (back to PetSmart) to
> say, "storage" but what if it's mostly on floor and low fixtures? For new
> builds it's easier because we can use EC-25 options, higher densities,
> whatever but the impact to existing stores is potentially significant and
> intrusive. I'm not saying we should look the other way because of concerns
> over cost or convenience but these are often last-minute catches on
> inspection and schedules can get vaporized in an instant. I've proposed a
> double-density approach in the past for uses like self-storage and §20.3
> suggests that's a sound approach, but what in retail stores that may only
> have a handful of locations where this is even an issue? I'm curious as to
> whether there are regional best practices that have been undertaken or
> whether there's been any additional work done by consultants or industry to
> help establish a lucid benchmark for when a "store" crosses the line with
> regard to occupancy hazard class. Steve Leyton, President Protection Design
> and Consulting T | 619.255.8964 x 102 (tel:619.255.8964;102) |
> www.protectiondesign.com
> (http://www.protectiondesign.com)<http://www.protectiondesign.com/> 2851
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