# Scenery and Building Code



## egilson1

So a few days ago a discussion started on a facebook page about if scenery needed to comply with building code. There have been a few discussions here on CB (links below) covering this topic, but I wanted to post this response from a friend of mine who has a unique view, as he got his degree in technical theatre from Carnegie Mellon, worked for a professional scenic shop, and is now a building inspector in MA. Hopefully this will be helpful when future people are looking for clarity on the issue.

http://www.controlbooth.com/threads/failed-building-inspection-on-set.31494/#post-277990
http://www.controlbooth.com/threads/building-permits-for-scenery.18200/#post-167338

http://www.controlbooth.com/threads/scenery-and-building-code.35194/#post-305472


> Hello all,
> I'm that guy with experience in both theater and construction who now works as a Building Inspector.
> 
> Some thoughts on set construction and the building code:
> 
> If I've learned anything over time, it is that the phrase "I don't know" is very useful. You should not be afraid to say it. It aids in the pursuit of knowledge, and when you hear someone else say it, it means look elsewhere. Particularly if you're looking to make sure your space is safe. "I don't know" or "that's not in the code" should not be viewed as permissive. It means keep going til you find an answer. If you really find nothing, does that really mean you should do something? Guesswork doesn't belong in life safety, never assume.
> 
> What seems to be out there a lot, is some version of this:
> 
> "The building code doesn't cover it because it's a temporary structure."
> 
> Ah, no. Very little is not covered in the building code. If it's not mentioned, assuming it isn't covered is a mistake. You're likely looking in the wrong place. The times when something "isn't covered," are actually mentioned as exceptions. Even then in the exception it is limited. "No permit required" does not at all mean "exempt from the building code." All "no permit required" tells you is that they won't take responsibility for whatever abomination you've "built." It's not a free pass, because a lot more happens in a theater.
> 
> "The Building Code" is a minimum standard for construction. When you build things it doesn't directly address, it wants designs from a qualified person. In the case of set construction, that doesn't necessarily mean a licensed engineer or architect. It does mean that if you build something, you need to be able to "show the math" should something bad happen. Even when "the code" doesn't reference a structure or method, it isn't giving free reign.
> 
> In "conventional construction" there are numerous times something is used that "isn't in the building code." Most folks consider only the involvement of an engineer or other licensed party. Actually, there are a lot of places where the code adopts manufacturer spec as the standard. Meaning, you're using a commercial product, you have to use it by the standards of the people who designed and produced it, or it doesn't meet the building code. The most common example is a joist hanger. Not many of those get used in theater, but look at any hardware. Bolts, screws, glues, wire rope, and more. What you're specifically doing might not be described in "the code," but you are likely using a product that has an intended use. Are you outside that use?
> 
> In regular construction, once something is constructed "the building code" is interested in how that building is used. This is the fire code, the IFC and NFPA, the electrical code is more NFPA than people realize. Protecting the building is secondary to giving people enough time to escape a fire. This is less about the set you've built, and more about how you are using your space.
> 
> What the building code is actually about, is life safety. So what a "building inspector" cares about is less about the set construction, and more about how the space is being used. It's not because the set "is temporary." Few sets meet the definition of "temporary," as they've been sitting there through rehearsals etc..."It's temporary" will be cold comfort when that temporary set traps a bunch of people and some die from burns while the rest asphyxiate because they couldn't find an exit through the smoke.
> 
> Start with your local laws. Your building department should know... your fire department definitely should know... In any case, whatever the most restrictive rule is, will apply. Beyond that, your building is either an A use, or an E use typically, the E use being more restrictive. A use spaces are also various types of halls used for theater performances, like churches or banquet halls or any space that might be rented for a concert or other type of show.
> 
> In the most general sense, all of the following is going to not change: Don't block or lock out any fire protection devices, from extinguishers to the fire curtain and beyond. Don't restrict access to emergency equipment. Don't block egress paths, don't prop open fire doors. Don't obscure exit signs or emergency lighting. Don't assume anyone will know how to get out.
> 
> Theater construction is unique, many materials are used in unconventional ways. If in no other way, "the building code" will look at scenery as a combustible load. Materials that are extremely flammable are likely already prohibited. Materials that produce excessive smoke even if they don't themselves burn readily are also bad. There are fireproofing sprays and additives out there, as well as intumescent paints, lots of ways to build a fire resistant set.
> 
> Beyond the set. What is the occupancy of your space? What is the occupant load? Have your soft goods been fire treated? Are they supposed to be? Are you blocking any mechanical or electrical equipment with equipment, supplies, or stock scenery? Does your paint shop have rated cabinets for flammables(or inflammables...)? All of them? Is your storage for props, costumes, or scenery sprinklered or unsprinklered? Are things anywhere stored closer than 24" to the ceiling? Are extension cords in use where permanent wiring belongs? What is the actual combustible load, what is the construction of the space itself? Do you need a fire watch for activity on stage? Do you need a pyro permit? And on and on.
> 
> Ultimately, the building code is a body count. That's why it exists. If you're looking for a rule, law, code, or prescriptive telling you what to do or not do and can't find one, keep digging. You will find an answer, and if there is no other one, the answer is that you are responsible (you will be when the smoke clears....). We all want to make art, but it's not worth being the next thing that makes the code more restrictive. Things like (this list is obligatory) the Iroquois Theatre fire, Triangle Shirtwaist, Station nightclub, and Cocoanut Grove are all memorable for violating even existing code. Notably the capacity of exits and their obstruction.
> 
> IF you encounter a building or fire official who tells you that you cannot do something, ask them why. Both for you, and for them, they need to be able to tell you why. They need to be able to cite the code section they are enforcing. You are within your rights to cite code in support of what you're trying to do. This shouldn't be adversarial, but we don't get to pick our code enforcement officials. We're all here to make sure everyone goes home, not "be right," or "because I say so," or "This is my town" or any of that. A code official, if they don't know something, should say "I need to look it up and get back to you." I haven't been doing this very long, but I've already heard people say things like "It's always been like that," or "The inspector passed it before." Neither of these means an inspector must pass anything that exists. There is code for that in the IEBC, but that code isn't permissive of outright violations.
> 
> If you're looking to an inspector to tell you _how_ to build something, you're unlikely to find one that will. If they understand their job, anyway. An inspector can only apply code to what he is presented and judge pass/fail. If they tell you how to build it, or "what I'd like to see," now they aren't the inspector anymore. It's a conflict of interest in the simplest sense. Even before the element of representing a municipality enters in.
> 
> Be safe.
> Jeff Johnson


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## What Rigger?

Saving this for sure!


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## curtis73

Glad I work somewhere that they don't care. Even when I was Lead Carp for a large production in Los Angeles we didn't have to conform to any code. In the city where you can't put a nail in wood without a permit, they had zero care about the scenic elements. I had built a porch swing for a scene and the inspector didn't have a care about the 20' of unrated chain that I used, never asked about the load rating of the truss it was hanging from, and never looked at the OC spacing under the porch (which was 2x4s on 24"), but he did give us a warning for fire alarm panel that had a fault light.

My FT job is at a large community theater and the township supervisor is on the board. He never asks.

The local HS where I help build the spring musical is swimming in money, so we've done Mary Poppins flying in from the FOH grid, Scuttle flying around on stage, and the inspectors are there all the time. As long as egress isn't blocked, air handlers are serviced, and fire suppression is up to snuff, we're good. It makes me laugh when a person is writing down the serial number of a fire extinguisher all serious and professional while a 15 year old student descends from 40' in the air hanging from a 3/16" wire rope... but by god those fire extinguishers need to be perfect.

I'm sure larger productions have more scrutiny, but temporary structures are mostly ignored.


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## JonCarter

Not exactly building codes, but . . . When I was TD of a children's theatre in about 1962 we did a production of Peter Pan every year. We flew the kids, Peter Wendy, Michael and John, each on 2 spot lines from pulleys on the grid off SL & SR, each pair about 2' up or dn stage of the others, with 2 of my HS crew members on each of the 8 lines. Flying harnesses were sewn up by the costume crew (kids' moms) out of canvas with "D" rings sewn in at a balance point. Never dropped a kid in 4 years I was TD'ing. Audiences loved it.


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## RonHebbard

JonCarter said:


> Not exactly building codes, but . . . When I was TD of a children's theatre in about 1962 we did a production of Peter Pan every year. We flew the kids, Peter Wendy, Michael and John, each on 2 spot lines from pulleys on the grid off SL & SR, each pair about 2' up or down stage of the others, with 2 of my HS crew members on each of the 8 lines. Flying harnesses were sewn up by the costume crew (kids' moms) out of canvas with "D" rings sewn in at a balance point. Never dropped a kid in 4 years I was TD'ing. Audiences loved it.


Sometimes things work because you don't know they shouldn't. 
Sometimes they only work because you don't know they shouldn't. 
Sometimes they only work 'til you learn they shouldn't. 
Sometimes it's excrement luck. 
Sometime your luck will / would've run out. 

Akin to driving through stop signs, red lights, and racing to beat trains through crossings; eventually you lose &, hopefully, survive to learn a lesson. 
How much of a gambler are you? 
Toodleoo! 
Ron Hebbard


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## theatricalmatt

How many of those kids have you kept up with, over the years?

Sometimes being unsafe is real obvious: "Oops, dropped a kid. Yeah, won't do that again."

But too often, the damage is much more subtle. The ache we wake up with the next morning, that goes away by lunch -- only to come back the next morning. Tissue or joint damage that doesn't show up until years later. ... Or, approaches to work that settle in, that then someone else chooses to make their own habit, rather than figuring out a better way to do.


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## What Rigger?

curtis73 said:


> Glad I work somewhere that they don't care. Even when I was Lead Carp for a large production in Los Angeles we didn't have to conform to any code. In the city where you can't put a nail in wood without a permit, they had zero care about the scenic elements. I had built a porch swing for a scene and the inspector didn't have a care about the 20' of unrated chain that I used, never asked about the load rating of the truss it was hanging from, and never looked at the OC spacing under the porch (which was 2x4s on 24"), but he did give us a warning for fire alarm panel that had a fault light.
> 
> My FT job is at a large community theater and the township supervisor is on the board. He never asks.
> 
> The local HS where I help build the spring musical is swimming in money, so we've done Mary Poppins flying in from the FOH grid, Scuttle flying around on stage, and the inspectors are there all the time. As long as egress isn't blocked, air handlers are serviced, and fire suppression is up to snuff, we're good. It makes me laugh when a person is writing down the serial number of a fire extinguisher all serious and professional while a 15 year old student descends from 40' in the air hanging from a 3/16" wire rope... but by god those fire extinguishers need to be perfect.
> 
> I'm sure larger productions have more scrutiny, but temporary structures are mostly ignored.


What's the concern over flying from 3/16" wire rope by people who don't know about flying fx? Are they tripping over "it's so tiny!"


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## RonHebbard

JonCarter said:


> Not exactly building codes, but . . . When I was TD of a children's theatre in about 1962 we did a production of Peter Pan every year. We flew the kids, Peter Wendy, Michael and John, each on 2 spot lines from pulleys on the grid off SL & SR, each pair about 2' up or dn stage of the others, with 2 of my HS crew members on each of the 8 lines. Flying harnesses were sewn up by the costume crew (kids' moms) out of canvas with "D" rings sewn in at a balance point. Never dropped a kid in 4 years I was TD'ing. Audiences loved it.


* @JonCarter* When you posted: "canvas with "D" rings sewn in", were your "D" rings forged or welded? Please don't tell me they were simply bent, I've seen the hardware store cadmium plated bent wire D's unwind and fail too many times. 
Toodleoo! 
Ron Hebbard


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## JonCarter

RonHebbard said:


> * @JonCarter* When you posted: "canvas with "D" rings sewn in", were your "D" rings forged or welded? Please don't tell me they were simply bent, I've seen the hardware store cadmium plated bent wire D's unwind and fail too many times.
> Toodleoo!
> Ron Hebbard


Ron, I have no idea. Costumes found them and the canvas and made the harnesses. These "kids" are now 70 yrs. old. And to date, neither the producer, the costume people nor I have been sued by anybody.


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## RonHebbard

JonCarter said:


> Ron, I have no idea. Costumes found them and the canvas and made the harnesses. These "kids" are now 70 yrs. old. And to date, neither the producer, the costume people nor I have been sued by anybody.


 * @JonCarter* CONGRATULATIONS!! (With luck like that, you ought to buy a lottery ticket.)
Toodleoo! 
Ron Hebbad


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## curtis73

What Rigger? said:


> What's the concern over flying from 3/16" wire rope by people who don't know about flying fx? Are they tripping over "it's so tiny!"



My point was that they were more concerned with serial numbers on fire extinguishers than they were a municipally-operated public school suspending minors 40' in the air.


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## JonCarter

_WE_ never had any kid over 10' off the deck.


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