9 Key words and phrases used in Thermal Barrier, Ignition Barrier and Fireproof Products

Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) – An organization, office, or individual responsible for enforcing the requirements of a code or standard, or for approving equipment, materials, an installation, or a procedure.

Building Official: The officer or other designated authority charged with the administration and enforcement of the building code.

Building code (also building control or building regulations) is a set of rules that specify the standards for constructed objects such as buildings and nonbuilding structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permission, usually from a local council. The main purpose of building codes is to protect public health, safety, and general welfare as they relate to the construction and occupancy of buildings and structures.

Evaluation Report: Report provided by accredited third-party reporting results of technical evaluations of data for compliance with a standard or set of criteria. In the context of buildings and construction, these reports commonly evaluate compliance of a product or assembly with the relevant requirements of the construction codes, consensus standards or acceptance criteria. Evaluation reports are used to help confirm the code-compliance of products and assemblies.

Fire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of potentially destructive fires. It involves the study of the behavior, compartmentalization, suppression and investigation of fire and its related emergencies, as well as the research and development, production, testing, and application of mitigating systems. In structures, be they land-based, offshore or even ships, the owners and operators are responsible to maintain their facilities in accordance with a design-basis that is rooted in-laws, including the local building code and fire code, which are enforced by the Authority Having Jurisdiction.

Fire resistance: An indication of the ability for a construction assembly to withstand a standard fire resistance test such as ASTM E119 or CAN/ULC S-101. Not the same as providing a thermal barrier for the SPF – thermal barrier test evaluates the duration of protection for the foam only, while fire resistance evaluates the duration of the full assembly i.e coating, SPF, substrate together.

IBC: International Building Code

IRC: International Residential Code

ICC: International Code Council (www.iccsafe.org) The ICC formed in 1994 by the merger of BOCA, ICBO and SBCCI to promulgate a common set of model building codes. Codes developed by the ICC are commonly referred to as the I-CODES.