By Henry Nazar P.E. Jan. 21, 2020
NFPA 72 specifies the locations where, when provided, a two-way telephone communications equipment shall be installed. When provided, the telephone equipment is to be used by the fire service to communicate between an area of a building and a constantly attended location; such as the fire command station. Typically, when these headsets are lifted, the fire command station will identify the location of the caller. In the event that the control equipment does not indicate the location of the caller, a placard shall be placed on the telephone equipment so that the caller can identify their location. This requirement can be better understood if we imagine that an area of a building is engulfed in smoke, and the caller, cannot communicate his or her exact location to the Fire Command Station, due to the amount of smoke. A placard on the telephone equipment can be used by the caller to communicate his/her location to the Fire Command Station. Below are pictures of two-way telephone equipment installed in a hospital (high-rise).
