Building code · Fire & life safety · Smoke curtains — U.S. market
Straight answers.
Independent guidance on IBC & NFPA — with 24 years deep in fire and smoke curtains, and zero brand allegiances. If a curtain is the wrong answer, you'll hear it here first.
Decide with numbers, not brochures.
02 — Tools
Flagship
Section 3006
Decision Tree
Is hoistway protection required on your project? Yes/no questions, an instant code-aligned answer, and the section references to back it up.
Budget Tool
Counts & dimensions in — low, typical, high ranges out.
Ask CodeBot
Any code question, explained in plain English with the section to back it up. A real person (24 years of them) when it's project-specific.
Lobby vs. Curtain Calculator
What an enclosed lobby costs in sellable square footage — modeled over a hold period you choose.
Architects & Engineers
Is hoistway protection required — then curtain or lobby?
Developers & Owners
Sellable square footage, cost, and ROI evidence.
General Contractors
What does it cost — then lead times, install, commissioning.
Code Watch
03 — What's new & what's still true
Evidence over brochures.
04 — Case Files
Case study
The 1980 MGM Grand Fire
The fire that rewrote hotel life safety — and why smoke in shafts is the story.
Analysis
U.S. Commercial Fires, 2014–2023
Trends across apartments, hotels, high-rises and hospitals.
Risk analysis
Shaft Pressurization: Hidden Risks
Why ESP fails commissioning — with a height-by-height risk calculator.
“Sometimes a curtain is the wrong answer. You'll hear that from me first — that's what independent means.”
John McPhail — The guy behind the name