Seventh Schedule
The twenty points, and how each must be sensed.
The Schedule does two things. It lists the systems whose status must be reported, and then — unusually for a fire rule — it fixes the mode of integration for each one. You are not free to sense a point whichever way is convenient. The method is part of the requirement.
| # | Point monitored | System | Mandated mode of integration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Main hydrant pump — run status | Hydrant | Water differential pressure switch |
| 02 | Main sprinkler pump — run status | Sprinkler | Water differential pressure switch |
| 03 | Standby diesel / electrical pump — run status | Hydrant | Water differential pressure switch |
| 04 | Jockey pump — run status | Hydrant | Water differential pressure switch |
| 05 | Booster pump — run status | Hydrant | Water differential pressure switch |
| 06 | Diesel day-tank — low level | Hydrant | Level sensor |
| 07 | Power to main hydrant pump — on / off | Hydrant | Voltage sensor at the MCC |
| 08 | Hydrant riser — low pressure | Hydrant | Pressure switch or transmitter |
| 09 | Power to main sprinkler pump — on / off | Sprinkler | Voltage sensor at the MCC |
| 10 | Sprinkler riser — low pressure (below 5 bar) | Sprinkler | Pressure switch or transmitter |
| 11 | Underground / at-grade fire water tank — low level | Fire water tank | Ultrasonic water-level device |
| 12 | Overhead tank — low level | Fire water tank | Ultrasonic water-level device |
| 13 | Fire detection — operation status | Detection | Volt-free contacts from the fire panel |
| 14 | Control / repeater panel — working or not | Detection | Dry contacts from the fire panel |
| 15 | Control panel battery — status | Detection | Dry contacts from the fire panel |
| 16 | Manual call points — operation status | Detection | Dry contacts from the fire panel |
| 17 | Public address system — working or not | Public address | Fault contact from the PA panel |
| 18 | Staircase pressurisation fan — run status, all exits | Pressurisation | Air differential pressure switch |
| 19 | Lift lobby / hoistway pressurisation fan — run status | Pressurisation | Air differential pressure switch |
| 20 | Basement supply & exhaust fan — run status | Ventilation | Air differential pressure switch |
Reading the Schedule properly
Three choices in the table that are not accidental.
Each of these tells you something about what the rule is really trying to catch — and each one is a place where a cheap installation quietly fails to comply.
Pressure, not the contactor
Every pump's run status is sensed by differential pressure across the pump, not by reading the motor starter. A starter proves the panel tried. Pressure across the casing proves water moved. A sheared coupling, a closed valve or a seized impeller all energise perfectly and deliver nothing.
Power at the MCC
A separate point asks simply whether mains power is present at the pump's motor control centre. A pump isolated for maintenance, tripped, or locked out months ago is not available — and that must be visible on an ordinary Tuesday, not discovered during an incident.
Level, by ultrasonic device
Fire water tank level is called out with a specific instrument. Float switches foul, stick and corrode in static water that is rarely disturbed — exactly the condition a fire water tank lives in for years at a time.
What this means for an existing building
Roughly half these points are already there. The other half are not.
Nearly every fire panel in service offers volt-free fire and fault contacts, so points 13 to 17 are usually a matter of wiring rather than new instrumentation.
The tanks and the fans are the opposite story. Fire water tank level, staircase pressurisation air proving, basement exhaust proving and diesel day-tank level are almost never instrumented in an older building, and they tend to sit at the furthest points from the panel room. That is where the real cost of a retrofit lives, and it is why a survey comes before a number.
Usually already available
Detection and PA panel contacts — points 13 to 17, and often the pump run and power points where a modern MCC is fitted.
Usually needs adding
Fire water tank levels (11, 12), diesel day-tank level (06), staircase and lift lobby air proving (18, 19), basement exhaust proving (20), and riser pressure where no transmitter exists (08, 10).
Why not just read the motor starter?
Because it answers the wrong question. The starter tells you the panel commanded the pump. The Schedule wants to know whether water moved, which is why it names a differential pressure switch across the pump. The two readings disagree in precisely the situations that matter.
Does every staircase need its own sensor?
Point 18 refers to pressurisation fans across all exits, so a building with several pressurised staircases has several points to prove, not one. This is one of the main reasons a tall building's point count runs well above twenty in practice.
Is twenty points the whole scope for any building?
Twenty is the number of point types in the Schedule. The physical count depends on your building — five pumps, three staircases, two tanks and four panels add up quickly. A survey establishes the real number, which is the number that drives cost.
Next step
We will count your points for you.
A survey walks the building against this table and produces the real point count, the gaps and a scope you can compare against any other quotation.