THE LAYOUT BOOK
Layout, Detail and Calculation of Fire Sprinkler Systems
3rd Edition
What is the Layout Book?
The first edition was published in 2007 as the text for NFSA’s 10-day layout technician training course (LTTC). It referenced the 2002 edition of NFPA 13. The second edition was published in 2010, referencing the 2010 edition of NFPA 13. The third edition, published in 2022, references the 2022 edition of NFPA 13. The textbook remains as the premier industry handout and study guide for students in the NFSA layout technician pathway (LTP). It is also used by other training providers, universities, and colleges worldwide for engineering, fire science, and fire sprinkler layout technician curriculums.
ABOUT THE LAYOUT BOOK
The Layout Book has been divided into 43 chapters and an Annex with each of the chapters grouped into Parts that have a basic theme in the layout, detail, and calculation of a fire sprinkler system. There are four parts of the book roughly corresponding to the order in which decisions are made in the process of getting a sprinkler system into a building.
Chapters 1 through 11 of the text provide background material and help the reader understand the context in which the fire sprinkler technician performs their job.
The technician has to make decisions regarding the type of materials they will use and the quantity of material they will purchase to ensure the sprinkler system will function properly. The technician will also have to ensure all this equipment gets installed in the proper location. Chapters 12 through 27 cover this information.
Chapters 28 through 36 cover the hydraulic calculation of fire sprinkler systems, the sizing and selection of water supplies, pumps, and tanks, and discuss the interface of the sprinkler system with standpipe systems and alarm and supervisory systems.
Chapters 37 through 42 cover the work that must be done after the layout and calculation are over. The plans have to be reviewed by one or more Authorities Having Jurisdiction, the materials have to be purchased to install the system, the technician needs to know how to deal with changes that occur during the installation phase of the project, and the system must be properly inspected, tested, and maintained after installation. Although the technician will probably not get involved in the inspection, testing or maintenance, they will have to layout the system in such a way that the inspection, testing and maintenance can be done efficiently and correctly.
3rd Edition Update
The 3rd edition retains the excellent fire sprinkler layout advice and process and updates to the latest editions of codes and standards. The photos, graphics, and figures are freshened up by Joe Meyer of MeyerFire. This edition covers the latest published installation standards, such as 2022 NFPA 13, NFPA 14, NFPA 20, and more. An updated edition to the 2022 NFPA 13 is very important, especially after the 2019 edition rearrangement and 2022 edition technical changes, such as the elimination of the density/area method. This edition also covers the latest model code information such as from the 2021 International Fire Code (IFC) and NFPA 1 Fire Code. The 3rd edition retains several industry experts and gets a fresh perspective from several up-and-coming sprinkler industry professionals.
GET ACCESS
The Layout Book is available as a hard cover, bound, textbook. Available at a discount for NFSA members.
DIGITAL
The Layout Book is available as a digital textbook, hosted on NFSA’s digital Bookshelf platform by VitalSource with 24/7 access. This provides the Layout Book and other NFSA materials in one place with features:
- Annotation tools include highlighting and adding notes and bookmarks
- Advanced search to look up key words by chapter, section, or specific type of content
- Users and learners have full content controls, with dark mode, margin sizes, and fonts, including open dyslexic, as well as read aloud, search, and full offline access
- Accessible on PC or mobile devices.
SUBSCRIPTION
Subscribe to the digital textbook for a three-year term.
BUNDLE
The Print Textbook and Digitial Textbook are available together as a discount bundle for NFSA Members!
