Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Amendment Regulations 2021

2021/156

Coat of Arms of New Zealand

Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Amendment Regulations 2021

Patsy Reddy, Governor-General

Order in Council

At Wellington this 14th day of June 2021

Present:
Her Excellency the Governor-General in Council

These regulations are made under section 192(1)(c) of the Fire and Emergency New Zealand Act 2017—

(a)

on the advice and with the consent of the Executive Council; and

(b)

on the recommendation of the Minister of Internal Affairs.

Regulations

1 Title

These regulations are the Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Amendment Regulations 2021.

2 Commencement

These regulations come into force on 1 August 2021.

4 Regulation 24 amended (Automatic sprinkler systems)

(1)

Replace regulation 24(1)(c) with:

(c)

satisfies subclause (2); and

(d)

if subclause (2)(c) is relied on, also satisfies subclause (3).

(2)

Replace regulation 24(2) with:

(2)

The system must comply with at least 1 of the following standards:

(a)

NZS 4541:2007—Automatic fire sprinkler systems:

(b)

NZS 4541:2013—Automatic fire sprinkler systems:

(c)

NZS 4541:2020—Automatic fire sprinkler systems:

(d)

NZS 4515:2003—Fire sprinkler systems for residential occupancies:

(e)

NZS 4515:2009—Fire sprinkler systems for life safety in sleeping occupancies (up to 2000 square metres).

(3)

If subclause (2)(c) is relied on, the system must be complemented by hand-operated fire-fighting equipment that complies with NZS 4503:2005—Hand operated fire-fighting equipment.

(4)

Subclause (3) is in addition to (and does not affect) any other requirement for hand-operated fire-fighting equipment to be provided in a building.

(5)

An automatic sprinkler system or hand-operated fire-fighting equipment complies with a standard referred to in subclause (2) or (3) if it complies with that standard—

(a)

as the standard was when the system or equipment was installed; or

(b)

as the standard was, or is, at any later date.

Michael Webster,
Clerk of the Executive Council.

Explanatory note

This note is not part of the regulations, but is intended to indicate their general effect.

These regulations, which come into force on 1 August 2021, amend the Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018 (the principal regulations).

The main amendment updates the list of automatic sprinkler standards in regulation 24 of the principal regulations by adding NZS 4541:2020—Automatic fire sprinkler systems (the new sprinkler standard). The effect of the addition is that, if the owners of certain buildings used as workplaces or accommodation install automatic sprinkler systems meeting the new sprinkler standard (and if various other requirements are met), the owners are exempt from the usual requirements under the Fire and Emergency New Zealand Act 2017 to provide and maintain evacuation schemes for their buildings.

Any building owner relying on the new sprinkler standard to qualify for the exemption is required to ensure that the sprinkler system is complemented by hand-operated fire-fighting equipment complying with NZS 4503:2005—Hand operated fire-fighting equipment (the hand-operated equipment standard). The reason for this requirement is that, unlike the last New Zealand standard for automatic fire sprinkler systems, the new sprinkler standard does not itself include a requirement for the building to have equipment complying with the hand-operated equipment standard.

Issued under the authority of the Legislation Act 2012.

Date of notification in Gazette: 17 June 2021.

These regulations are administered by the Department of Internal Affairs.