Fire destroyed a huge apartment complex

COCORD, Calif. — A massive fire destroyed a huge apartment complex under construction in Concord. Two people are injured and hundreds of people living next door have been evacuated. The investigation into the cause is under way.

A lot of work still needs to be done to stabilize the structure. Because of that, fire investigators and a team from the ATF will have to wait a day or two before going in to begin their search for the cause of this fire.

There were two injuries from smoke inhalation. A health advisory for the smoke has been lifted.

The fire consumed practically an entire block of Clayton Road and Galindo Street. Little remains of the complex under construction.

Read full article

Door Systems “New” Northern California Office

Due to increasing demand for our products, we have moved to a larger facility in Northern Californa territory. As always, we are here to help provide you with a complete smoke & fire containment solution.

See full newsletter here

Financial District’s Heineman building

While San Francisco has its fair share of iconic buildings—Transamerica Pyramid and Triple 5 are synonymous with the city—one high-rise has garnered a rabid and well-deserved cult following. That building is 130 Bush, the super-slender structure in the Financial District.

It’s easy to miss this downtown gem. Blocked from a clear view on Market Street by 1 Bush, a spectacular midcentury behemoth, passersby must veer up the start of Bush Street in order to see and appreciate it in all its trim glory.

Read full article

Amazing 45 FT Smoke Curtain

45 FT Fire protective Smoke Curtain

Installation of a 45 Ft Smoke Curtain at the 777 Aviation Building in Los Angeles, California.

See full newsletter here

Alternatives For Fire Doors

Fire doors are necessary but cumbersome item. They are required in a great deal of situations, however they are by nature heavy and restrictive to movement, difficult for small children and the elderly or disabled to open and awkward if carrying bags, pushing prams or operating wheelchairs.

It is therefore commonplace to see these vital parts of a buildings fire strategy wedged open, breaching all compartmentation requirements. A fire curtain can be specified as an alternative offering the same levels of integrity and, if required, additional smoke sealing.

The fire curtain can be recessed within the ceiling and walls, or face fixed depending on customer requirements. It will then remain there hidden, always ready to deploy in a fire situation due to its gravity fail-to-safe method of operation, even when all forms of consumable power are unavailable.

$103M in tax revenue to lure hotel developer to Convention Center

A city committee on Tuesday endorsed a deal that would give a developer $103.3 million in public money over the course of more than two decades to open hundreds of hotel rooms next to the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Developer Lightstone Group wants to build two towers at Pico Boulevard and Figueroa Street and fill them with 1,130 rooms operated by three brands: AC Hotel, Moxy Hotel, and Hilton Garden Inn. But, due to the high costs of “concrete and steel high rise construction,” it has a $67.4-million financing gap, according to real estate advisory firm Keyser Marston Associates. The firm says the public money, adjusted for inflation, would fill that financing gap.

Los Angeles City Councilmembers are eager to get hotel rooms built near the convention center, and it appears they’re willing to loosen the city’s purse strings to make it happen.

Read full article

Using Smoke Curtains in Multi-Story Buildings

Automatic fire rated smoke curtains installed in discreet areas, and deploy automatically during a fire can help block heat and are excellent at blocking smoke from entering the building’s rooms. Due to the natural chimney effect that elevator shafts cause during a fire, automatic fire rated smoke curtains in front of elevators are highly recommended, due to elevator shafts often acting as chimneys, drawing smoke to other floors not currently affected by the fire.

A elevator smoke curtain combined with an elevator door will create the impenetrable assembly required by building codes. Similarly, smoke & fire curtains that block smoke from drifting up or down staircases are also highly effective for similar reasons; such as if the doors can be sealed, less smoke is likely to travel to other areas of the building.

Automatic fire rated curtains and elevator shaft curtains are a must for any building and can greatly reduce smoke inhalation.

Boyle Heights affordable housing nearly set to rise

A long-vacant lot in Boyle Heights is well on its way to redevelopment as an affordable housing complex from developer Abode Communities.

Metro, which owns the land the project would be built on, is formalizing a lease with the developer, and the agency’s board of directors will vote on whether to approve it Thursday. The Los Angeles City Planning Commission also signed off on the project earlier this month.

New renderings of the project, called La Veranda, offer a look at what it would look like. Consisting of two separate four-story buildings, it’s set to include 77 apartments and 8,000 square feet of commercial space. All but one of the residential units in the project would be set aside for low-income tenants, with the last reserved as a manager’s unit.

Read full article

Introducing the Next Generation of Integrated Doors

Conventional doors only account for about one and a half percent of construction dollars. But they are responsible for a full 20 percent of owner problems. This is because conventional doors contain parts from as many as 15 different manufacturers. Each part is sourced separately, then put together in the field. The Syntégra™ Door system offers a better way.

See full newsletter here