# Occupancy classifications - early childhood education facility



## squaredrive (Nov 29, 2016)

We are working on a new early childhood education facility and I'm attempting to determine occupancy classifications. The jurisdiction uses 2012 IBC. Would appreciate some feedback on my assumptions so far, not sure if i'm over complicating this.  Assuming mixed-use occupancy-


E occupancy - classrooms and small laundry rooms serving each classroom (since most laundry rooms are over 100sf, I'm assuming those qualify as 'incidental' uses still within the E occupancy.)
B occupancy - Admin offices and associated conference rooms
S-1 - storage closets, based on contents
F-1, school kitchen since not associated with a cafeteria - the food is served in classrooms
Super basic question but what occupancy classification do we use for janitor closets, telecom rooms, etc in this kind of mixed occupancy?

Appreciate any comments.


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## cda (Nov 29, 2016)

squaredrive said:


> We are working on a new early childhood education facility and I'm attempting to determine occupancy classifications. The jurisdiction uses 2012 IBC. Would appreciate some feedback on my assumptions so far, not sure if i'm over complicating this.  Assuming mixed-use occupancy-
> 
> 
> E occupancy - classrooms and small laundry rooms serving each classroom (since most laundry rooms are over 100sf, I'm assuming those qualify as 'incidental' uses still within the E occupancy.)
> ...




The subs are included in the major occupancy group


The question is any children 2 1/2 or younger ??!


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## Francis Vineyard (Nov 29, 2016)

2015 IBC
*
508.2 Accessory occupancies. *Accessory occupancies are those occupancies that are ancillary to the main occupancy of the building or portion thereof. Accessory occupancies shall comply with the provisions of Sections 508.2.1 through 508.2.4.
*
508.2.1 Occupancy classification. *Accessory occupancies shall be individually classified in accordance with Section 302.1. The requirements of this code shall apply to each portion of the building based on the occupancy classification of that space.
* 
508.2.3 Allowable building area. *The allowable area of the building shall be based on the applicable provisions of Section 506 for the main occupancy of the building. Aggregate accessory occupancies shall not occupy more than 10 percent of the floor area of the story in which they are located and shall not exceed the tabular values for nonsprinklered buildings in Table 506.2 for each such accessory occupancy.

*508.2.4 Separation of occupancies. *No separation is required between accessory occupancies and the main occupancy.
*Exceptions:*
1. Group H-2, H-3, H-4 and H-5 occupancies shall be separated from all other occupancies in accordance with Section 508.4.
2. Group I-1, R-1, R-2 and R-3 _dwelling units _and _sleeping units _shall be separated from other _dwelling _or _sleeping units _and from accessory occupancies contiguous to them in accordance with the requirements of Section 420.

Commentary: “When a designer is using Section 508.2, most accessory occupancies need not be separated from the main occupancy. Please note that even where an accessory occupancy is not separated from the main occupancy under the provisions of Section 508.2.4, there may be other provisions of the code that might require a fire-resistance-rated separation.”


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## squaredrive (Nov 29, 2016)

There are children under age 2.5 years but the facility meets the requirement of 308.6.1 allowing classification as an E.  

Sorry if I'm not getting it but not clear how the accessory provision tells us how to classify.  Per 508.2.1 quoted above, "accessory occupancies shall be individually classified in accordance with Section 302.1." Looking for the logic or provision that tells me how to classify spaces like janitor closets and telecom closets?


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## steveray (Nov 29, 2016)

Are you looking for classification or OL?...If it is a closet of any type....S1 it will have stuff in it....


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## squaredrive (Nov 29, 2016)

Trying to understand both. S1 makes sense in this context, thank you.

Big picture question, as I'm trying to wrap my head around a basic concept - when designing a secondary school, for example, would the principal's office be designated as a B occupancy or E occupancy?


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## cda (Nov 29, 2016)

squaredrive said:


> There are children under age 2.5 years but the facility meets the requirement of 308.6.1 allowing classification as an E.
> 
> Sorry if I'm not getting it but not clear how the accessory provision tells us how to classify.  Per 508.2.1 quoted above, "accessory occupancies shall be individually classified in accordance with Section 302.1." Looking for the logic or provision that tells me how to classify spaces like janitor closets and telecom closets?




Interesting with security now days, each classroom has a door directly to the outside


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## north star (Nov 29, 2016)

*& : : : &*



> *" ...would the principal's office be designated as a B occupancy*
> *or E occupancy ?"*


Part of the Admin areas, so "B Occ." would be my choice.

*& : : : &*


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## mtlogcabin (Nov 29, 2016)

You do not have to assign an occupancy classification to every room in the building. The OL is calculated on the "function of the space"  Table 1004.1.2
Accessory storage areas, mechanical equipment room   300 gross

Where an intended function is not listed in Table 1004.1.2, the building official shall establish a function based on a listed function that most nearly resembles the intended function.

An equipment room, mechanical, electrical, IT, telecommunications are just that accessory equipment rooms serving the main occupancy.


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## Francis Vineyard (Nov 30, 2016)

Hope this code commentary will be helpful;
"The code provides three basic options for mixed occupancies: accessory occupancies, nonseparated occupancies and separated occupancies. The availability of the options depends upon the area of each story desired for each different occupancy and the relationship of one occupancy to the other.

*Example: *A single-story business office of 23,000 sf contains a lunch room that is 2,000 sf in area. The main occupancy is Group B and the accessory occupancy is Group A-2. Since the Group A-2 occupancy has a floor area of less than 10 percent of the overall floor area of the single story, this can be viewed as an accessory occupancy and there is no fire separation requirement between the Group A-2 and B occupancies. For purposes of evaluating the area limitation, the building is evaluated solely as Group B.
In contrast to the accessory occupancy provisions illustrated above, the fundamental concept for nonseparated occupancies is that the allowable building areas are based upon the most restrictive requirements of each of the occupancies in the mixed occupancy building.




*311.1.1 Accessory storage spaces. *A room or space used for storage purposes that is less than 100 sf in area and accessory to occupancy shall be classified as part of that occupancy. The aggregate area of such rooms or spaces shall not exceed the allowable area limits of Section 508.2.

“The classification approach to storage rooms is similar to that of other support areas within a building. Where the hazard level within the storage area is such that the provisions for the general building use do not adequately address the risks posed by the storage use, the storage room is to be classified as Group S occupancy. There has been a historic consensus that small storage areas pose a limited concern above that anticipated due to the major use of the building, thus allowing such small storage spaces to be included as part of the major classification. The threshold of 100 square feet (9.3 m2) recognizes that the Group S classification is not appropriate for small storage spaces. The application is based individually for each storage room, not the aggregate floor areas of multiple rooms, provided the total area of all storage rooms do not exceed 10 percent of the floor area of the story nor more than the tabular allowable area for a nonsprinklered building.”


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## RLGA (Dec 1, 2016)

mtlogcabin said:


> You do not have to assign an occupancy classification to every room in the building...



mtlogcabin: I have to disagree for the most part. Section 302.1 begins with "Structures or *portions of structures*..." Therefore, every space/room (i.e., "portion of structure") must be classified. However, there are provisions that modify this slightly. Accessory occupancies, as Francis Vineyard pointed out, are still classified, but may not need to be separated. Incidental uses, which would normally have a separate classification if not incidental to the main occupancy, are classified along with the main occupancy but are still classified within an occupancy group. Therefore, there should be no unclassified space in regard to occupancy. But, as you pointed out, occupant load is based on function of space and is completely different than occupancy classification.


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## shumatec (Mar 6, 2019)

What about a three-story R-2 occupancy with Janitor closets? If Janitor is classified as S-1, Table 504.4 only allows S-1 up to 2 stories. Does that mean no Janitor closets on the 3rd floor, or as an Accessory Storage Space (311.1.1) it is exempt from 504.4? Classified as an ASS (ha-ha, was that intentional?) rather than S-1.


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## RLGA (Mar 6, 2019)

shumatec said:


> What about a three-story R-2 occupancy with Janitor closets? If Janitor is classified as S-1, Table 504.4 only allows S-1 up to 2 stories. Does that mean no Janitor closets on the 3rd floor, or as an Accessory Storage Space (311.1.1) it is exempt from 504.4? Classified as an ASS (ha-ha, was that intentional?) rather than S-1.


For the 2015 IBC and later, if the janitor's closet qualifies as an accessory occupancy, then the height limitations of Section 504 do not apply per Section 508.2.2. For the 2009 and 2012 IBC, what you stated would be true--accessory occupancies are limited to the height per Table 503. For the 2006 IBC and earlier, storage rooms that are ancillary to the main occupancy could be considered incidental uses and are classified with the main occupancy in which they are located.


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## Builder Bob (Mar 7, 2019)

Two important things to remember - Chapter 3 and Chapter 10 are not related to each other -

Chapters 3 - 9  discuss the allowable height, area,platforms, construction type, fire rated construction, interior finishes (alos based on intended use), and fire protection features 

Egress (Chapter 10) is based upon the intended use of the space.

The designer has three separate but distinct options when designing the building for height/ Area/ concerns - simplistic and as always - not inclusive of any and all loopholes.
1.) Separated - Different occupancies separated from each other in accordance with Fire Barriers in 707.3.10 and the ratio of area combined for each occupancy shall not exceed 1. The location of the occupancy must met the requirements for number of stories and the allowable area cannot be exceeded for the type of occupancy
2.) Accessory -  10% of the floor space may be classified as accessory ad not require separation ( Rule of Thumb - exceptions do apply for assembly uses, etc.)
3) Non-separated - The classification of the various occupancies with dictate what allowable area and height is allowed, Use the most restrictive occupancy  for allowable height and area.

Educational tends to be more restrictive than S-1 or B,  So unless your building exceeds 58,000 Sf for a type IIB single story sprinklered, why would you pursue the other design criterias.


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## RLGA (Mar 8, 2019)

I should also point out that Section 311.1.1 states that a room used for storage purposes and is less than 100 sq. ft. shall be classified as part of the occupancy in which they are located, as long as the aggregate area of all such storage spaces does not exceed the 10% of the floor in which they are located.


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## RLGA (Mar 8, 2019)

I should add that what I stated above all changed in the 2018 IBC. The 2018 IBC dropped the 100 sq. ft. limitation per space _and_ the 10% aggregate area limitation. Under the 2018 IBC, any storage space deemed accessory (I actually prefer "ancillary" so as not to confuse this with accessory occupancies) can be classified as part of the occupancy in which it is located.


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## Builder Bob (Mar 8, 2019)

Good code Change - just which they had used better grammar /English. I am sure we have one state entity that is going to "latch" onto the word "Accessory"


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## Rick18071 (Mar 8, 2019)

We have a lot of large and small old malls and strip malls that were built before the state had codes that have no sprinklers and separations in my area.

I always wondered on a tenant fit-out in a mall or strip mall with M and B occupancies with no separations. If they are changing the size of a storage room do you need to go to every tenant space to measure every storage space to make sure that the total sq ft is under 10% of the whole building? Usually you only get a plan showing only the tenant space that is being permitted.


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## Builder Bob (Mar 8, 2019)

Risk management,,,We used to require an overall code analysis for a tenant up fit or provide 2 hour fire barriers within the up fit.... then the IEBC showed up.... and reflects the same concept in partial change of occupancy.


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## ADAguy (Mar 11, 2019)

Good detailed discussion gang ( a keeper for future ref.), lots of "it depends".


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