Held June 4-6 in Orlando, FL, the National Fire Protection Association's 2006 World Safety Conference & Exposition® drew more than 4,000 attendees to its educational sessions and large show floor. The event included 130 sessions presented by expert engineers, architects and municipal officials. The exposition encompassed 65,300 square feet and featured 653 booths showcasing products and services from 312 companies.

"This year's World Safety Conference and Expo had something for everyone, including a special talk on hurricane preparedness by Dr. Cortez Lawrence of the USFA, and sessions on key industry topics, such as LNG as a growing source of fuel in the U.S.,"

Sessions of Note

David Hague, P.E., NFPA principal fire protection engineer, presented seminars that covered sprinkler hydraulics, commissioning of fire protection systems and changes to the 2007 edition of NFPA 25. At the sprinkler hydraulics session, participants learned to determine occupancy classification and complete sprinkler discharge calculations, including selection of the sprinkler K factor. They also had the opportunity to perform sample branchline and whole system calculations.

In his session on the commissioning of fire protection systems, Hague examined the roles of each participant in the process, including the registered design professional. He also outlined the general requirements for a basis of design document.

"The scope of NFPA 25 doesn't deal with products, but with the wear and tear of systems,"