Marginal water supplies present a particular challenge when consulting engineers performance-specify. Building, renovating or retrofitting with a fire pump requires the first cost of the pump, the pressure maintenance pump, controllers and a reliable or alternate source of electric power, diesel drive or steam drive.
Owning a fire pump also requires the cost of regular inspection, testing and maintenance (ITM). Therefore, the best time to find out whether a fire pump is necessary is early on in the design stage. The first costs of pumps and power need to be captured in the construction budget, the architect needs to provide a fire-rated pump room large enough to house pumps and controllers, and the owner needs to plan the cost of ITM into their operating budget.