Using the methods of critical spatial practice, I wish to examine the conditions under which building owners are likely to install a fire sprinkler system. To facilitate the data collection process, I created an iPhone application called PhotoLocatr that geolocates and tags photos taken with a digital camera.

building code

New York City building code requires buildings to have signs that indicate to firefighters parameters of a standpipe or fire sprinkler system’s operation. The standard is set forth by a national rule-making body, the NFPA, in NFPA standard 14. The standard reads:

6.4.5.2.1 If automatic sprinklers are also supplied by the fire department connection, the sign or combination of signs shall indicate both designated services (e.g. “STANDPIPE AND AUTOSPKR,” or “AUTOSPKR AND STANDPIPE”).

You and I can see this standard manifested as signs on buildings across the nation. Standpipe/sprinkler protected buildings can fall into three main classifications: fully sprinklered, partially sprinklered, or not sprinklered.

Colored covers (or paint) on the standpipe indicate how the system works; red means the hookup connects to a standpipe only (i.e. does not feed sprinklers, or none are present); green means an automatic sprinkler system is present and connected to the hookup; aluminum color means sprinklers are present but not automatic (requires turn-on by the fire department), and yellow signifies a combination sprinkler/standpipe system (both are fed by a common standpipe).

See this document for more information about NYFD standpipe standards and usage.

data collection

My research process consisted of collecting geolocated standpipe photos in New York City (specifically Manhattan for now), and mapping the results by one of many dimensions (e.g. full, partial or no sprinkler coverage). To do this, I created a tool called PhotoLocatr that runs on the iPhone and makes use of Flickr to store and manage the photos.

Part of the collected data appears below:

analysis and conclusions

Raw data collected so far appears above (view on geocommons); orange dots represent “full coverage” by sprinklers, while grey dots represent partial or no coverage.

General observations include:

• Lobbies and halls are often protected, even if the entire building isn’t. This gives occupants more of a chance to escape a fire, but without the expense of adding sprinklers to every office or room.
• Compactor rooms and or garages are sometimes the only places protected by fire sprinklers.
• Older buildings usually have standpipes, but no sprinklers–not surprising, as installing sprinklers (and the necessary pipe) in an old building can be disruptive and prohibitively expensive, especially if one must do so in each of hundreds of rooms/offices.
• Most newer buildings, or buildings frequently renovated (think Midtown) often have sprinkler systems–again, making significant renovations to a building forces one to comply with modern building code, so no big surprise here.
• Every New York Public Library I passed had full sprinkler coverage.
• St. Vincents, a local hospital, has complete sprinkler coverage.
• MTA subway tunnels have standpipe hookups at the street level for firefighter use underground.
• ConEd installs sprinklers in and around their electrical transformers, making it easier for firefighters to extinguish electrical fires quickly and safely.

Update! See my article on the Infrastructurist for a summary of my findings around this project!

ConEd asks the people of New York to report steam they see on the streets of lower Manhattan. ConEd provides a phone number (1-800-752-6633) for the purpose, but Steamr hopes to make the reporting process faster, easier and more accurate using the advanced capabilities of the iPhone.

It is hoped that this project benefits both the public and ConEd alike, setting an example of how the public can help utilities maintain our increasingly aging infrastructure, and starting a dialog around public interest and concerns of aging infrastructure.

The project was conceived during my time as an artist-in-residence at The Banff Centre New Media Institute. Special thanks also go to Alexandra Woolsey Puffer for lending her graphic design skills to the effort!

presentations

This project was presented as part of Banff’s “open spaces day”:

Participants in Pittsburgh made recordings around the city using their mobile phones. Participants input the location of the recording by GPS coordinate, street address, or intersection. The recording was then uploaded to the MapHub system, accessible for playback or for commenting on the web.

For the physical device installed in Karlsruhe, we collaborated with artist Greg Baltus to create a robotic mechanism that played the recordings in real time. It moved an LED marker behind a translucent, wall-mounted map to the location of each recording as it was played (see video).

The exhibition was curated by Peter Weibel, Bruno Latour, and Steve Dietz, and a companion anthology (also titled Making Things Public: Atmospheres of Democracy) was published by the MIT Press in September 2005.