As tensions across the country continue to rise after another public shooting in Virginia Beach, the nation again struggles with public access to a building. While we live in a time when most government offices are still open to the public, the debate about limiting access rages as people come to grips with the fact that a disgruntled employee could enter a work space and kill 12 people and injure four, including one police officer. In a public building where citizens need to visit to get work permits and other required paperwork, the public needs to have access. When a shooting occurs in one of these buildings, however, many people wonder if even these kinds of government offices need to be made secure.

Adding the expense and the manpower to monitor these spaces, of course, is part of the discussion. And while no one wants to increase the literal red tape that is involved in accessing these necessary government offices, it should come as no surprise that safety concerns are also valid.

No One Argues the Need for Fire Sprinkler System Installation
Although there will be months of discussions about the needed implementation of safety measures in public buildings after the Virginia Beach shooting, one discussion that is never needed is about fire safety. In fact, laws about the need for specific layout detail and calculation of fire sprinkler systems have been in place for years. As a result, fire sprinkler companies offer a number of products to make sure that all of these laws are met. From the tallest multi floor buildings in a downtown area to the sprawling one story campuses that are in some urban areas, fire sprinkler companies offer detailed fire sprinkler installation plans.

With the latest computer generated automatic fire sprinkler designs, architects plan for this protection from the very first draft. And no building ever opens to the public before it has been cleared by a local or state fire inspector. Once these systems have been implemented, however, it is also important that they are regularly maintained and inspected. To achieve this there are many kinds of fire sprinkler online training options available. Automatic fire sprinklers have been in use in the U.S. since 1874, but there have obviously been many improvements. Fortunately, sprinklers reduce the amount of water used to fight a fire by up to 90%, so they are never people who argue the use of these systems.