Office Buildings: Why a Partnership Between Tenants and Building Managers is so Critical Today

By Andrea Houtkin

The Fire Department of New York City has created a new Law (3 RCN Y §6-02) that applies to non-fire emergencies for office buildings. It is an important message to building managers and to the people who live and work in New York City. In creating this law, the Fire Department of New York City has identified the importance of establishing a partnership between the building manager and the office tenants who occupy these buildings, especially high-rises, in responding to non-fire emergencies. Though this law currently only applies to a specific building type (“E”) in New York City, the law provides excellent guidance to office tenants and building managers anywhere. This article reviews the important relationship between building managers and tenants and the fire department during preparation for, or responses to, an emergency.

This new rule requires that building management be prepared to respond to both fire and non-fire emergencies. The building management must create an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) that includes an evacuation process with an assembly area preferably a distance from the building not less than the height of the building, the shelter-in-place process and an organization that supports the plan. The building management must also perform annual evacuation drills that take tenants from the building to the assembly area and permit the tenants to perform their accountability process. Tenants are required to create an Accountability Process that is used at the assembly area to account for staff, as well as be well-versed in the building’s Emergency Action Plan and support it by creating whatever processes are required for the business, itself.

Some companies own and maintain their own buildings. Some companies work in leased buildings. There has always been a clear differentiation between the two scenarios - primarily from that of an ownership, insurance/liability and organizational perspective. Staff in a company-owned building rely on Corporate Services; e.g. Corporate Security, Corporate Facilities or the Global Business Continuity Management Team, to create and support any safety-related processes. And, if you were in a multitenant building before the process mandated by this new law, you assumed that the building had things under control and felt no need to interact with the building manager or their safety staff, if they had one. But with this law, that is being “watched” by other American municipalities, there is more reason for tenants in leased buildings to get to know their building manager, their fire/ safety director and their responsibilities to their staff—especially in response to non-fire emergencies, shelter-in-place and staff accountability. This new law is about a 3-way partnership, between the fire department, the building management organization and the tenant.

This new law went into effect in January, 2007. Many building managers/ fire safety directors have complied with the new law, created their Emergency Action Plans and trained an Emergency Action Team. They have submitted the plans for review to the NYFD and upon receipt of notification of compliance, have distributed their building plans to their tenants along with the process for evacuation, shelter-in-place, building exits, building emergency contact information and assembly points. Needless to say, this is a tall order for the building manager/fire safety director - the time to create the plan, train staff, and impart tenant responsibilities has been a resource-heavy activity. But what this law provides for those tenants of office buildings is a uniform process for non-fire emergencies and an opportunity to work with their building managers/fire safety directors for the safety of their employees and the viability of their businesses.

There is a dark side to this new process— the building managers who have not embraced the law, may not be compliant, and do not communicate with their tenants regarding the non-fire emergency processes and procedures including tenant accountability. There are still stairwells without proper lighting, stairwells used for storage and an impediment to proper evacuation, tenants who do not know the difference between a fire and non-fire emergency and those buildings who do not perform regularly scheduled fire drills or evacuation drills.

There is no excuse for non-compliance or for not seeing the positive effects of a 3-way partnership between fire department, building management and tenant—especially in urban areas that are targets for terrorists. There is no excuse for those building management organizations who are passive with regards to planning with tenants for their safety. And there is no excuse for building management organizations who feel that working with the tenant might increase their liability during times of an incident. Likewise, there is no excuse for the tenant who does not participate in the building management’s efforts to address processes and procedures for fire and non-fire emergencies.

The breakdown occurs in those buildings where the building management has not embraced the new law or those buildings where management may feel it is to their advantage not to communicate with the tenant regarding safety process (supposedly limiting their liability if something goes wrong). Also there is little value to this partnership if tenants cannot face their fears, cannot bear to feel vulnerable, or do not want to re-direct their employees from the business to the necessary planning, training and exercises.

How do tenants and facilities/building managers work together for their mutual safety and for the safety of first responders? This author believes it is the responsibility of the building management organization to start the dialogue – as does 3 RCNY §6-02 (Section: (g)(6)). The building manager should be willing to share the plans, processes and procedures with tenants to ensure that the tenant will take responsibility for understanding the process, take accountability for their staff and for creating processes that the building may not provide. The tenant needs to understand their responsibilities in regards to the safety process. The tenant needs to be educated. Although the building manager cannot be held accountable for what the tenant chooses to respond to, they can at the very least start the dialogue, educate them about the building plans, invite them to drills and find business delegates to the fire warden teams. It the building management has performed these things, they have done the best they can.

In response to staff accountability, it is recommend that the tenant create a call tree or use an emergency notification service so that all staff can be accounted for. It is also valuable to have a toll-free emergency number where status can be left and the employees can leave messages.

• Evacuation: For non-fire emergencies that do not require evacuation, how will the building management respond to tenants who choose to leave on their own volition?
• Assembly Area: Are assembly areas defined by the building management or by the tenant? Explain whether the tenant is accountable for identifying their own assembly area.
• Shelter-In-Place: Does the building support Shelter-In-Place? If not, what is the policy for tenants who choose to stay in the building?
• Will a skeleton crew still be available to maintain the building after a full or partial evacuation or are tenants left to their own devices?
• Under what circumstances will the building be closed?
• How can office tenants find out about building status after an event?
• What services will be available during different emergencies: Generators? Hall lights? Stairwell lights? Elevators and elevator services? Will the vents be shut or open? Will air conditioning be kept going?

If You are a Tenant:
Ask the building management if they are compliant with new laws and if not, where they are in the approval process. Or if your building is outside of NYC, ask your management company if they are willing to work with you using the new NYC law as a template for good building emergency management.

• If they are compliant, ask for a copy of their plan and emergency contact list.
• Find out, as well, if they have created an organization to support the non-fire emergency and to introduce you to the team.
• Know the fire wardens for each floor – by company. Be sure your fire warden is properly trained.
• If there are several tenants on the floor, ask whether fire wardens are chosen from each company. If not, you may need to work with the building manager and the fire warden to gain access to your space during an incident – without impacting day-to-day physical security of your space.
• Be sure you understand the building’s expectation of their tenants in case of a fire and non-fire emergency.
• If the building does not perform fire drills or evacuation drills, request and schedule fire drill presentations and evacuation drills with your building manager. In the case of fire drills, be sure the fire/safety representatives performing the drills come to each floor to perform a basic presentation of the building safety processes and where the exits are and how/when to communicate with the security team. And most importantly, be sure every staff member on your floor attends and participates.
• Have you prepared for physically challenged employees? There are a number of evacuation chairs on the market designed to transport people down stairwells.
• Does your building have a decontamination program?
• Understand the tenant process for responding to medical emergencies, bomb threats and/or physical crimes within the building. Do you call 911 and then Lobby Security or just Lobby Security?

The purpose of these action steps is to be sure all the key players in responding to fire- or non-fire emergencies are fully prepared! The more the tenants know what is expected of them during an incident as well as the division of responsibilities, the more likely they will be able to respond in a positive manner in case of an emergency. Engage the office tenant to be more accountable for their safety through education and participation. The proactive partnership, which is required in NYC but important in any office building, is the best way to protect people, our most valuable assets!

About the Author

Andrea Houtkin, Houtkin Associates, CISSP, CBCP, www.houtkinassociates.com, performs technical project management with an emphasis on disaster recovery and business and technical process engineering. She may be reached at: houtkin@houtkinassociates.com.