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Cornell University

Facilities and
Campus Services

Fire Alarm and Sprinkler Shutdowns

All routine fire protection system shutdowns requested by FCS zone staff, unit facilities staff, and contractors should be scheduled through FCS Customer Service.

Customer Service is Available:
Monday - Friday (Except on staff holidays)
6:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Phone: 607-255-5322

Customer Service will schedule your shutdown as close to your desired date and time as possible. Protection system shutdowns, however, are scheduled on a first come, first served basis and depend on the availability of EH&S Fire Protection staff.

CS can only schedule EHS shutdowns as far ahead as 2 weeks in advance. To schedule the times you need for long projects contact CS frequently to keep adding dates 2 weeks in advance.

Contact EHS directly if a building impairment may be needed. EHS Fire Protection

Per the University Fire Marshall:

A minimum of two (2) business days advance notification is required to schedule a fire alarm or sprinkler system shutdown.

At no time shall both the fire alarm system and sprinkler system be impaired at the same time.

Emergency Shutdowns Requests:

-Primary contact Customer Service 607-255-5322
-Secondary contact Cornell Police Dispatch 607-255-1111

Shutdowns for Construction Projects (at the direction of EHS Fire Protection Technical Coordinator)

Sprinkler Systems and Components

  • Removal of piping and or sprinkler heads requires the installation of temporary heat detection and can only occur after the temporary heats have been installed, tested & accepted by EHS Fire Protection Technical Coordinator (EHS FPTC).
  • Before removal of fire alarm devices, please consult with EHS FPTC.
  • If a shutdown is required to perform re-Inspection testing of repairs associated with the FCS Testing & Inspecting Program, the respective FCS zone is responsible for scheduling a representative of the Testing &Inspection Program to witness the test. Consult with EHS FPTC before scheduling the shutdown to determine if any additional agencies are required to be present.
  • FCS zone and Testing Program personnel must request a Short Form Shutdown through Customer Service whenever they remove a system from service.

Returning Systems to Service

  • Coordination of returning impaired systems to service will be internal of the EHS Staff
  • Call Customer Service to report that system impairment/shutdown has been returned to service. If after 4:00pm, the respective Fire Safety & Emergency Technician will log into the Shutdown database and close/cancel the shutdown request.
  • If the respective shutdown/impairment required an impairment notification to be sent by the University Fire Marshall, the FSET will locate the impairment e-mail, reply to all and in the body of the e-mail and, using the following example, state: “Be advised that the sprinkler system at North Campus Low Rise #9 located at 142 Program House Drive has been returned to service canceling the pre-planned impairment notification”