Government Specifications Overview

Participating in Governmental Bidding for projects is a very complicated task. There are many requirements that need to observed and included in your bids.  A great reference for some of these requirements is the Whole Building Design Guide. This is the one and only location that the US Government will upload various product, and system requirements.

If you are specifically looking at making a governmental bid for DoD projects you will need to become familiar with the United Facilities Criteria Program. WBDG goes on to explain that, “The UFC & UFGS or United Facilities Criteria & Guide Specifications are designed to unify all technical criteria and standards pertaining to planning, design, construction, and operation and maintenance of real property facilities operated by the DoD. It seeks to streamline the military criteria system by eliminating duplication of information, increasing reliance on private-sector standards, and creating a more efficient criteria development and publishing process.”

While these UFC & UFGS set more rigid standards on what products and systems that will be accepted, the US Government has also made it easier for commercial companies to understand the demands of the DoD. This is achieved by the UFCs & UFGS relating themselves, or directly referencing, to common commercial standards such as the NFPA or UL. Now that you understand UFC/UFGS, you need products to fit them. Below I will talk about various UFGS and what products we offer to fulfill the specifications

Graphic Annunciators and UFGS 28-31-74 by NAVFAC

UFGS 28-31-74 is about Interior Fire Alarms, written by the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC)

Their specification for Graphic Annunciators reads,

“Panel shall be of the [interior] [weatherproof] type, [flush] [surface] [pedestal]-mounted. The Panel shall be provided with the [building] [room] floor plan, drawn to scale, with alarm lamps mounted to represent the location of [each concealed detector] [each initiating device]. Panel graphic shall also show the locations of the annunciator panel and control panel, and shall have a “you are here” arrow showing its location. Orient building floor plan on graphic to location of person viewing the graphic, i.e. the direction the viewer is facing shall be toward the top of the graphic display. Provide a North arrow. [Principal rooms and areas shown shall be labeled with room numbers or titles.] Detectors mounted above ceilings, [on ceilings,] and beneath raised floors and different types of initiating devices shall have different symbols or lamps of different colors for identification. Lamps shall illuminate upon activation of corresponding device and shall remain illuminated until the system is reset. Panel shall have a lamp test switch.

This is specification is LED Inc’s main product, the graphic annunciator. All of our graphic annunciators come with a lamp test standard and we can mount your lamp driver modules and pre-wire them. This makes your installation quick and easy. For that extra layer of security, we also make cover doors to prevent unauthorized access/tampering. To learn about our graphic annunciators click here.

Graphic Annunciators and UFGS 28-31-76 by USACE

The United States Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) has a specification for annuciators and it reads,

“Provide an annunciator that includes an LCD display. The display shall indicate the device in trouble/alarm or any supervisory device. Display the device name, address [and actual building location]. A building floor plan shall be provided mounted (behind plexiglass or similar protective material) at the annunciator location. The floor plan shall indicate all rooms by name and number including the locations of stairs and elevators. The floor plan shall show all devices and their programmed address to facilitate their physical location from the LCD display information.”

LED Inc also offers a full line of framed Graphic Maps. We screen your supplied artwork and floor layout in white ink on black acrylic plexiglass. We also offer color options for your graphic map. All units come in a brushed aluminum frame, with vandal resistant hidden mounting hardware. To learn more about our graphic maps click here.

Text Displays and UFGS 28-31-76 by USACE

The specifications for Text Displays are less stringent than the annunciator specifications. It reads as follows, “LED text displays (textural visible appliances) for hearing impaired occupants. The textual displays shall be programmable and shall display the same content of the voice message being played. The signs shall be able to provide a minimum of 100 mm/4 inch high letters and be located in high traffic areas easily seen by building occupants. The system shall interface with the programmable sign controller to activate the proper message.”

Our mass notification systems are all controlled by a programmable sign controller. The controllers can be configured up to 32 messages with the use of a laptop and software. Light Engineered Displays has a line of signs capable of displaying 4″ high lettering. They are the 4000UL-24V signs. These signs have been very popular with our customers that are already participating in government bids! Please click the link to find out more.

Conclusion

I hope that this information helps make the tough process of government bidding a bit easier and explains some of the government’s demands of the commercial fire alarm industry. If you have any other questions about our products or if we have products that fit your specification please contact us.