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Building Safety Month News |
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| Emphasizing the need for safe and sustainable structures where we live, work and play |
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| President Proclaims May as National Building Safety Month Proclamation recognizes importance of dedicated professionals who keep buildings secure and help maintain a resilient, energy-efficient infrastructure. President Barack Obama has proclaimed May 2014 as National Building Safety Month, declaring it a "time to celebrate the dedicated professionals who keep our buildings secure, and we recommit to maintaining resilient, energy-efficient infrastructure." The president also says in the proclamation, "Joining with building officials, design professionals, scientists, and engineers, we continually develop new guidance and tools for increasing disaster-resistance and meeting building standards. ...From our homes to our high-rises, our museums to our malls, let us work to keep structures sound and up to code." "We are very proud and honored that Building Safety Month has once again been recognized by the president," said International Code Council Board President Stephen D. Jones, CBO. "Recognizing building officials and design professionals for their commitment to public safety raises the profile of building safety professionals everywhere and helps us realize our goal of creating safe, sustainable, resilient and more affordable communities." "Addressing resiliency in the built environment and urging all Americans to learn more about how they can contribute to building safety at home and in their communities is what Building Safety Month is all about," said ICC Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims, CBO. "We thank all the ICC Members who hold public safety events during Building Safety Month and recognize the generosity of our sponsors who make building safety a priority." Continue reading story |
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| "Code Officials: Keeping Fire in Its Place" Is the Theme for Building Safety Month Week 1 Code compliance, working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are key to saving lives. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fire sprinklers, and passive fire-rated construction such as fire walls and fire doors designed to stop the spread of fire save lives and protect property. Those and other safety measures in fire and building codes published by the International Code Council (ICC) and widely used in the built environment throughout the United States provide minimum safeguards for fire prevention and protection. Whether a home or building is constructed of wood, brick, concrete or steel, code compliance is the key to minimizing the damage from fires and saving lives. Since 1980, Building Safety Month has been an annual public safety awareness campaign. The theme for week one of Building Safety Month 2014, May 6–12, sponsored by the American Wood Council (AWC), is "Code Officials: Keeping Fire in its Place." "Code officials, along with the fire service, architects, engineers, builders and the public, help to develop construction safety codes and standards," said ICC Board President Stephen D. Jones, CBO. "During Building Safety Month, and throughout the year, many Code Council members schedule community outreach events and school-based programs across the nation to demonstrate the importance of building to code. We honor them for their commitment to public safety." |
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| The overall safety and sustainability of buildings through the adoption of model building codes and promotion of code enforcement are celebrated this month during Building Safety Month. Banners are on display outside all International Code Council offices during Building safety Month, including this one at the Washington, D.C., Governmental Affairs Office near the U.S. Capitol. |
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| Town of Hempstead, Long Island, New York, Proclaims May as Building Safety Month In an effort to recognize the International Code Council's dedication to building safety, Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray is proclaiming May as Building Safety Month. "The International Code Council works diligently to ensure the most widely adopted building safety, energy and fire codes in the nation are used by most U.S. cities, counties and states," Murray said. "Indeed it is fitting that the Town of Hempstead proclaims May as Building Safety Month to remind the public about the critical role of our communities" largely unknown guardians of public safety - our local code officials who assure us of safe, efficient and livable buildings." The theme for Building Safety Month 2014 is "Building Safety: Maximizing Resilience, Minimizing Risks," and encourages all Americans to raise awareness of the importance of building safe and resilient construction, fire prevention, disaster mitigation, backyard safety, energy efficiency and new technologies in the construction industry. Building Safety Month 2014, sponsored by the Code Council, also encourages appropriate steps everyone can take to ensure that the places where we live, learn, work, worship and play are safe and sustainable, and recognizes that countless lives have been saved due to the implementation of safety codes of local and state agencies. "In observance of Building Safety Month, I ask all residents to consider projects to improve building safety and sustainability at home and in the community, and to acknowledge the essential service provided to all of us by our local and state building departments, fire prevention bureaus and federal agencies in protecting precious lives and properties," concluded Murray. |
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| Wheeling, Ill., Plans for Building Safety Month The village of Wheeling, Ill., released the following information on Building Safety Month: "When building safety and fire prevention experts inspect buildings and review construction plans to ensure code compliance, they help to ensure the places where you live, learn, work, worship, and play are safe." "When you enter a house or building, most likely you're not thinking about whether it is properly constructed and safe. Fortunately, your local safety experts think about building safety and fire prevention every day. To help raise awareness of building safety, the Village of Wheeling's Community Development and Fire Prevention Bureau are celebrating Building Safety Month during May this year." |
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| Virginia Code Officials Recognize Building Safety Month with Musical Tribute In recognition of Building Safety Month, the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, with the support and participation from the Virginia Code Officials Chapters, created a musical tribute to "Silent Heroes." We hope you enjoy the video and share it with others to spread the word about Building Safety Month. |
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| FEMA Supports Building Safety Month This May, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is supporting the 34th Annual Building Safety Month (BSM) to promote the importance of high building standards, protecting the environment, and saving energy. Building Safety Month is a public awareness campaign founded by the International Code Council that focuses on public outreach and education to increase the overall safety and sustainability of buildings through the adoption of model building codes and promotion of code enforcement. An array of theme-related community events, safety demonstrations, and educational outreach activities take place during BSM. The overarching theme of BSM is Building Safety: Maximizing Resilience, Minimizing Risks. This theme is supported by weekly building safety sub-themes: May 5–11 | Code Officials: Keeping Fire in Its Place May 12–18 | Code Officials: Helping Homeowners Weather the Storm May 19–25 | Code Officials: Surround Your Building with Safety May 26–31 | Code Officials: Building A Brighter, More Efficient Tomorrow For the fourth consecutive year, President Obama has proclaimed May as National Building Safety Month to underscore that safe building codes and standards have an essential role in decreasing the effects of disasters. As is articulated in Presidential Policy Directive/ PPD-8, National Preparedness, as well as PPD-21, Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, building safety, fire prevention, and energy codes and standards help achieve disaster resilience for our Nation. Our Nation's building safety, fire prevention, and energy codes and standards play a critical role in maintaining and ensuring the safety of our buildings and enable our Nation to better prepare, respond, recover, and mitigate from all hazards. Strong building safety, fire prevention, and energy codes and standards also puts the Nation in a better position to deal with future challenges, such as climate change. FEMA supports ICC's BSM as it strives to help communities reduce the impacts of natural disasters by promoting the importance of high building standards, protecting the environment, and saving energy. |
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Building Safety Month Campaign Materials Available Building Safety Month is this month and ICC is offering educational and informational resources to help increase awareness of the public about building safety. Promotional materials include a sample proclamation, template news release, kids activity sheets and stickers, posters and brochures. Printed campaign materials are available for purchase through the ICC Store and many items are available as free, downloadable tools on the ICC website. |
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| Promote Building Safety Month in Your Community Building Safety Month depends on the efforts of individuals like you. The Code Council provides several resources to assist you in promoting Building Safety Month in your community. These resources include strategies on how to set up a Building Safety Month event, a fill-in news release, a sample proclamation, and more. Many resources are available for free download. Consider these tips to Promote Building Safety Month in your community: • Promote BSM through your Chapter activities. • Set up an information booth at city hall or a local hardware store. • Visit a school and give a presentation about building safety. • Post local information on your website. • Send a news release to newspapers, and radio and television stations. Be sure to also invite your local media to any scheduled events you plan during the month and post on your social media websites. |
| The Code Council thanks the Building Safety Month Presenting Level Sponsors, including the American Gas Association, Laborers International Union of North America, American Wood Council and Portland Cement Association; and Major Level Sponsors, including the National Association of Home Builders, National Multifamily Housing Council, and Simpson Strong-Tie. For a list of all Building Safety Month sponsors, click here. |
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