Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

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FPE Corner

Back to Basics: Water Supplies

Public, private or combined water sources require careful evaluation and maintenance to meet the flow, pressure and quality demands of a fire sprinkler system.

November 3, 2025

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

A reliable water supply is the lifeblood of every fire sprinkler system—learn how to ensure yours is ready when it matters most.

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FPE Corner

Hanging and Bracing

What’s the big deal? NFPA 200 will harmonize requirements across various systems, addressing gravity and seismic loads.

May 1, 2025

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

A dedicated standard for the hanging and bracing of fire suppression systems is in development. Learn why NFPA 200 was created, how it builds on existing codes, and what it means for the future of seismic protection and structural coordination.

FPE Corner

Small Change, Big Impact

Open discussions can manage project costs and produce the best product for the clients.

August 5, 2024

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

Changes are unavoidable in the built environment, even during the construction phase. Communication is critical between fire protection designers and life safety system installers.

Feature

Earthquake Protection Updates with New Codes

A look at NFPA 13 and ASCE/SEI 7, how they affect each other and how they can be cohesively applied in the 2024 building codes.

July 1, 2023

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

Creating our building codes includes much research and documents from subject matter experts across the building industries. It is important to learn how these different standards affect each other. Read on to discover how the new earthquake protection codes can impact water-based fire protection systems.

FPE Corner

Seismic Requirements on the Move

Following an earthquake event, fire protection systems must work with the expected reactions of the building to stay operational.

July 4, 2022

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

While many natural disasters — hurricanes, floods and forest fires — do not directly harm a building’s fire protection systems unless the building falls, earthquakes are different.

FPE Corner

Choosing the right sprinkler

Exploring the variables that go into selecting fire sprinkler systems.

November 4, 2019

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

Fire sprinklers have been around since the 1800s, with Henry Parmalee often credited with developing the first modern sprinkler to protect his piano factory in Connecticut. Much

FPE Corner

Ethics and Engineering

Consider and evaluate your current projects to bring focus to the ethical boundaries and good practices employed each day.

October 7, 2019

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

Engineers and specifically those who work with fire protection regularly work to achieve public health, safety and welfare in their projects.

FPE Corner

Humans and Their Behavior

Examining and understanding human behavior in fire events in order to apply appropriate protection.

September 3, 2019

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

In many engineering roles, the job is to make something easier, simpler, faster or safer for people. When looking specifically at fire protection, public health, safety and welfare is readily at the forefront of thoughts.

FPE Corner

What’s in the Soup?

Use your knowledge, expertise and experiences to maintain and improve the documents you use every day.

August 6, 2019

Victoria B. Valentine, P.E.

Many organizations facilitate the production of codes, standards and guides, such as ASCE, ASHRAE, ASME, ASPE, CEN, FM, ISO, NFPA, SFPE and UL. Which documents are needed on any project will vary with the task at hand and the specific scenario.