FIRE RESISTANCE DESIGN MANUAL

This Manual is a convenient and useful specification aid for anyone concerned with the design, construction, or inspection of fire resistive and sound control systems. Design information is quickly and easily determined. Comparison of these characteristics allows the user to be more accurate in meeting design and code requirements. The data provided are especially useful to builders, architects, code officials, fire service, and insurance personnel. When differences occur between provisions of this Manual and the appropriate building code or regulation, including provisions of other standards referenced in the code or regulation, the most stringent provision shall apply. The systems in this Manual utilize gypsum products to provide fire resistance to walls, partitions, floorceilings, roof-ceilings, columns, beams, girders, and trusses. Systems are classified according to their typical uses and their fire-resistance ratings. Walls, partitions, and floor-ceiling systems are further classified by Sound Transmission Class (STC) or Field Sound Transmission Class (FSTC). The Impact Insulation Class (IIC) is included for many wood framed floor-ceiling systems. WHERE THE WORD "PROPRIETARY" APPEARS IN SYSTEM DESCRIPTIONS EITHER THE SYSTEM OR ONE OR MORE OF ITS COMPONENTS IS CONSIDERED PROPRIETARY. EACH PROPRIETARY SYSTEM SHALL BE BUILT UTILIZING THE COMPONENTS SPECIFIED BY THE COMPANY OR COMPANIES LISTED UNDER THE DETAILED DESCRIPTION FOR THAT SYSTEM. ALL OTHER SYSTEMS ARE GENERIC. GENERIC SYSTEMS ARE APPLICABLE TO THE PRODUCTS OF ANY MANUFACTURER, WHETHER A MEMBER OF THE GYPSUM ASSOCIATION OR NOT, PROVIDED THE PRODUCTS MEET THE APPROPRIATE STANDARDS LISTED IN SECTION I AND, WHEN APPLICABLE, THE REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN SECTION II. To maintain industry-wide quality assurance standards for gypsum board defined in this Manual as "type X," the Gypsum Association requires that all companies listing proprietary tests or systems, or relying on the generic systems in this manual, shall subscribe to an on-going third-party, in-plant product inspection and labeling service. Additionally, each member company makes annual written certification to the Gypsum Association that its products manufactured for use in systems listed in this Manual continue to be inspected and labeled by an independent third-party testing service as listed on page 10. Fire-resistance ratings, STCs, FSTCs, and IICs are the results of tests conducted on systems composed of specific materials put togeth