Description
Design, analyze, and ensure compliance of fire and life-safety features in buildings, facilities, and products by applying fire dynamics, engineering principles, and codes. Develop and evaluate detection, alarm, suppression, smoke control, and egress strategies; perform risk assessments; lead investigations and inspections; and guide organizations in meeting NFPA, IBC/IFC, and related standards.
- • Investigate fires, explosions, alarm activations, and system failures to determine causes and preventive actions.
- • Conduct research and testing on fire performance of materials, assemblies, and products.
- • Evaluate building, process, and product designs for ignition resistance, smoke development, and overall fire safety.
- • Conduct or coordinate training on fire prevention, evacuation, hot work, and use of extinguishers and fire systems.
- • Maintain and apply current knowledge of NFPA, IBC/IFC, FM Global, OSHA, and local fire codes and standards.
- • Recommend strategies for fire detection, suppression, compartmentation, hazardous material controls, and ignition source management.
- • Report and present findings from fire risk assessments, life-safety reviews, and acceptance testing.
- • Evaluate fire and life-safety risks arising from material selection, process changes, or equipment misuse.
- • Assess adequacy of corrective actions for fire code violations, deficiencies, and impairments.
- • Interpret fire codes, standards, and performance-based criteria for project teams, owners, and authorities having jurisdiction.
- • Coordinate with fire departments, insurers, and authorities to support pre-incident planning and emergency response.
- • Perform computational fire modeling, smoke control analysis, and egress/time-to-tenability assessments.
- • Compile, analyze, and interpret data from incidents, impairments, inspections, and system tests to drive improvements.
- • Draft and update fire safety policies, permit procedures, and code equivalency or variance justifications.
- • Collaborate with health and environmental professionals to assess smoke and toxic exposure risks and mitigation.
- • Design fire protection systems and features, including sprinklers, standpipes, alarms/detection, clean agents, foam, and smoke control.
- • Assess structural fire resistance, fireproofing, and passive protection for load-bearing performance under fire exposure.
- • Inspect buildings, fire barriers, egress components, water supplies, and fire protection equipment for hazards and compliance.
- • Oversee installation, hydraulic calculations, and acceptance of fire protection and alarm systems, including fire pump and water supply evaluations.
- • Review architectural, mechanical, and electrical plans and specifications to verify fire protection and egress requirements are met.
- • Develop fire safety labeling, hazard communications, and system operation and impairment instructions.
- • Interview occupants and staff to document fire incidents, near misses, and emergency response performance.
- • Provide expert testimony on origin and cause, code compliance, and system performance.
- • Review and audit facility fire prevention, hot work, and impairment management programs.
- • Conduct or oversee testing, inspection, and commissioning of alarms, sprinklers, standpipes, clean-agent systems, smoke control, and fire pumps.
- • Provide technical guidance on hazardous materials storage, special hazards, and fire-safe design solutions.
- • Contribute to the development or revision of fire protection standards, guidelines, and specifications.
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Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
