GBC News – Page 2 – GBC Safety Glow

Posted on June 5, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC — 1 Comment

Path Marking – Section 4604.23 Requirements

In some areas, path marking for existing buildings is required. To know if this is required for structures near you, the requirements for such path markings are stated in the IFC; Section 4604.23 Egress Path Markings.

Minimum compliance requirements:
Existing buildings of Groups A, B, E, I, M and R-l having occupied floors located more than 75 feet (22,860 mm) above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access shall be provided with luminous egress path markings in accordance with IBC; Section 1024 Luminous Egress Path Markings.

Posted on June 2, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

GBC Partners with Sky Zone Trampoline Parks

After a recent conference in Chicago, GBC Safety Glow has partnered with Sky Zone Trampoline Parks to provide quality UV-Reactive products throughout Sky Zone franchises nationwide.

“Trampoline parks are everywhere nowdays. Kids love trampoline parks, especially Glow Nights when the lights are off and everything glows. With decreased visibility, parks need to set up appropriate safety precautions,” says GBC owner, Jason Doran. “Many parks utilize the tape method, but this is old technology that provides a short solution to an ongoing problem.”

The method of using tape is inefficient because after only a small amount of wear, it will start to peel off, unstick, and tear. You will find yourself constantly replacing your tape markings. Instead, GBC offers high quality solutions that are built with durability and longevity in mind to withstand the high traffic of trampoline parks. Solutions include perimeter markings, obstacle markings, hand rail markings, and stair treads.

Thank you to Alex and the corporate Sky Zone team for inviting GBC Safety Glow to participate in the conference and choosing us for your glow needs. We look forward to future business together!

Click here for Product Information

Posted on June 2, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Safety Solutions: Trampoline Park

The growing popularity of trampoline parks as a recreational hobby has grown immensely. It seems that everywhere you look there is a trampoline park. A new fad at trampoline parks is Glow Nights – the lights are turned off and kids experience the fun of the trampoline park in a UV/Blacklit environment.

Trampoline parks need durable, reliable UV-stable and photo-luminescent lighting to accommodate and provide safety and fun for jumpers.

Many franchises turn to orange tape rollers to provide illumination of obstacles, perimeters, stairs, and handrails. The issue with tape is that after a little bit of wear, it will start to peel off, unstick, and tear.

GBC Safety Glow offers a wide range of products for every UV and photo-luminescent need of trampoline parks nationwide. Learn More Here.

Posted on June 2, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Safety Solutions: Churches

GBC Safety Glow’s Photo-Luminescent products work in many buildings and businesses including churches. After hearing from a safety director at a Mega Church, GBC identified a major issue across the nation’s churches. Many churches lower and dim their lights during service or song and this leads to safe paths of travel becoming invisible. Numerous people trip every year over chair legs, steps, bags, cords, because of this issue.

An easy solution to this is GBC Safety Glow’s Bull Nose Stair Treads to illuminate steps and Perimeter Demarcation Lines to illuminate perimeters and obstacles. Churches are finding these solutions very practical to incorporate into their rooms.

Posted on June 1, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Attn: Architects

GBC Safety Glow is happy to assist architects with technical work regarding emergency egress system components. We understand how frustrating it can be when Emergency Egress Components are required for a building and you have questions on how to get started. We are glad to have you as part of our GBC Safety Glow team and are happy to answer questions and assist in any way that we can. If you have questions, need product information, or help designing a system, give us a call at 920-462-4242 or Contact Us. GBC Safety Glow is your information center for IBC/IFC 2009, 2012, and 2015 specifications and code compliance for UL 1994 emergency evacuation systems.

Posted on June 1, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Safety Solutions: Offshore Oil Rigs

The petrochemical industry has specific challenges it faces in regards to safety, especially in offshore oil rig platforms. GBC Safety Glow, a global leader in providing photo-luminescent safety solutions for demanding environments, continues to develop unique safety systems and products for the petrochemical industry.

Safety on offshore oil rig/ drilling platforms is no accident! Worker safety starts with 100% fail proof photo-luminescent oil rig safety solutions from GBC Safety Glow. In the event of power failure on the offshore oil rig, self illuminating products provide guidance, illuminate obstacles, delineate egress, and light the path to safety. The uses for these high quality photo-luminescent products on an offshore oil rig are limitless.

Our most popular solution created for offshore oil rigs is the illumination for helicopter landing pads. Helicopter landing pads on an offshore oil rig can be extremely treacherous, especially in less than ideal situations. Even the most skilled pilot needs to see obstacles such as drill towers and cranes. With GBC Safety Glow’s Photo-Luminescent Coating, landing pads are illuminated in the dark of night making landing safer and easier.

Posted on May 31, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

UL 1994 Certification

GBC Safety Glow is proud to offer Emergency Egress System Components that meet all IBC/IFC 2009, 2012, 2015 requirements and are also Standards for Luminous Egress Path Marking Systems per UL Listing.

Learn More about the UL 1994 Standard for Luminous Egress Path Marking Systems

Since the conception of photo-luminescent materials for life safety systems, there have been many “CHEAP” variations of glow materials produced and sold. Obviously price drives everything, but you don’t want to risk your life with “The Cheap stuff.” Most people don’t realize that the World Trade Center towers had photo-luminescent materials. The problem was the materials made at that time were junk! This was a lesson learned the hard way. After the reports of 9/11 were completed, a large number of recommendations came to add photo-luminescent materials, but also to improve the quality by adding stringent testing requirements (UL 1994) to help insure public safety in high rise facilities.

The main objective was to mandate a uniform photo-luminescent emergency evacuation system that would be reliable and consistent. The key components of the emergency egress system were outlined in the International Building Code (IBC) and the International Fire Code (IFC) and the building code was changed in 2009. Only this time the code changes implemented a very specific testing standard through Underwriters Laboratories. The standard is known as UL 1994. The term “tested to UL 1994” is a common tactic used by foreign manufacturers. Only “listed” UL 1994 products make the cut.

WHEN CHOOSING A SYSTEM FOR YOUR FACILITY:
1. What is the warranty on materials & installation?
– Our warranty is 10 years
2. What type of materials are used?
– GBC uses only the highest quality materials to create their products
3. How will the products be fastened.
– GBC uses tested and proven secured methods of fastening
4. Ask for a copy of the UL 1994 listing for each product being installed. GBC’s UL Listings
5. Make sure the company isn’t buying and reselling you foreign made products.
– ALL GBC PRODUCTS ARE MADE IN USA
6. Make sure the installation is guaranteed to pass the fire department code inspection.
– We guarantee your safety egress system will pass fire code

Posted on May 24, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Attn: General Contractors

If you’re on this page it’s likely because you know that over the past several years, new international building and fire codes have implemented new laws for Means of egress, specifically photo-luminescent egress path markings. GBC Safety Glow follows all new fire code regulations and this is proven by all of their Emergency Egress Components being IBC/IFC 2009, 2012, 2015 certified. All of GBC Safety Glow’s Egress Components are also UL 1994 Listed.

Since 2009 many states and local municipalities have required Photo-luminescent egress systems (Glow-in-the-Dark) technology in Public High Rise buildings throughout the U.S. Furthermore schools, hospitals and hotels also fall under these code requirements. Based on current code standards there are only 7 required products found here: Emergency Egress Components

When it comes to product choices there are a few things you need to know. IBC and IFC both have the same product requirements and they both specify compliance standards. When you are dealing with code compliance, following the code means working with a company who knows the codes and understands what products are correct and how they must be installed.

Often times a General Contractor hands the scope of PL egress over to a painting contractor who was told to “take care of this PL egress system”. Well, I have said this before and it may just save you a lot of time and money. You cannot give a scope for a Life Safety System to a subcontractor who is not Certified to Source or Install a Life Safety System. It’s like asking your flooring contractor to install the Fire Suppression system – you wouldn’t do that! And the photo-luminescent egress path markings system is no different. Trust a professional to give you the information you need to know and the installation you need to be code compliant. Trust GBC Safety Glow and Contact Us for more information.

Posted on May 24, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

IBC/IFC 2009, 2012, 2015 Code Compliance

[cs_content][cs_section parallax=”false” separator_top_type=”none” separator_top_height=”50px” separator_top_angle_point=”50″ separator_bottom_type=”none” separator_bottom_height=”50px” separator_bottom_angle_point=”50″ style=”margin: 0px;padding: 45px 0px;”][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]IBC/IFC 2009 introduced the technology of photo-luminescence to the high rise building. Since IBC/IFC 2009 the 2012 editions and the new 2015 editions of the codes have kept the pace with the changing building designs. The Latest editions which are now available for state and local adoptions are the 2015 codes. The 2015 versions prove that a good emergency safety system is necessary when it comes to evacuating a high rise building.[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”2/3″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]International Building Code 2015 (IBC2015) is the new construction standards for the modern building. The emergency egress system has been added to the IBC 2015 because it has proven to be a time tested safety feature for evacuating high rise public facilities in an emergency. New construction buildings following IBC 2009,2012 or 2015 editions are required to outfit exit enclosures with non electrical emergency evacuation systems. Incapable of failure, these systems are sure to guide you safely to and exit. For more information on IBC Code: IBC Overview
[/cs_text][/cs_column][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/3″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”https://gbcsafetyglow.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/3000S15_IBC_md.jpeg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”2/3″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]International Fire Code 2015 (IFC2015) is the new fire safety standard for existing and new construction facilities. The incorporation of photo-luminescent emergency evacuation systems in the 2015 edition of the IFC proves the value these systems have and importance of having them incorporated into every public high rise building. Jurisdictions all over the U.S are beginning to adopt these codes. GBC Safety Glow has the knowledge and experience to help. Retroactive requirements for PL egress systems can be implemented with the proper consulting and experience of the a team that puts safety first. By partnering with local jurisdictions we provide technical knowledge and training to facilitate the implementation of PL systems the right way! Facilities working with local govt and AHJ’s is key to bringing our current public facilities up to date with modern safety equipment. For more information on IFC Code: IFC Overview[/cs_text][/cs_column][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/3″ style=”padding: 0px;”][x_image type=”none” src=”https://gbcsafetyglow.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/3400S15_IFC_md-223.jpeg” alt=”” link=”false” href=”#” title=”” target=”” info=”none” info_place=”top” info_trigger=”hover” info_content=””][/cs_column][/cs_row][cs_row inner_container=”true” marginless_columns=”false” style=”margin: 0px auto;padding: 0px;”][cs_column fade=”false” fade_animation=”in” fade_animation_offset=”45px” fade_duration=”750″ type=”1/1″ style=”padding: 0px;”][cs_text]Download IBC/IFC 2009, 2012, 2015 PL Egress Specifications: PL Egress Specifications[/cs_text][/cs_column][/cs_row][/cs_section][/cs_content]

Posted on May 23, 2017April 9, 2018 by Emily GBC

Glow Flakes – Flooring is boring but not with Glow Flakes

GBC Safety Glow has developed self-luminous Glow Flakes that offer a glowing twist to the typical flakes found in resinous flooring systems. These flakes blend in during the day but POP at night or when the lights go out by glowing in the dark!

Our Polymer Glow Flakes have been used in a wide array of decorative flooring systems and we just had to share how awesome they are!

Resinous floor systems are essentially liquids that cure to form a monolithic surface over a substrate such as concrete. Over the years people have referred to these systems primarily as epoxy floors, although most of these floor systems no longer use epoxies. Epoxies have their place in the flooring industry as well, but the advancement of polyureas and polyurethanes have really exploded in the market. Nearly all resinous flooring systems incorporate some type of media (flakes) as a broadcast layer within the system. This incorporation of media (flakes) adds colorful decoration, stability, impact resistance, slip resistance and overall durability of the system. And if you’re going to add flakes anyways, it just makes sense to add glow! Our primary objective in introducing Glow Flakes is the safety aspect, however, our flakes are used in every floor system from night clubs to garage floors because they look great in any flooring! Glow Flakes come in traditional Green Glow and also GBC’s exclusive Blue Glow.

The uses for these self-illuminating flakes are virtually endless. GBC Glow Flakes are produced in 3 different levels of luminancy to effectively light your walkway, path, garage floor, warehouse, commercial or industrial facility or public space. One primarily use for Glow Flakes is egress pathways in commercial and industrial facilities. GBC Glow Flakes are 1/8”- 1/2” flakes which is consistent with size and weight of traditional colored flakes.

When a resinous floor system is part of the project, add GBC Safety Glow polymer glow flakes to the system and light up the night! For more details on GBC Polymer Glow flakes and ordering information, give us a call or send an email! Who knew flooring could be fun!