NRC Canadian Fire Code

The National Fire Code of Canada 2015 (NFC), published by NRC and developed by the Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes, sets out the technical provisions regulating activities related to the construction, use or demolition of buildings and facilities, the condition of specific elements of buildings and facilities, and the design or construction of specific elements of facilities related to certain hazards as well as the protection measures for the current or intended use of buildings.

There are 77 technical changes in the NFC. The most significant changes relate the construction of six-storey buildings using combustible construction. As a result, eight additional protection measures have been added to address fire hazards during construction when fire protection features are not yet in place.

Following mid-rise combustible construction, the second most significant change in the NFC 2015 is the introduction of the classification system used by Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) to define dangerous goods. These changes reflect harmonization of the dangerous goods classification system with the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) recently adopted in Canada.

The NFC 2015 has been re-organized to consolidate relevant information. Each Part now contains the Prescriptive Requirements, followed by the Attribution Table and related (appendix) Notes.

The NFC 2015 complements the National Building Code of Canada 2015. Both must be considered when constructing, renovating or maintaining buildings.