UFSA Stations
Unified Fire Service Area (UFSA) is very proud of our stations. The most important thing for our organization is to be able to respond to an emergency. In the case of an earthquake or disaster, UFSA needs buildings that will survive and allow our crews to be able to respond to those in need.
UFSA has been constructing new buildings expected to last for at least 70 years plus. Knowing that the buildings will be used as fire stations for this long helps us to be committed to lowering our energy consumption and costs. We have been utilizing materials and features that will require less maintenance and repairs due to the materials and products. We are using long lasting fire resistant materials wherever possible.
UFSA is following practices that would enable us to obtain LEEDS (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification, but not spending the large amounts of money and time that it costs for the certification process. We are building exterior structures of locally sourced brick, stone, cement, fiberboard, steel roofing, fascia, soffits, high quality steel doors, and aluminum clad wood windows. This helps us reduce maintenance and be long lasting. New UFSA stations have reinforced block and steel studded walls. We use a closed-cell, spray-applied, rigid polyurethane foam system in the walls that helps to build a tight building envelope, reduces outside noise, and helps prevent most dust, pollen and other outdoor pollutants from infiltrating the buildings; along with having an R-40 insulation rating in the 6” steel cavity stud.
UFSA is investing in high SEER (Seasonal Energy and Efficiency Ratio) rating and high efficiency air condensers and furnaces, for long-term energy savings. Breathing air compressors for our firefighter’s air packs are fully plumbed in with fresh air. We include items, such as a multi-stage air filtration system to provide a safe and healthy workplace that cleans the air beyond the requirements of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). These items keep us in compliance with all National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) standards also.
We have been including training rooms of various sizes to be utilized by Unified Fire Authority (UFA) and also other agencies or community groups.
The cost to build each station depends upon the location, availability of utilities, project scope, specific components used, and current market conditions.