A “Timber Revolution” Could Heat Up The Fire Sprinkler Market - Embrace It With Winters' PFE Series Of Sprinkler Gauges

As construction of large, timber framed buildings continues to grow, a lesser-known but significant opportunity is emerging for the fire sprinkler industry, driven by insurance practices.

In recent years, improvements in building techniques and timber engineering have positioned wood as a competitive construction material to concrete and steel in large buildings. The recent use of laminates in timber production have also promised an acceptable level of fire resistance. This “Timber Revolution” has now made it possible to build wood-framed buildings taller and larger than ever before.  

Spurred by a demand for sustainability and changing building codes, the market for multi-story wood-framed buildings is expected to grow to nearly $1 billion in the United States and Canada by 2033.

However, insurers have been slow to adapt. Buildings constructed with new timber engineering technologies are still underwritten the same as any other traditional wood-framed build, resulting in higher insurance premiums compared to buildings constructed with steel, concrete or masonry.

To address this, developers of large, multi-story timber buildings are being urged to “build beyond code requirements for fire suppression.”  

In the fire sprinkler market, this means clear opportunities for growth through the voluntary installation of sprinklers, even if a timber-framed building isn’t tall enough to be required to do so by local building codes.  

As the demand for fire suppression systems in all building types continues to grow, the Winters PFE Sprinkler Gauge has you covered. Known for its proven reliability in the toughest of environments. The PFE has a 3.5" dial and comes in ranges of 0/80/retard/250 psi (single or dual scale) for air or 0/300 psi (single or dual scale) for either water or air/water service.

The PFE is FM approved, UL/cUL listed, CRN registered and comes with Winters' five-year warranty. These sprinkler gauges are installed in fire sprinkler systems in pressure ranges of psi, psi/kPa and others.

Whether your construction project involves concrete, steel, masonry or timber, the PFE Sprinkler Gauge has your fire suppression instrumentation needs covered. For more information, please contact your local Winters representative near you.