Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
(OP)
I'm working on a building where surgery will be performed on deceased individuals to recover organs for donation. There will not be living patients in this building. The donated organs will be transported to other facilities for surgery on the living patient.
What are your thoughts on Occupancy Category for this structure (IBC 2006)? Yes, surgery facilities fall into Cat. IV, but I'm sure that was considering the patients were living. Everything else about this buildings leads me to Cat. II.
What are your thoughts on Occupancy Category for this structure (IBC 2006)? Yes, surgery facilities fall into Cat. IV, but I'm sure that was considering the patients were living. Everything else about this buildings leads me to Cat. II.






RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
Mike Lambert
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
For example if the organs are to be placed somewhere in a freezer for study by grad students, I would not use category 4.
However, if the organs need to be ready at all times for accident victims that need an immediate transplant, I would use category 4. (Think organs packed on ice in a cooler an transported via helicopter to a hospital 100 miles away for a car accident victim. Maybe I have seen one too many of these type of medical programs on TV.....just a thought for an absolute worst case scenario).
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
Even if the need for organs isn't super urgent, the value of those organs may cause your client to think along Cat4 lines. If hours/days of down time leads to some valuable hearts, lungs, and kidneys becoming unusable, there will be associated costs.
Similar to MotorCity, I think that this ought to be a client decision.
I like to debate structural engineering theory -- a lot. If I challenge you on something, know that I'm doing so because I respect your opinion enough to either change it or adopt it.
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
The structural aspect is one thing but the MEP concern is probably more important. Depending on many things, Category IV might get you into a higher SDC, which could require seismic bracing for non structural components.
You could probably get some insight from the architect or MEP engineers to see if they are treating it like an "essential facility" (generators, UPS, ATS, etc). Ultimately, the owner should be made aware of your decision.
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
Cat. IV would move me from SDC C to D. The MEP engineer is actually the one that has questioned the architect and me on this.
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
So power, water, air conditioning (can't leave the windows open to the surgery room when the power goes out, disposals, sterilizers and heated water, plumbing really do need to be ready for service ATFER the nearby area has been clobbered by an earthquake, bomb, tornado, hurricane, train wreck + explosion, etc.
RE: Occupancy Category for Organ Recovery Building
I think the right approach is as you said: talk to the owner. If they don't know already, explain what each category is and what it means for the structure. If they leave it up to you, I'd choose Category IV.