How to Build a Fire Pre-Plan

Information Usually Included on a Fire Pre-Plan

• Site plan with aerial photos of the site
• Building floor plan
• Property classification: residential, commercial, etc.
• Access codes for any gates and doors
• Access points, including stairwells and roof access
• Number of stories
• Utility shutoffs (gas, water, electric)
• Hazardous materials and their location
• Fire department connections, like hydrants and other water supply information
• Defensible space around the building, including turnaround capability
• Location of both fire alarm systems and fire protection systems

Start with a Fire Pre-Plan Template

Open SmartDraw and start with our Fire Pre-Plan template. From the Dashboard, click New Document, open the Police & Fire category, and choose Fire Pre-Plan.

This template has all the tools you need to create a building outline, mark exits and access points, and add emergency information.

Draw Walls to Create a Building Outline

Start by creating an outline of your building. Select the Add Wall tool in the upper left part of the SmartPanel to the left of your drawing area. Click once in your work area to begin drawing a wall segment, drag your mouse, and then click again to complete your wall segment. You can continue adding more walls to create a closed outline. A circle will appear at the end of a wall to help you connect it to close the outline. Click Esc to exit wall drawing mode.

Adjust Your Outline

You can easily change the length of any wall in your outline by simply typing in the desired length in the dimension label. You can also use your mouse to adjust a wall, either vertically or horizontally, using the grow handles located along the wall.

Add Wall Openings

You can quickly add a standard wall opening using the Add Wall Opening button on the SmartPanel. Click the button and place the opening anywhere along your wall. You'll see an anchor symbol and black dot to indicate where the opening will be created. SmartDraw will also show you the distance from the corners to the wall opening for more accurate placement.

Add Doors and Windows

Add doors and windows by dragging and dropping them from the symbol library docked to the left of your drawing area. When you see your cursor change to an anchor, you'll know your door or window will attach to the wall. SmartDraw automatically rotates your door or window to align with the selected wall. You will not have to adjust it manually.

Once attached, you can still slide the door or window around on the wall it is attached to until it's positioned where you want. The guides that show the distance to the nearest corner or opening will help you position things accurately.

If you need to rotate the direction a door opens, select it and choose Flip in the Home tab.

Add Stairwells and Elevators

It's essential to include stairs in your plan, as they serve as a key access point for emergency responders. You can find symbols for stairs in the Fire & Emergency Planning library docked to the left of your drawing area. Drag and drop stairs (and elevators) to your plan.

Match the Scale of Your Imported Image

To help you scale the imported image, we'll want to match the guide line drawn in SmartDraw with an object known dimensions from the imported file. So before we can resize the image, pick an object that you know the dimensions of to use as a reference. This might be a map scale line, a label on a blueprint, a corridor length, a room size, etc.

Once you pick your referenced object on the imported visual, draw a line in SmartDraw that matches the length of that specific segment.

Next, resize the imported image using its handles so that the feature in that image lines up exactly with your guide line. In other words, stretch or shrink the image until the known-length object in the image matches your draw reference line. Once they align, the image is properly scaled to your drawing.

Label Exits and Access Routes

Using a text label or an Emergency Exit symbol contained in the Fire & Emergency Planning library, clearly mark the primary exits the building's occupants will be using in the case of an emergency.

Mark access routes and access points like to the roof as needed. For example, you can drag and drop a roof access point symbol from Fire & Emergency Planning library.

Mark Emergency Equipment

Drag and drop symbols for:

1. Fire extinguishes
2. Fire alarms/pull stations
3. Fire hose cabinets or sprinklers

Place them at their exact physical locations in the building.

Identify Utility Shutoffs

Use clear icons to mark gas, water, and electrical shutoffs. You can drag and drop standard utility symbols from the Fire & Emergency Planning library. These should be highly visible on the plan for first responders. Add text labels for clarity or provide a legend.

We also recommend using colors to help distinguish the various utilities. For example, color the symbol for gas green, yellow for electric, and blue for water.

Show Hazards and Risks

Mark hazardous materials storage (chemicals, flammable liquids, etc.) by dragging and dropping symbols for them. You'll also want to indicate potential risks such as fuel tanks, electrical equipment, or high-voltage areas.

Create a Plan for Each Floor

You'll need to include a separate plan for each floor of any multi-story building to mark the locations of emergency equipment and the exact locations of any floor-specific risks and hazardous materials. To make this easier, you can select all using Ctrl + A and then copy (Ctrl + C) paste (Ctrl + V) the outline for one floor to create the starting point for other floors in your drawing area. Make sure everything you need is on a single layer first. When working with multiple floors, add labels to clearly identify each floor. To keep plans for different floors on separate pages, simply add a new page by clicking the plus sign at the top of your canvas.

Add a Legend

Add a legend to make your symbols and color-coding easy to understand. You can drag and drop a Legend from the Fire & Emergency Planning library and then modify it to fit your plan.

The Legend is built using a table in SmartDraw, so you can use the commands under the Table tab or the right-click menu to delete or add a row as needed.

Annotate Your Plan with Building Information

You can use an annotation layer to include the building name, address, and the date of the last update.

Simply click the Add Annotation Layer button in the SmartPanel to the left of your drawing area and fill it with the relevant information.

Review & Share

You can collaborate on your plan with your team, outside consultants, or even your local fire department. SmartDraw makes it easy to share your document using the Share command in the upper-right corner of your work area.

You can edit your plan in real-time or have others leave feedback and notes.

Once you've completed your plan, you can use the Export feature under the Home tab to add it to Microsoft Office or create a PDF or image for printing.