Commercial Fire Protection Contractors in Texas

The State Fire Marshal’s Office, part of the Texas Department of Insurance. Fire sprinkler companies, fire alarm and detection companies, and fire extinguisher and fixed-system companies (including kitchen hood suppression) must hold a certificate of registration, and the people who plan, install and certify the work hold individual licenses. Ask each bidder for the firm’s registration number and check it with the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Usually. New walls, rooms and ceilings change where sprinkler heads and alarm devices such as strobes and smoke detectors have to go, so most buildouts include relocating or adding them. A change of use — office to restaurant, or adding rack storage to a warehouse — can require a new sprinkler design. Your designer and the local fire marshal decide what applies; ask bidders to price the fire protection scope explicitly rather than excluding it.

In Texas, pre-engineered kitchen hood suppression systems are installed, certified and serviced by companies and individuals licensed by the State Fire Marshal’s Office. The hood and exhaust are usually the mechanical contractor’s work, so make sure each restaurant bid says who provides the suppression system and its acceptance test.

Sprinkler systems are inspected, tested and maintained under NFPA 25 and fire alarm systems under NFPA 72, as adopted through Texas and local fire codes. Both standards call for many components to be inspected or tested at least annually, with some items checked more often. The inspecting company must be registered with the State Fire Marshal’s Office for that type of system.

If the job is fire protection only — a sprinkler upgrade, an alarm panel replacement, inspection deficiencies — hire the registered fire protection company directly. If it is part of a buildout, the general contractor usually carries the sprinkler and alarm firms as subcontractors; ask the GC to name them and provide their State Fire Marshal registration numbers.