Start from the code analysis and the rated wall and floor plans, then check that every rated element has an assembly listed in the wall types and that every opening, penetration, duct, and joint through it is protected in the door schedule, the details, and the MEP drawings. AI can flag conflicts; the architect and the building official decide compliance.
What does IBC Chapter 7 cover?
Chapter 7 of the 2024 IBC, Fire and Smoke Protection Features, governs the materials, systems, and assemblies used for structural fire resistance and for fire-resistance-rated separation of spaces, to limit the spread of fire and smoke within a building and between buildings. Its sections run from fire-resistance ratings and tests (703) and structural members (704) through exterior walls (705), fire walls (706), fire barriers (707), fire partitions (708), smoke barriers (709), smoke partitions (710), floor and roof assemblies (711), vertical openings (712), shaft enclosures (713), penetrations (714), joints and voids (715), opening protectives (716), and ducts and air transfer openings (717).
Chapter 7, Fire and Smoke Protection Features, on ICC Digital Codes is part of the 2024 IBC. ICC’s store lists the 2027 IBC as a pre-order due in mid-October, and the 2027 edition was not yet on Digital Codes. Both checked October 6, 2026. Section numbers and titles below are from the 2024 edition; they can move between editions, and states and cities adopt a specific edition with amendments. Record the edition the jurisdiction enforces before citing a section.
This guide follows one chapter. The IBC guide covers the code analysis as a whole, and state codes built on the IBC, such as the California Building Code, may renumber or amend the chapter.
Which elements need a rating, and for how long, usually comes from other chapters: occupancy separations, construction type, and egress. Chapter 7 then says how the rated element and its openings are built and protected.
Gather the rated plans and everything that passes through them
Collect the code analysis, the rated wall and floor plans (often on the life safety sheets), the wall and floor assembly types with their listings, building sections, the door and window schedules with ratings, the hardware sets, the firestopping and joint details, the mechanical drawings with fire and smoke damper locations, the plumbing and electrical penetrations, and the firestopping, door, and damper specification sections.
Rated lines are often drawn on one sheet and not repeated on the plans the trades use. Upload both so a door or damper can be traced to the wall it sits in.
Follow each rated element and its openings
| Review question | Sources to compare | Decision to record |
|---|---|---|
| Rated element and its basis | Code analysis, life safety plans, rated wall plans | Confirm each rated wall, floor, and shaft shown has a stated purpose and rating, and the plans agree. |
| Assembly description | Wall and floor types, listings, sections | Match every rated element to an assembly type that carries the rating shown. |
| Doors and glazing | Rated wall plans, door and window schedules, hardware sets | Find openings in rated walls scheduled without a rating or with the wrong one. |
| Ducts and air transfer | Mechanical plans, damper schedule, rated wall plans | Check that ducts crossing rated elements show the dampers the design calls for. |
| Penetrations and joints | Plumbing and electrical plans, firestopping details, specifications | Identify penetrations and joints in rated elements with no detail or system named. |
| Continuity | Sections, rated wall plans, ceiling plans | Confirm rated walls are drawn to the floor, roof, or rated ceiling they must reach. |
Firestopping systems follow the firestopping specifications guide, fire doors the NFPA 80 guide, smoke door assemblies the NFPA 105 guide, and fire walls the NFPA 221 guide. Common plan check comments are collected in rated openings, penetrations, and firestopping corrections.
Example: unrated doors in a rated separation
Published finding. In Groundbook’s published waterfront hotel review, checked against four uploaded 2025 California code volumes, sleeping-unit entry doors that open into an interior lobby were marked unrated in the door schedule, while the surrounding separation called for protected openings.
Door schedule and separation requirements disagree: sleeping-unit entry doors opening into the interior lobby are scheduled as unrated, while the surrounding separation calls for protected openings.
The architect confirms the separation, the required opening protection, and any exception, then reconciles the door schedule, wall information, and details. Door procurement waits until they agree.
Review rated assemblies with Groundbook
Upload the current drawings and specifications to Groundbook, and state the edition, amendments, and review scope in your instructions. Add the IBC Chapter 7 edition the project uses from a copy you are licensed to use, where the license permits uploading it, and the jurisdiction’s published amendments. See how Groundbook works with local and licensed codes.
Compare the rated wall and floor plans and code analysis with the wall and floor types, sections, door and window schedules, hardware sets, mechanical damper locations, plumbing and electrical penetrations, and firestopping details. Flag rated elements without a matching assembly, openings scheduled without the required protection, ducts crossing rated elements without dampers, and penetrations with no firestopping detail. Use the supplied IBC edition and local amendments and cite both sources.
Groundbook links each potential finding to the plan, schedule, or detail involved and to the code section you uploaded.
Document review does not assign fire-resistance ratings, calculate fire resistance, or replace the architect, the fire protection engineer, or the building official.