Rivers Casino Garage 868 parking spaces were no longer enough to fulfill the needs of Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, one of Illinois’ premier gambling facilities. As a result, Rivers Casino required a parking garage addition. USA Fire Protection provided the fire and life safety solution. The parking garage is now a five-story cast-in-place structure, with the outside concrete matching the aesthetic of the casino’s exterior. This addition features 716 parking spots, bringing the total to over 1,500 parking spots covering over 450,000 square feet. In addition, our team at USAFP was responsible ..read more

Make eye protection a part of your 2020 vision! Workplace eye injuries send 20,000 people to the emergency room each year, with an estimated 90% that could have been avoided. The American Academy of Ophthalmology names July, National Eye Injury Prevention Month. Prevention is the most important step in avoiding an eye injury; and wearing safety glasses is the easiest and most effective way to do so. Safety is a top priority for the USAFP Team, keeping that in mind USAFP requires safety glasses to be worn on all job sites and in our warehouse (along with face masks, currently recommended by the ..read more

Preventing Fatigue Fatigue is the condition of being physically or mentally tired. In extreme cases, fatigue can lead to an uncontrolled and involuntary shutdown of the brain. Fatigue is often a major contributing factor in workplace incidents and injuries. If you are experiencing fatigue or chronic fatigue, this increases the likelihood of injury for both you and your coworkers. It is especially dangerous to operate machinery, such as the forklift, when you are fatigued. This brings danger to your entire workplace.  The negative effects of fatigue aren’t often discussed, as fatigue is d ..read more

717 South Clark Street, Chicago: The Imprint Apartments This 31- story apartment building located in Chicago’s booming south loop is one of Chicago’s newest luxury living communities. Built on the foundation of a historic printing house, these apartments mix modern architecture with rustic designs. This 264,295 sq. ft. facility, named from its roots, The Imprint Apartments, consists of 349 apartments. USA Fire Protection provided the fire and life safety systems for this building. This project was a combination of a new high rise and an existing renovation to the printing house foundation.&nb ..read more

Be Present, Be Focused, Be Safe Construction Safety week is dedicated to teaching employees to prioritize physical and psychological safety while on and off the job. Each year it is important to refocus and re-energize safety efforts and remind ourselves how to stay safe. Usually, what comes to mind about safety in the construction industry are PPE, equipment inspections, and the policies and protocols to prevent on-site injuries. Although all those things are important, there is a lot more to it. Whether it be from the workplace or home, mental distractions can interfere with focus and aware ..read more

E-commerce and Spec Warehouses: New Construction Trends The ease of doing business via e-commerce has shaped the way we do our shopping (and our selling)! This has led to a record-breaking demand for warehousing and distribution centers. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. consumers spent an estimated $861.12 billion online in 2020, which is a 44% increase from 2019. Warehouses store inventory for retailers and distributers. Retailers such as Amazon and Walmart have warehouses greater than 250,000 square feet each. But warehouses can vary in size from 50,000 square feet to 2 mil ..read more

Fire Sprinkler Inspection, Testing, and Maintenance Schedules USAFP inspects, tests, and maintains in accordance to the latest versions of NFPA. This includes fires sprinkler systems, standpipes, fire pumps and more. Our highly trained professionals will make sure your systems stay up to date while exceeding all expectations. Check out the chart below to see what maintenance your sprinkler systems are due for. For a PDF version of the above graphic to print or download, click here. USAFP can help you be prepared with our fire and life safety systems. If you would like to install a new system o ..read more

Municipalities’ fire codes are changing. Is yours one of them? USAFP can help you stay up to date. Many municipalities across Illinois have updated or adopted a new fire code. More than 100 municipalities across Northeast Illinois require fire sprinklers in residential homes, with a few new additions this year. How does a fire protection district differ from a governing city or village? When a fire protection district adopts a new code, the code only applies to the portions of the district that are not already governed by the village or city limits that it serves. In many cases, this encompass ..read more

Environmental Benefits of Fire Sprinklers Clean water is essential for everyone. In addition to keeping us healthy, water provides job creation and economic/social/human development. Fire sprinklers can help combat the global water crisis and provide public safety in the process. In an experimental study performed by the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC), researchers sought to quantify the environmental impact of automatic fire sprinklers. Two identical living rooms were built and set ablaze by firefighters. They were then left alone for approximately ten minutes. One living room was exting ..read more

Ladder Safety A good foundation for a proper ladder setup will help prevent slips and falls. Place the base on a firm, solid surface. Avoid slippery, wet, or soft surfaces. If you must put the ladder on a soft surface, place a board under the ladder’s feet to provide a firm footing. Make sure the top of the ladder has firm support as well.  Never lean a ladder against a windowpane or other unstable surface. If you’re using a straight or extension ladder, the angle of the ladder is the next critical safety factor. A straight or extension ladder should be placed 1 foot away from the surface ..read more