§ 271 — Requirements for buildings erected before October first, nineteen hundred and thirteen

§ 271. Requirements for buildings erected before October first,\nnineteen hundred and thirteen. No factory shall be conducted in a\nbuilding erected before October first, nineteen hundred thirteen, and\nnot occupied or used as a factory building on July first, nineteen\nhundred forty-eight, unless such building shall conform to the\nrequirements of section two hundred seventy. No factory shall be\nconducted in a building erected before October first, nineteen hundred\nthirteen and occupied or used as a factory building on July first,\nnineteen hundred forty-eight, unless such building shall conform to the\nfollowing requirements:\n 1. Required exits. a. On each floor used as a factory there shall be\nat least two exits remote from each other, except that a single exit may\nbe accepted by the commissioner from a floor or other area, of one\nthousand square feet or less, so long as no person is regularly employed\non such floor or other area. One such exit on each floor shall be either\na grade exit, an interior stairway enclosed as hereinafter provided or\nramp similarly enclosed, or an exterior fireproof enclosed stairway. The\nother shall be: either such a grade exit, stairway or ramp; or a\nhorizontal exit; or an exterior screened stairway; or outside\nfire-escapes on a building six stories or less in height, except such\nfire-escapes shall not be accepted as a required exit in such buildings\nor particular classes thereof where the board finds that they will not\nin its opinion furnish adequate and safe means of escape for occupants\nin case of fire. Unenclosed exterior stairways or ramps extending up to\ngrade may be substituted for enclosed stairways from a floor area below\nthe ground floor.\n b. No point on any floor above or below the ground floor shall be more\nthan one hundred feet distant from the entrance to one such exit at that\nfloor nor more than one hundred and fifty feet distant from such exit if\nthe building has an automatic sprinkler system conforming to section two\nhundred and eighty and the rules of the board. No point in any ground\nfloor area shall be more than two hundred feet distant from an exit from\nthat floor and in a sprinklered building more than two hundred and fifty\nfeet distant from such exit.\n c. If safe egress may be had from the roof to an adjacent structure\nevery stairway serving as a required exit in a building exceeding two\nstories in height shall be extended to the roof. All such stairways\nshall extend to the first story and lead to the street or to an\nunobstructed passageway leading to a street or road or to an open area\naffording safe passage to a street or road.\n 2. Stairway enclosures. All interior stairways serving as required\nexits and the landings, platforms and passageways connected therewith\nshall be enclosed on all sides by partitions of fire-resisting material\nextending continuously from the basement to the roof. Where the stairway\ncontinues to the top floor such partitions shall extend to three feet\nabove the roof or to the roof if it is fireproof. All such partitions\nand doors provided for openings therein shall be constructed in\naccordance with rules adopted by the board.\n 3. Doors. Where five or more persons are employed on any floor of a\nfactory building all doors on such floor leading to or opening on any\nexit shall open outwardly or be double swinging doors. All exit doors in\nthe first story, including the doors of the vestibule, shall open\noutwardly.\n