EN 12845 Annex Q — Periodic System Inspection

Once a year, an independent competent person reviews the entire system from end to end. This is not an output of the service contract; it is the record the insurer and the regulator hold you to. How quickly the deviation list gets closed is the real mirror of system reliability.

A logistics warehouse had its first genuine periodic inspection in its seventh year. The maintenance contractor visited every month and the paperwork was spotless. The independent inspector produced 19 deviations in four hours: the racking had been raised by 0.5 m and exceeded the protected storage height, aisle widths had changed, 22 heads had been fitted as K80 where the design called for K115, and the pump room was exceeding its temperature threshold. None of these would have been caught in a monthly routine — Annex Q exists to fill exactly that gap.

Periodic inspection

Frequency and independence

The sprinkler system is inspected at least once a year by a competent person. That definition is critical: they must be independent of the installing contractor and of the maintenance team. In practice that means an insurer's representative, an accredited engineering firm or an authorised third-party body.

Scope

The inspection follows the Annex Q check list, covering every functional part of the system: water supply, pump set, control valve set, risers, sprinkler heads, alarm system and documentation. Each item is marked compliant, non-compliant or annotated.

The Annex Q check list

General system documentation

• Is the block plan sign present and current?
• Are the design documents — hydraulic calculation, drawings — up to date?
• Is the logbook complete (weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual reports)?
• Have the deviations from the previous inspection been closed?

Facility and hazard class

• Is the building occupancy the same as at design?
• Has the stored commodity type or height changed?
• Is the hazard class (LH, OH1–4, HHP1–4, HHS1–4) still valid?
• Has an extension created an area outside sprinkler coverage?

Water supply

• Tank level, water quality, sediment condition
• Town main inlet pressure recorded through the year
• Test results for any alternative supply
• Does supply capacity still meet the design requirement?

Pump set

• Pump flow test results, from the annual test and repeated at this inspection
• Diesel engine condition, fuel level, battery voltage
• Automatic start scenarios — pressure and sensing line
• Pump room environment: temperature and ventilation

Control valve set and alarms

• Stop valve locked in the open position
• Alarm valve automatic test result
• Water motor gong sound, where fitted
• Fire service and central monitoring connections

Pipework and sprinklers

• Corrosion and evidence of leaks
• Pipe supports sound, spacing correct
• Sprinkler heads clean, correct temperature rating and correct K-factor
• Any newly added obstructions
• Spare sprinklers and the wrench present

Frost protection and special areas

• Dry system or glycol condition in freeze-prone areas
• Cold store and external rack area solutions
• Additional checks for high ceilings and atria

Structure of the deviation list

The standard format for each finding:

Field	Description
No	Sequence number
Location	Building, floor, zone — e.g. "B2 / Zone 3 / Aisle 12"
Finding	What was observed — e.g. "K80 sprinkler where the design calls for K115"
Standard reference	The clause number
Priority	Critical / High / Medium / Low
Corrective action	What will be done
Responsible	Who will do it
Target date	When it closes
Status	Open / Closed / Overdue

Critical findings — a failed pump test, an exhausted water supply, a main stop valve found closed — take the system out of the "fully compliant" category. The insurer must be notified immediately.

Triggers for re-assessing system capacity

Annex Q makes a "capacity must be re-assessed" note mandatory in any of the following:

• An increase in hazard class, for example OH2 to HHS3
• Storage height more than 0.5 m above the design figure
• Building extension or re-compartmentation
• A significant change of contents — pallet type, packaging material, product
• A reduction in water supply performance — falling main pressure, a pump curve deviation
• Structural changes — beams, ceiling profile, a new atrium

The re-assessment is carried out by an independent designer, producing a new hydraulic calculation and, where needed, recommendations for adding or changing sprinklers, upgrading the water supply, or limiting the hazard.

Field error — a capacity re-assessment note ignored

At a textile warehouse, a 2023 inspection recorded: "Racking raised to 7.2 m against a design of 6.0 m HHS2. System capacity must be re-assessed." It was never closed. In 2025 a small fire started; the system activated but could not extinguish the lower tiers. The claim was reduced by 40 % because it was treated as an identified and unclosed deviation. That single line made a seven-figure difference.

Logbook and documentation

EN 12845 requires every report to be retained for the life of the system:

• Weekly (user), monthly, quarterly, half-yearly and annual service reports
• The annual periodic (Annex Q) report, signed by the independent competent person
• Three-yearly and ten-yearly tank and valve reports
• Commissioning and modification documents
• Hydraulic calculations and as-built drawings

Keep the logbook in both physical and digital form. It is the first document requested after a fire.

Comparison with NFPA 25

NFPA 25 offers a comparable check list under its annual and five-yearly headings, but does not itself require an independent competent person — a qualified contractor may carry it out. Annex Q is stricter on that point: independence is mandatory. Conversely, NFPA 25 is more comprehensive on documentation detail, with more standardised inspection, testing and maintenance report formats. Applied together, the reports can be consolidated into a common template.

Link to Turkish regulation

BYKHY requires periodic inspection of building services and equipment — heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lifts, fire suppression, fire detection — by an authorised engineer, and refers sprinklers to Annex Q. In Turkey the "competent person" is usually interpreted as a chamber-certified engineer, and insurers may additionally require FM, VdS, UL or CFPA Europe certification. A building inspection report without an Annex Q reference is incomplete.

Quick check list — preparing for Annex Q

• The competent person's independence verified (no link to the maintenance contractor).
• Logbook contains all monthly, quarterly and annual reports.
• Previous deviation list reviewed, unclosed items flagged.
• Hazard class and storage height available with current measurements.
• Hydraulic calculation and as-built drawings accessible.
• Latest annual pump test report ready.
• Status of the three-yearly tank inspection and ten-yearly tank clean.
• Block plan sign and spare sprinkler cabinet photographed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who may carry out the periodic inspection?

A competent person independent of both the installing contractor and the maintenance team — typically an insurer's representative, an accredited engineering firm or an authorised third-party body.

What triggers a capacity re-assessment?

An increase in hazard class, storage height more than 0.5 m above design, building extension, a significant change of contents, reduced water supply performance, or structural changes.

What happens if a deviation is not closed?

It becomes an identified and unaddressed defect. In a subsequent loss, insurers routinely reduce settlement on exactly that basis — a single unclosed line can be very expensive.

How does this differ from NFPA 25?

NFPA 25 allows a qualified contractor to perform the annual inspection; Annex Q requires independence. NFPA is more prescriptive on documentation format.

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