GA Revises Code Referenced Fire and Sound Manual, Application and Finishing Guidance Document

Every three years, in alignment with the building code cycle, the Gypsum Association issues new editions of the association’s three code-referenced publications: GA-600 Fire Resistance and Sound Control Design Manual, GA-216 Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products, and GA-253 Application of Gypsum Sheathing. The work of revising these important publications is undertaken by the association’s technical staff and members of the Building Code and Technical Committee, which is comprised of representatives from the GA’s member companies.

GA-600-2024 and GA-216-2024 are available for purchase in the GA bookstore. A free download publication, GA-253-2024, which describes the minimum requirements for application of gypsum sheathing for use as a substrate, as well as appropriate methods of handling and storage, is expected to be released by September of this year.

The Fire Resistance and Sound Control Design Manual provides fire and sound ratings for various types of partitions, floor-ceiling and roof-ceiling systems, shaft walls, exterior walls, area separation fire walls, horizontal membrane systems, and column, beam, girder, and truss protection systems. These ratings, based on tests conducted in accordance with strict ASTM or UL standards provide design and construction teams with options for meeting the fire and sound protection requirements of the International Building Code and the National Fire Codes. Because the IBC and the NFC refer to GA-600 as a source of code-compliant designs, code jurisdictions in the U.S. rely on GA-600 as a source document for fire-resistance and sound-control-rated designs.

Fire Design Manual

Long considered a well-organized and easy to use fire design reference manual, GA-600 contains a number of tables designed to lead the user quickly to fire and sound control systems that meet specific project requirements. More than 65 new systems are featured in GA-600-2024 and the total number of detailed assemblies for fire and sound now number in excess of 800. The value this manual brings to design, construction and building code professionals does not end there: General Explanatory Notes for both fire and sound provide guidance on allowable substitutions or alterations in specific situations. Want to know if the substitution or addition of fasteners will affect fire or sound performance? The answers are in the General Explanatory Notes to fire and acoustical performance of systems.

The 2015, 2018, and 2021 releases of the manual brought numerous changes to the book. An electronic version was made available for the first time in 2015 partly in response to the manuals burgeoning size and the proliferation of tablets in the field. Eventually, that bespoke digital product was replaced by a simple PDF download, which remains the case with GA-600-2024. Since 2015, additional improvements to GA-600 include better system details, General Explanatory Notes for the acoustical performance of systems, retesting of generic systems for sound control, as well as testing exterior walls to provide Outdoor Indoor Transmission Class rating for the first time. A response to the growing importance of acoustic performance in the building codes, the addition of OITC ratings provided performance information related to lower frequency noise such as construction noises, car horns and loud car radios, etc. These are unwanted sounds beyond an individual’s control that studies show have a deleterious effect on health by raising blood pressure and preventing sleep, among other impacts.

“Drywall Hanger’s Bible”

While GA-600 Fire Resistance and Sound Control Design Manual is the Association’s flagship publication, GA-216 Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products is colloquially known as the “Drywall Hanger’s Bible.” GA-216 provides virtually everything you need to know about hanging interior gypsum panels of every type and under a wide variety of circumstances commonly encountered in the field. Where other GA publications provide greater detail or clarity on the issue, GA-216 directs readers to those largely free publications. For example, when addressing control joints in acoustical and fire-rated systems, Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products references both GA-600 and GA-234 Control Joints for Fire-Resistance Rated Systems, a free download in the Association’s online bookstore.

What GA-216 cannot provide is the experience necessary to become skilled in the drywall trade. Nonetheless, if proper procedures are adhered to, less experienced drywall hangers can avoid learning things the hard way. In fact, many who contact the GA Technical Services Center are seasoned contractors who know, for example, that control joints are necessary for walls exceeding 30 feet in unbroken length and are seeking support for their position against an architect or owner concerned about cost or aesthetics.

I have long maintained that an overlooked aspect of GA-216, and other GA-produced standards for that matter, is the alignment of expectations among design and construction team members. After all, design and construction is a business in which various and competing interests are associated with every project, and minimizing risk can mean passing it on to someone else. Given this situation and the fact that GA-216 is a standard, code-referenced document, familiarity with the specification and adherence to its recommendations can make everyone’s life a little more predictable while satisfying the contractor, designer, and owner.

For the first time in nearly a decade, the 2024 releases of these GA code-referenced publications will not include significant changes to the format, graphics, Explanatory Notes, or delivery system. The hardcopy remains an option. The Fire Resistance and Sound Control Design Manual is available as a thick paperback tome or a PDF download you can access right away. Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products also is available in PDF or hardcopy. After the work of the last 10 years—and it is 10 years given that the new documents enter development 18 months in advance of publication—these publications seem to have hit a sweet spot in content and presentation.

Other Mediums

While innovations on the publishing side may have reached a temporary pause, the GA’s work communicating about our suite of technical publications has accelerated. Each year, new additions to the association’s YouTube channel explain how to better use and understand these documents. Visual enhancements can be extremely helpful. This is certainly the case with the video supplement to GA-620 Gypsum Area Separation Firewalls, which uses animation to show how these walls are constructed. This popular video has been viewed 13,826 times since it first appeared in 2021. When it comes to GA-600, explanatory video guides on how to use the manual, covering everything from reading a system description to understanding General Explanatory Notes, proved popular and helpful. The success of the initial video guide to GA-600 has resulted in the spinoff video series “GA-600 Explained and “GA-216 Explained.” The GA’s first Spanish language installment of “GA-216 Explained” was recently released and more are in the pipeline.

The GA’s code-referenced publications will steadily evolve in response to changes in building code provisions and technological innovation in materials, communications, and construction practices. Whatever surprises the future holds, the Gypsum Association and its member companies remain committed to increasing the knowledge and the solutions available to the A/E/C community.