EXAMPLES OF USE GROUPS
(see IBC Chapter 3 for additional information)
Use Group A (Assembly)
A-1: Motion picture theaters, symphony and concert halls, television and radio studios admitting an audience, theaters
A-2: Banquet halls, nightclubs, restaurants, taverns and bars
A-3: Amusement arcades, art galleries, bowling alleys, community halls, courtrooms, dance halls (not including food or drink consumption), exhibition
halls, funeral parlors, gymnasiums (without spectator seating), indoor swimming pools (without spectator seating), indoor tennis courts (without spectator
seating), lecture halls, libraries, museums, places of religious worship, pool and billiard parlors, waiting areas in transportation terminals
A-4: Arenas, skating rinks, swimming pools, tennis courts
A-5: Amusement park structures, bleachers, grandstands, stadiums
Use Group B (Business)
B: Ambulatory health care facilities, animals hospitals, kennels and pounds, banks, barber and beauty shops, car wash, civic administration, clinic –
outpatient, dry cleaning and laundries: pick-up and delivery stations and self-service, educational occupancies for students above the 12
th
grade,
laboratories: testing and research, motor vehicle showrooms, post offices, print shops, professional services (architects, attorneys, dentists, physicians,
engineers, etc.), radio and television stations, telephone exchanges, training and skill development not within a school or academic program
Use Group E (Educational)
E: Building or structures, or portions thereof, used by six or more persons at any one time for educational purposes through the 12
th
grade.
Use Group F (Factory)
F-1: Fabrication or manufacture of aircraft, appliances, athletic equipment
F-2: Fabrication or manufacture of noncombustible materials which during finishing, packing or processing do not involve a significant fire hazard and
include, but are not limited to beverages up to and including 16-percent alcohol content, ceramic products, glass products, ice, metal products (fabrication
and assembly)
Use Group H (High Hazard)
H-1, H-2, H-3, H-4: Buildings or structures, or portions thereof, involved in the manufacturing, processing, generation or storage of materials that
constitute a physical or health hazard, to include, but not limited to, flammable and combustible liquids, gasses and solids, compressed or liquefied gasses,
fireworks and explosives, corrosives, toxic materials, reactive materials, in quantities exceeding those permitted in control areas complying with the IBC.
H-5: Semiconductor fabrication facilities and comparable research and development areas
Use Group I (Institutional)
I-1: Alcohol and drug centers, assisted living facilities, convalescent facilities, group homes, halfway houses, residential board and care facilities
I-2: Child care facilities, detoxification facilities, hospitals, mental hospitals, nursing homes
I-3: Correctional centers, detention centers, jails, prerelease centers, prisons, reformatories
I-4: Day care facilities occupied by persons of any age who receive custodial care for less than 24 hours by individuals other than parents or guardians,
relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, and in a place other than the home of the person cared for.
Use Group M (Mercantile)
M: Department stores, drug stores, markets, motor fuel-dispensing facilities, retail or wholesale stores, sales rooms
Use Group R (Residential)
R-1: Boarding houses, hotels, motels
R-2: Apartment houses, boarding houses (nontransient), convents, dormitories, fraternities and sororities, live/work units
R-3: Buildings that do not contain more than two dwelling units, adult or child care facilities that provide accommodations for five or fewer persons of any
age for less than 24 hours, congregate living facilities with 16 or fewer persons
R-4: Buildings used as a residential care/assisted living facilities including more than five but not more than 16 occupants, excluding staff.
Use Group S (Storage)
S-1: Buildings or structures, or portions thereof, used for the storage of material types not included in S-2, such as aerosols, bags, bamboo and rattan,
baskets, books, boots and shoes, cardboard and cardboard boxes, clothing, furniture, grains, leather, linoleum, lumber, motor vehicle repair garages, tires,
upholstery and mattresses
S-2: Buildings or structures, or portions thereof, used for the storage of noncombustible materials including, but not limited to beverages up to and
including 16-percent alcohol in metal, glass or ceramic containers, cement in bags, electrical motors, empty cans, food products, fresh fruit and vegetables
in nonplastic containers, frozen foods, glass, gypsum board, metal materials and objects, parking garages, porcelain and pottery, washers, dryers, stoves
Use Group U
U: Agriculture buildings, barns, carports, fences more than 6’ high, greenhouses, private garages, retaining walls, sheds, stables, tanks, towers
Examples of Construction Types
(see IBC Chapter 6 for additional information)
IA & IB: Building elements are of noncombustible materials.
IIA & IIB: Building elements are of noncombustible materials
IIIA & IIIB: Exterior walls are of noncombustible materials and interior building elements are of any material permitted by the IBC
IV: Exterior walls are of noncombustible materials and the interior building elements are of solid or laminated wood without concealed spaces
VA & VB: Structural elements, exterior walls and interior walls are of any material permitted by the IBC
NOTE: Building elements, such as the primary structural frame and bearing walls, in Type A designated construction have a higher fire-resistance rating
than is required for the building elements of Type B designated construction.
