Those in the residential building industry have seen the recent trend requiring homes be protected with fire sprinklers. Many residential contractors are finding requirements for fire sprinklers in homes for the first time. We believe this trend is going to continue until it is required for all new homes.  This will be new in our industry will ultimately require some accommodation.   Like seat belts and air bag requirements in automobiles, the governments  intrusion into private industry isn’t always met with enthusiasm.  However it is possible to learn and profit from history.  Consider the most recent product, airbags, you’ll see an interesting pattern.  The auto industry fought implementation of the requirements for years.  Ultimately they were required and today you find them in all vehicles.  Sometime between the first suggestion and today, a bright person in the auto industry realized that if the safety features of the air bags were explained, and the benefits sold to consumers, they would become an added value.  A reason to buy their car over someone else’s car.  If you’ve been around for a while and purchased a car from a dealer, you’re familiar with the “safe vehicle” sales pitch.  “We have passenger side (or side impact) air bags, XXX car doesn’t.”  So today you see auto manufacturers trying to outdo each other with more and better air bags.    We believe this analogy will be replicated almost exactly in the home fire sprinkler industry.  It remains to be seen which home builders/realtors will be first in western Washington to start selling fire sprinklers as a real asset and a reason to purchase a specific home.  We’ve talked to several large realtors in western Washington and they say fire sprinklers are a benefit to the homeowner and they can and would sell them, but sprinklers are never offered as an option.  We believe the first builders to do so will profit the most.  (See our section on “Why Fire Sprinklers”)   Blue Water Fire Sprinklers is committed to being the best in residential fire sprinkler design and installation. We specialize in all aspects of residential fire protection from being experts in residential codes and residential system components, to providing specialized knowledge and information to our contractor clients and their homeowners. This is our business and our industry, and our efforts will not be diluted by any other non-residential business. We provide educational materials (literature, DVD’s) to our general contractors and their homeowners. The materials cover: - Why Fire Sprinklers, - Myths of Fire Sprinklers, - Costs to install fire sprinklers both in new construction and retrofits, - How to maintain a fire sprinkler system, - What to expect during installation and as a homeowner, - How sprinkler systems work, etc.