Campbell Code Consulting has extensive experience in the Washington, DC market. We have worked on projects across the District, in Arlington and Fairfax counties in Northern Virginia, and in Montgomery and Prince George's counties in suburban Maryland, working directly with the DC Department of Buildings (DOB) and with numerous AHJs across the DMV region. 
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We provide comprehensive fire protection and life safety code consulting and fire protection engineering design services for DC-area projects of all types and scales. 

Our Experience in the DC Market

Campbell Code Consulting has delivered fire and life safety code consulting and fire protection engineering services on numerous DC-area projects. These include Reunion Square Building 4 (a 230,000 SF office building in DC), 1900 M St NW Revitalization (complex multi-building code strategy in DC), the Homer Building (atrium smoke control assessment in DC), the American University Center for Athletic Performance (a 46,000 SF expansion in DC), and multiple large-scale multifamily and senior living projects across Northern Virginia. 

The DC Code Environment

Washington, DC enforces its own Building Code, administered by the DC Department of Buildings (DOB). The DC Construction Codes are based on the 2015 International Building Code with extensive DC-specific amendments. DC also enforces the DC Fire Code, based on the International Fire Code with DC amendments, administered through the DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department. 

DC's code environment has several distinctive characteristics. The District has unique allowances for at-risk openings near property lines that provide opportunities for creative design approaches on narrow or infill lots. DC's plan review process involves coordination between DOB and DC Fire, and the review timeline for complex commercial projects can be extended. Early engagement and well-organized submittals are essential. 

For projects in Northern Virginia, the applicable code is the Virginia Construction Code (VCC), based on the 2021 IBC. ​

How We Can Help

• Plan Reviews: we review your design documents and flag building and fire code issues before you submit for permit, saving time and reducing costly late-stage design changes. 
  

• Code Reports: we provide project-specific code reports summarizing all applicable requirements, so your team has a single, organized reference rather than having to hunt through hundreds of pages. 
  

• On-Call Consulting: questions come up throughout design. We are available for calls, emails, and meetings to answer code questions as they arise. 
  

• Engineering Judgments: for conditions not directly addressed by a UL-listed assembly or where code interpretation is needed, we provide formal engineering judgments to satisfy AHJ requirements. 
  

• Code Modifications / Alternate Means & Methods: when your design does not fit neatly into prescriptive code requirements, we help prepare and submit code modification requests to the local AHJ. 
  

• Fire Protection Design: our licensed fire protection engineers design fire sprinkler systems, standpipe systems, and fire alarm systems for your projects, all completed in Revit for full BIM coordination. 
  

• Performance-Based Design: egress modeling, smoke control system sizing, fire modeling, and stair pressurization analysis under IBC Section 909 and related provisions. 
  

• Accessibility Code Consulting: compliance reviews for ADA, FHA, and ICC A117.1 accessibility requirements applicable to your project. ​
  

The DC Construction Market

Washington, DC's construction market is one of the most active and diverse in the country. Major office, multifamily residential, mixed-use, and adaptive reuse projects continue across the District. The NoMa, Capitol Riverfront, and Southwest Waterfront neighborhoods have been particularly active in recent years. Healthcare construction at MedStar, George Washington University Hospital, and other systems is ongoing. The federal government, major universities, and nonprofit institutions contribute a steady stream of institutional projects. ​

Have a DC-area project? Let's connect. This is a market we know well.

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