TELECO Urges Building Owners to Prioritize Annual DAS Field Testing as Emergency Communication Code Enforcement Tightens in 2026

“DAS Field Testing by TELECO”

GREENVILLE, S.C., September 10, 2026 — A distributed antenna system that passed inspection at installation is not guaranteed to pass inspection next year. That distinction is catching more building owners off guard as authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) across the Southeast increase enforcement of annual DAS field testing requirements tied to NFPA 1225 and IFC Section 510. TELECO, Inc., a business technology company serving clients since 1981, is highlighting the issue as more property owners discover that a one-time installation does not satisfy an ongoing code obligation.

Why a System That Worked at Installation Can Fail Later

Public safety distributed antenna systems, often called ERCES or ERRCS, are engineered to deliver reliable in-building radio coverage for firefighters and other first responders. Under current code, that typically means 99 percent signal coverage in critical areas such as stairwells, fire command centers, and equipment rooms, and 90 to 95 percent coverage throughout general building areas.

What many property owners do not realize is that this performance can degrade over time without any visible sign of a problem. Building renovations, added furniture and inventory, new tenant buildouts, and even routine equipment changes in mechanical rooms can all quietly shift a building’s signal profile. A system that met code requirements at occupancy can drift out of compliance within a few years, and the only way to know is through testing.

Annual Testing Is a Code Requirement, Not a Recommendation

“Owners sometimes treat DAS the way they treat a fire extinguisher: install it once, check the box, and move on,” said a TELECO spokesperson familiar with the company’s public safety DAS practice. “But this system is closer to a fire alarm panel that has to prove it still works, year after year, under the exact conditions of your building today, not the conditions it was designed for originally.”

Most jurisdictions that require public safety DAS also require annual recertification testing to confirm the system continues to perform. Failing to complete that testing, or failing the test itself, can result in:

• Delayed or denied certificate of occupancy renewal
• Failed fire marshal inspections that halt other permitting activity
• Increased liability exposure if a system underperforms during an actual emergency
• Costly emergency remediation instead of planned maintenance

What Annual DAS Field Testing Involves

A proper DAS field testing engagement is more than a walkthrough with a signal meter. TELECO’s certified testing process includes comprehensive coverage mapping across every floor and critical area, signal strength verification against current NFPA 1225 and IFC 510 thresholds, documentation formatted for AHJ submission and review, and identification of any degraded components before they cause a compliance failure.

For building owners managing multiple properties, keeping track of testing schedules, local AHJ requirements, and documentation deadlines across a portfolio can become its own administrative burden, one more reason ongoing testing tends to fall through the cracks without a dedicated process behind it.

A Growing Compliance Gap Across the Region

TELECO’s engineering team, which also handles DAS design and engineering and public safety DAS installation across South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, Southern Virginia, and the Nashville market, reports a rising number of buildings that discover a compliance gap only when a fire marshal requests documentation the owner cannot produce. In several cases, buildings that passed their original installation inspection years ago had never undergone the recertification their local code required in the years since.

“The buildings most at risk are not the ones without a DAS system,” the TELECO spokesperson noted. “They’re the ones that have a system and assume it’s still compliant because nobody has told them otherwise. Code enforcement doesn’t wait for a building to have a problem. It’s on the owner to prove the system still works.”

What TELECO Recommends Building Owners Do Now

TELECO recommends that owners and facility managers confirm the testing frequency required by their local AHJ, since some jurisdictions have adopted requirements beyond the national code minimums; locate documentation from the most recent test, if one has occurred; and schedule testing proactively rather than waiting for an AHJ notice or a failed inspection to force the issue. Buildings undergoing renovation, adding tenants, or changing occupancy classifications should treat DAS testing as part of that planning process rather than an afterthought.

About TELECO

TELECO, Inc. has delivered business technology solutions for over 45 years, with offices in Greenville, South Carolina, and Deerfield Beach, Florida. The company’s ten core service lines include Managed IT, Cybersecurity, Video Surveillance, Access Control, Cellular DAS, Public Safety DAS, Business Phone Systems, Structured Cabling, DAS Field Testing, and DAS Design and Engineering, serving clients across hospitality, healthcare, commercial real estate, retail, government, logistics, education, and finance. TELECO’s certified DAS Field Testing team works directly with property owners, developers, and AHJs throughout the Southeast to design, install, test, and maintain public safety and cellular DAS systems that meet code today and continue to meet it every year after. For more information or to schedule a DAS field test, visit https://www.teleco.com/das-field-testing/ or call 800.800.6159.

Media Contact
Company Name: TELECO, Inc.
Contact Person: Mark Williams
Email: Send Email
Phone: (800) 800-6159
Address:430 Woodruff Road Suite 300
City: Greenville
State: SC
Country: United States
Website: www.teleco.com

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