Q: It is my understanding that all sprinkler heads in the same compartment must be of the same rating. Is NFPA referring to temperature rating or response time?

A: According to NFPA 13-2010, section 8.3.3.2, they are referring to the type of sprinkler heads, such as Standard Response (SR) vs. Quick Response (QR) sprinklers. When they refer to a ‘compartment’ in NFPA 13-2010, they are not referring to a smoke compartment of a healthcare occupancy. NFPA 13 refers to a compartment as a room or an area with four walls. So, a corridor that is 75-feet long has to have all of the same type of sprinklers: SR or QR. You cannot mix a SR sprinkler with a group of QR sprinklers in the same room or area (i.e. ‘compartment’).