Just to put things in the perspective they need:
That room repair could have had a sprinkler added in maybe an hour, using perhaps $50 in parts, by any plumber - except for regulatory barriers.
A simple pipe extension from the existing plumbing, and a single head, would make a world of difference. But it wouldn't be "legal".
You can't just be any plumber ... you need to be a "sprinkler fitter." These are 'certified' by the sprinkler manufacturers. While there are NO code differenced between a system using, say, Grinnell or Hodgeman sprinkler heads ... you'll not find any man who can do both.
Then they'll want to get their engineers involved. They're not about to sell you a case of heads.
They've done a fine job of discouraging any DIY or non-required systems from being installed.
The sundry sprinkler codes will want dedicated supplies, pressure / flow tests, alarms, specially certified pipes, and so on.
All those things are well and good ... but they also make you choose between a 'whole loaf' and none. "Perfect" has become the enemy of "good enough."
In other words .... this man's life not only wasn't worth the tens of thousands of dollars a 'proper' system would have cost
(to retrofit the entire building) ... they don't want to let you spend $50 on the off chance that you might save the next guy.
Let me tell you ... if the plumbing were accessible in my place ... there'd be a sprinkler added. Maybe not to every room, or to cover every corner ... but I'd want to stack the odds a bit better. And I'm in a rental.
